It was crisis averted for wide receiver Ryan Flournoy in the Dallas Cowboys' Week 16 loss.
In the second quarter of the Dallas Cowboys' collapsing loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, wide receiver Ryan Flournoy caught a pass in the center of the field and was decked by Denzel Perryman. The collision came after Flournoy was already down onto the turf, issuing Perryman an unnecessary roughness penalty for banging into the receiver's head while in a defenseless position.
The consequences grew to be much worse than that for the veteran linebacker.
Announced Monday afternoon, the NFL has suspended Perryman for the Chargers' final two regular-season games without pay, citing "repeated violations of playing rules intended to protect the health and safety of players."
Flournoy did not offer a specific reaction to the hit or the suspension, but did say that Perryman made amends with the young receiver after the game.
“I actually did hear that,” Flournoy said of the punishment. “To clear stuff up, he did come and apologize after the game. That just shows his character and sportsmanship. In the moment, I was heated. Like, why didn’t he just touch me? But he apologized, and I forgive him for it.”
For Flournoy and his stellar second season in Dallas, the relief doesn't come from Perryman's punishment. It comes in how a physical crisis was averted.
“I was a little fearful,” Flournoy told the media after the game. “Because the way I got twisted up, I felt a little click and pop [in the knee], and I couldn’t return to the game. That hurt me.”
That tweak brought back a wave of worry as Flournoy has already torn his ACL in college. He couldn't have this breakout season end that way.
"We were really worried about it,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “It was one of those deals where they took him in to evaluate him, and they just weren’t sure. He’s had that [right] knee repaired before.”
As Perryman was handed his suspension, the Cowboys continued testing on Flournoy. The news came back that he avoided major structural damage, leaving the diagnosis as a sprain. He also seems to have avoided suffering a concussion on the blow to the head, which keeps him in the lineup after a handful of Cowboys have been knocked out with that same injury this season.
“I got great news, and I’ve been happy all day, for real,” Flournoy said. “We got great news this morning. After the MRI, it was just a sprain. God blesses me in tremendous ways.”
"Flo" has posted 35 receptions, 407 receiving yards and four touchdowns - all career-highs. His fourth touchdown catch came in the first quarter as Dallas' first score against the Chargers in Week 16.
“We were actually in game plan meetings this morning when I got the call from [head athletic trainer] Jim [Maurer],” Schottenheimer detailed. “He gave us the great news about [Flournoy], so I did what most people that care do. I picked up the phone and called Flo and told him I loved him and how excited I was. A bunch of the guys in the room started going crazy and pounding the table.”
The Cowboys now have a quick turnaround as they visit the Washington Commanders on Christmas Day. It's less time for Flournoy to recover (he was limited in Monday's walkthrough practice), but the injury is a sigh of relief nonetheless for one of the Cowboys' most improved players.
“The job’s not done, though," Flournoy said. "I still want to keep climbing and keep going, be consistent every time. Just be me and show up every time.”
Said Schottenheimer: "The way he’s playing and the confidence he’s playing with, he deserves all of the great things coming his way.”
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