Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott said he’d play in Week 17 against the New York Giants. However, it seems the team has other ideas for their prized workhorse. Dallas reportedly plans to rest Zeke in their regular-season finale against the Giants.

Per Jane Slater of NFL Network:

Cowboys team sources tell me they will rest RB Ezekiel Elliott today. Expect backups Darius Jackson and Rod Smith to split reps instead against the Giants. RG Zack Martin also not expected to play ahead of playoffs

The Cowboys have nothing left to play for in Week 17 against the Giants. They’ve already clinched the NFC East and are locked into the No. 4 seed in the conference.

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Elliott is the current league leader in rushing yards with 1,434. He is 183 yards ahead of Todd Gurley in second place, but with the Rams RB ruled out for Week 17, it seems likely that Elliott will win his second rushing title in three years.

It makes all the sense in the world for the Cowboys to sit Elliott on Sunday. Aside from the fact that the Cowboys have nothing more on the line, nobody on the team needs the rest more than Zeke. He has carried the ball 304 times this season, 48 more than Gurley. He’s also got 77 catches to boot, which shows just how crucial he’s been to the Cowboys.

Since he’s that important to their offense, the Cowboys will need Elliott as fresh as possible for the playoffs, where he will likely get a good number of touches.