The Dallas Cowboys head into Week 4 facing a crucial matchup against the Houston Texans. If the Cowboys want to avoid their second-straight demoralizing loss, they’ll need to change some things up on Sunday.
With that thought in mind, here are two players the Cowboys should use more in Houston.
1) WR Ryan Flournoy
Three games into the 2026 regular season, Ryan Flournoy has been a virtual non-factor. The third-year wideout came into the year with some high expectations after a very productive 2025 campaign, but so far
this season he has struggled to make an impact in Dallas’ offense.
Flournoy has caught just nine of 18 targets for 67 yards. His big-play ability has been missing in action, as shown by the 26-year-old failing to record a reception of 20+ yards or more and having just one reception totaling 10+ yards. While not getting Flournoy involved hasn’t hurt Dallas’ offense much so far, if they can get the young wideout playing at a high level, it could make their offense truly unstoppable.
If they can block up Houston’s front, the Cowboys should have a chance to move the ball in the air this week against a Texans defense that has surprisingly struggled against the pass. Houston ranks 21st in the league in defensive dropback EPA (0.138) and is 24th in NY/A (6.7) and 26th in passing yards allowed (716).
Getting Flournoy going could be the missing ingredient to take the Cowboys offense to the next level. Dallas needs to focus on getting the young wideout involved in Houston on Sunday.
2) TE Brevyn Spann-Ford
I probably sound like a broken record at this point, but the Cowboys need to give Brevyn Spann-Ford a legitimate number of reps at tight end. Last week, starting tight end Jake Ferguson’s ball-control issues once again reared their ugly head when the 27-year-old fumbled in a key spot.
That fumble was Ferguson’s eighth since the start of the 2024 season, tied for the third-most of any player in the league. Ferguson’s touches-per-fumble rate of 18.9 is by far the highest of any player on the list below.
Ferguson’s ball control issues would be passable if he were still a YAC specialist like he was back in 2023, but this is just not the case anymore. Over the course of his last 20 games, Ferguson has posted an uninspiring 3.2 YAC/REC rate. Even when Dallas is getting him the ball, unless he is wide open, he’s not been able to turn short catches into bigger plays down the field.
Thankfully for the Cowboys, they have a tight end who is capable of doing just that in Brevyn Spann-Ford. The 26-year-old did just that when given a chance on Sunday against Baltimore, recording one of the highlights of the day on an impressive 19-yard catch-and-run.
Every week it’s becoming clearer that Spann-Ford might just be the best tight end on Dallas’ roster. This week they need to take that into account and give him just as many opportunities as Ferguson.
