Earlier this week, the Dallas Cowboys parted ways with running back Ezekiel Elliott. Elliott was drafted with the fourth overall pick in the 2016 draft by the Cowboys after a legendary college football career at "The" Ohio State University.
Elliott immediately established himself as arguably the best running back in the NFL during his rookie season as he led the league in rushing yards with 1,631 and scored 15 touchdowns on the ground. He and rookie quarterback Dak Prescott were the NFL's dynamic duo as they led the Cowboys to a 13-3 record and the number one seed in the NFC. Although the Cowboys ended up losing a heartbreaking game to the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round, Cowboys fans were optimistic about the future of the team.
That season, Prescott and Elliott were both Pro-Bowlers and Elliott even earned a First Team All-Pro selection. Elliott found himself on the top of the running back world that offseason and all of a sudden, it was all in jeopardy. Elliott was facing the possibility of being suspended for six games of the 2017-2018 season due to domestic violence accusations that began in July of 2016. Elliott's maturity was also in question because of an incident at a St. Patrick's Day parade where he was caught on camera pulling down a woman's shirt.
Despite the accusations, Elliott still opened the season as Dallas' starting running back as the NFL continued an ongoing investigation into the matter. In his first game against the New York Giants, Elliott had 104 rushing yards and Dallas won the game 19-3. Trying to hold off suspension for as long as possible, Elliott played in the next seven games for the Cowboys before eventually serving his six game suspension.
The Cowboys had a 3-3 record without Elliott and the offense suffered greatly. Dak Prescott regressed from what fans were used to seeing from the previous season and when Elliott came back for a must win game against the Seattle Seahawks, Dallas lost. After going 13-3 the previous season, the Cowboys finished the 2017 season 9-7 and missed the playoffs. Elliott ran for 983 yards and seven touchdowns that season.
In his third season with Dallas, Elliott bounced back and won another rushing title with 1,434 yards and scored six rushing touchdowns. Dallas had a 10-6 record and Prescott and Elliott won their first playoff game together after beating the Seahawks 24-22 in the Wild Card round. Dallas lost to the eventual NFC champion Rams in the Divisional round, but it looked like the Cowboys had formed a new triple threat with Prescott, Elliott and newly acquired WR Amari Cooper from the then Oakland Raiders.
After that season, Elliott received a massive contract extension from the Cowboys. He got 90 million dollars over six years. After threatening to hold out, Elliott got paid and ran for 1,357 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2019. Even though the Cowboys went 8-8, they had the league's number one offense and Elliott was still looking like a star. However, in 2020, it looked like the beginning of the end for the star running back. In what was a disastrous season for the Cowboys after Prescott got injured, and Elliott ran for 979 yards and just six touchdowns.
In 2021, Elliott had somewhat of a bounce back season running for 1,002 yards and 10 touchdowns. Dallas had a 12-5 record that season and made the playoffs where they lost to the 49ers in the Wild Card round. This past season, the Cowboys made the playoffs again after another 12-5 season and even won a playoff game. However, they lost in embarrassing fashion to the San Francisco 49ers in the divisional round. Elliott ran for 876 yards on the season, his lowest total of his career.
Ezekiel Elliott had one of the most dominant three to four year stretches from a running back we have seen, and then he flamed out. The running back position has been devalued for a long time and Elliott is one example why that is. With the Cowboys offense clearly hitting a ceiling in the postseason, continuing to pay a running back who is clearly on the decline is just not a smart move.
There is definitely still a market for Ezekiel Elliott in the NFL, but he has clearly shown he cannot be a lead back anymore. With his career starting out in such promising fashion, his decline has been unfortunate to see.