From practice squad to extension: Cowboys bet on Ryan Flournoy again

Ryan Flournoy's Cowboys career nearly ended before last season started. It now runs through 2027 on a one-year extension worth up to $6 million.

ESPN's Todd Archer reported the agreement Thursday from Frisco, citing sources, with Jordan Schultz first to break the Flournoy news. The arc between those two points - release and raise - is the story of how Dallas rebuilt trust in a sixth-round pick who refused to stay off the depth chart.

Special teams door, offense payoff

Flournoy was selected in the sixth round in 2024, released before last season, and re-signed to the practice squad. Special teams work put him back on game-day rosters; production as a receiver kept him there. He finished last year in the No. 3 wideout role with 40 receptions, 475 yards and four touchdowns, including 100-yard games at the Jets and Lions, Archer reported.

By the time training camp turned toward the regular season, he was the unquestioned No. 3 behind CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. Dak Prescott's willingness to look his way on scheduled and off-script throws turned a roster long shot into a weekly piece of the passing game.

Why extend him now

Restricted free agency after this season would have forced Dallas to decide on a tender or risk losing him. The extension removes that fork. It also pairs with Thursday's other move: a three-year, $18 million deal for tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford that includes $12.075 million guaranteed through 2029, according to ESPN sources.

NBC 5 reported the same Spann-Ford framework and noted he has settled in as the No. 2 tight end behind Jake Ferguson.

Ferguson signed a four-year, $52 million extension last year. Luke Schoonmaker is in a contract year before unrestricted free agency. On the perimeter, Pickens plays on a $27.3 million franchise tag with another tag projected near $32 million if no long-term deal arrives, ESPN reported.

Jerry Jones has said he wants Pickens for years; Flournoy's new contract means Dallas already has a familiar pass catcher booked for 2027 if that preference does not become a multiyear signature.

Week 1 stage

The Cowboys face the Giants on Sunday Night Football at MetLife Stadium, kickoff 8:20 p.m. ET (7:20 p.m. CT) on NBC, per the Giants' how-to-watch release. Primetime does not create Flournoy's role, but it will show whether last year's trust still holds when New York loads coverage on Lamb and Pickens.

Re-signings of Javonte Williams, Brandon Aubrey and Quinnen Williams, plus the Pickens tag, already sketched Dallas's willingness to pay known quantities. Flournoy's extension is smaller money with a similar logic: keep the player who already proved he belongs, before the market gets a chance to price him as someone else's problem.

Sources

ESPN

NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

giants.com