Ezekiel Elliott exploded onto the scene in the NFL when he was drafted in 2016. Coming off of an exceptional career at Ohio State in which he won a National Championship, Elliott was taken fourth overall by the Dallas Cowboys and promptly led the league in rushes (322), yards (1,631), and yards per game (108.7) to be named All-Pro.

He got hurt in his sophomore season but still managed nearly 1,000 yards in 10 games and bounced back the next year to lead the league again in rushes, yards and yards per game. 2019 was much of the same, showing a great ability to always fall forward and be the workhorse.

The Downturn

2020 showed us a different Zeke than before. He rushed for over 100 yards just twice his yards per attempt dropped to 4.0, down half a yard from the season before. In the passing game, Elliott caught nearly the same number of passes but gained just 6.5 yards per catch, down from 7.8 in 2019. His rushing attempts dropped by just a couple per game as Tony Pollard started to prove he could take on some of the load but mostly Zeke just didn't look like himself and the offense started to call his number less and less. It was the first time that he played a full season and did not surpass the 1,000 yard mark as his yards per game dropped precipitously from 84.8 to 65.3.

New Look Zeke

After a dismal 2020, Elliott took to the gym and the practice field and posted videos all over the place about how hard he was working. How it was the return of Zeke and proving that the prior season was just a fluke.

Unfortunately it wasn't. In the first game of the season, a huge bill against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Elliott ran for 33 yards on 11 attempts. Not a great way to start the season. He wouldn't break 100 yards until week four against the cellar dweller Panthers and only accomplished that once more for the season. As the season kept on, the touches continued to lessen, dropping to below 10 on four occasions, because the explosiveness and effectiveness were not there.

There is something to be said about the Dallas offensive line that is not what it once was, certainly not the elite group that Zeke had his first couple of years. However, his counterpart didn't seem to have anywhere near as much trouble last season.

Tony Pollard

Tony Pollard was drafted out of Memphis in 2019 and had a modest start to his career. His first two seasons showed a ramp up in ability and talent as he played his way into more and more touches.

2021 was where there was a stark difference in what Pollard could do versus Zeke. He ran for 719 yards on over 100 less rushes than Zeke who ran for 1,002. That may seem like a lot but gaining three yards per rush is not a difficult thing to do so it points out that Pollard would have easily matched totals had he been given the ball the same number of times as Elliott.

It also furthers the point to look at the fact that Pollard gained 5.5 yards per attempt, 1.3 better than Elliott for the 2021 season. That is a huge difference and the Cowboys noticed. They couldn't really give Pollard a huge share of the carries given what they have invested in Elliott but in eight games, he carried the ball a double digit number of times. A clear sign that Dallas thinks Pollard can get it done.

Is Ezekiel Elliott's job at risk? No. His 2021, while disappointing, wasn't really that bad. He ended up seventh in rushing yards and sixth in rushing touchdowns, good for the counting stats. But Pollard ranked fifth in the league with 5.5 yards per attempt, putting him up next to guys like Jonathan Taylor and Nick Chubb. That is not to say that Pollard is on those players' level, but it points out that in Dallas there is a star on the rise and on the decline.

It wouldn't be surprising to maybe see some games where the two running backs split carries almost evenly if last year is any indication of performance. Who knows, maybe a 27 year old Zeke with 1,650 career rushing attempts will find it again but history is not very kind in that regard. Let's see how the season shakes out.

Mound Visit

Saints Sports Network is a Christian group that brings you interesting sports coverage. Our name comes from Ephesians 2:18-21 where it notes that all Christians are saints in God's eyes. Therefore we are saints who write about sports but also want to make sure to share the Gospel. That's where Mound Visit comes into play because we all need a visit to the mound from God in good times and bad to recenter our lives and trust in him. We'll do that by highlighting a Bible verse for you to think and pray about in each newsletter that you receive from us.