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The Dallas Cowboys brought back Ezekiel Elliott this past offseason to help their rushing attack, but his role has been limited. The running back even voiced that he's “dumbfounded” by the lack of usage, but owner Jerry Jones insists the team is just saving him.
Jones made an appearance on 105.3 The Fan and downplayed the Zeke situation. Via the team website:
“That's an exaggeration. Dumbfounded is a mischaracterization and a bad description of how he feels about things,” said Jones to 105.3 The Fan on Friday ahead of the matchup against the Detroit Lions. “… We're saving him, and we should be. Rico is an outstanding running back, outstanding, but he's always had the challenge because of his size in blocking and protecting the quarterback.
“But his big problem has been what? He's had injuries over the course of his career. So it would be madness to depend on [that]. … Zeke is there and we want to protect him over this particular period of time.”
The question is, what is Jones saving him for? Dallas is only 3-2 and ranks second-last in the NFL with a mere 82 rushing yards per game. They are not running the football nearly enough. Sure, their pass game is wonderful, but this offense needs to be more dynamic.
Rico Dowdle has actually emerged as RB1 with 54 carries for 221 yards. Elliott meanwhile has only 30 carries for 98 yards. Since Week 1 where Zeke had 10 carries, his usage has continued to spiral downward. 40 of his yards came in the season opener. In other words, the veteran is almost non-existent in the Cowboys' attack right now.
Nevertheless, Zeke is staying professional and knows he can't control his minimal playing time:
“It’s definitely a little different but keep your head down,” Elliott said. “I just focus on being a good teammate. I’ve been focusing on continuing to help lead this team and I’m not making it about me, it’s about this football team (winning).”
The Cowboys face a very tough test in the Detroit Lions in Week 6.
