Even non-Texans know that size is of great importance in the Lone Star State. This Saturday will mark a bittersweet moment for its residents, then, as the Dallas Cowboys' crown of having the NFL's largest jumbotron is passed along to the Houston Texans and their enormous new video displays. The 277-foot-wide scoreboards, one parked behind each endzone, are now up and operational at Reliant Stadium and awaiting the Texans' home debut for this season against the Miami Dolphins this Saturday.
The Texans made it deep into the playoffs last season, won their first preseason game this year against the Vikings, and have now upgraded their stadium with displays that are 25 percent larger than the Cowboys' hardware. And to top it all off, the team recently won the right to host another Super Bowl in 2017 — the $16.5 million expense of the new jumbotrons was partially justified by the hope it would assist a winning bid.
Update: The original article described the Texans' new displays as the largest in pro sports, however that honor belongs to the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The Texans' jumbotrons are the widest around, and the article has been amended to reflect that.