After CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, the Cowboys have unearthed their No. 3 receiver.
There aren't too many positives to come out of the Dallas Cowboys' 44-30 loss to the Detroit Lions, but I've found one -- and it's truly good for the present and the future.
With CeeDee Lamb exiting the Thursday game in the third quarter due to a concussion, Dak Prescott and the offense needed someone to step up.
It wasn't George Pickens, and it wasn't Jake Ferguson.
It was second-year receiver Ryan Flournoy.
"Flo" would post 115 yards and a touchdown from his nine receptions as he stepped up in a big way for his team, and not for the first time this season.
Flournoy now has 329 yards and three touchdowns on the year, but what is even more impressive is when Dak looks No. 19's way.
Multiple times on third down this year, Flournoy has been the target. And in Detroit, that continued, along with a fourth-and-10 target, as Prescott found Flo for a conversion.
Oh, and not to mention his 42-yard touchdown.
Was it a coming-of-age moment for Flournoy? Possibly. But his Week 5 effort against the New York Jets might have been, too, as he totaled 114 yards from six receptions.
There is no denying Dak and coach Brian Schottenheimer's confidence in Ryan to make plays for the offense.
What started as a process of giving him snaps because he can block? That's morphed into ...
When this game was on the line, it was Flournoy who got the ball, not Pickens. Which says a lot.
The other point worth noting here is that we are now seeing Jalen Tolbert being reduced to being inactive over the past couple of weeks. Yes, he got a reprieve against the Kansas City Chiefs, but in his last three games, Tolbert hasn't had a single reception.
Is it too far to suggest Flournoy has now moved ahead of Tolbert to be the No.3 receiver? I don't think so.
Also involved: His work on special teams, which we know is a big point of emphasis for Schottenheimer.
But what Thursday night should do is end the Tolbert experiment as the No. 3 receiver; it's Flo's from here on out.
Two times the Cowboys have asked him to step up (Week 5 vs. the Jets and against the Lions), and twice Flournoy has come through for his team.
He deserves the chance to fully showcase what he can do because the confidence from Dak and Schotty is there, and so is the play from Flo.
He should be Dallas' No. 3 receiver until further notice.