Dallas Cowboys legend Emmitt Smith weighed in on the state of the team heading into the 2022 season and he didn't mince words when discussing Ezekiel Elliott. From one Cowboys RB to another, Smith dropped some major praise on Elliott, claiming that Zeke needs to be the focal point of the Cowboys' offense in 2022, via SBNation.

“There's no doubt… Ezekiel Elliott is our number one guy and should be the focal point of the entire offense. At the end of the day, I love Tony Pollard, but Zeke is our 1-2-3 guy,” Smith said via the SBNation NFL Show.

Smith mentioned his admiration for Tony Pollard, who has played a key role in Dallas' offense over the past few years, but insisted that if the Cowboys are serious about contending in 2022, the ball needs to be in Zeke's hands.

Last season, Elliott featured in 17 games for the Cowboys, racking up 237 carries for 1,002 yards and 10 touchdowns. It was his second consecutive season with less than 300 carries after topping that mark in three of his first four seasons. Part of the reason for the decrease in carries for Zeke over the past two years has been a concerted effort by the Cowboys to ease up his workload, as well as the emergence of Pollard.

Pollard has recorded more than 100 carries in each of the past two seasons, including 130 touches last season. He picked up 719 yards and two rushing touchdowns, while also hauling in 39 receptions for 337 yards. While he's been excellent in support of Zeke, Smith wants to see Elliott resume his role as a bell-cow running back out of the backfield.