RB Cowboys Ezekiel Elliott Won’t Blame Knee Injury For Recent Wrestling

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After Thursday night’s 27-17 victory over the New Orleans Saints, the Dallas Cowboys are now enjoying a long week off. The 10 days before a crucial NFC East battle with Washington could benefit running back Ezekiel Elliott.

“It will be good to take a break,” Elliott said, via the team’s official website.

The Highly Paid In Return refuses to blame the recent struggles over his ailing knee, but it clearly bothers him.

On Thursday, Zeke ran 13 times for 45 yards. It was his fourth straight game under 50 rushing yards and his seventh straight under 70 rushing yards, two career-long stretches, according to NFL Research.

On a 10-yard fourth quarter run to the edge, it was clear Elliott was not in good health as his gate looked hampered on play. According to Next Gen Stats, the 10-yard run had an expected gain. nine yards, that is to say, it was well blocked. The +1 yard more expected was the second best score of the match for Zeke (+9 RYOE on the last carry when the match was no longer in doubt). For the game, Elliott had -12 more rushing yards than expected. About ten less than blocked.

Despite visual and statistical evidence, Elliott declined to attribute the problems to his knee.

“The Saints have a good front,” said Elliott. “They do a lot of movement. They have a lot of good players up front. So it was a bit difficult.”

We don’t even need to make it a Zeke vs. Tony Pollard argument. The quick comeback has been better lately, but aside from a single carry for 58 yards, he too was stuck for much of Thursday’s game.

The bigger issue than which back should see more hits is that Elliott doesn’t look healthy and the offense is poorer for that. Zeke played 45 of 65 snaps (66.2), with most of his touches ineffective.

Elliott’s role in the Cowboys offense is more than just directing the ball. He’s one of the best blocking backs in the NFL, so he can still make an impact on a game even if he doesn’t cut into the yards.

But the question is whether a diminished Zeke is the best thing for this Cowboys offense right now. Since Week 6, Elliott has generated -68 rush yards above expectations, per Next Gen Stats, or -0.8 per game. His expected points added per stroke stand at -0.28, tied for ninth The NFL ranked among running backs during this period with at least 20 runs (for comparison, Jonathan Taylor is at 0.23 since Week 6, the NFL’s best).

Thursday’s 20-point offensive exit was enough against a Saints side led by Taysom Hill. Will it be against better talent, especially if the Cowboys make the playoffs?

“We made the plays we had to make and all we can do is celebrate that victory and turn around and find how we can improve,” said Elliott.

Where Elliott can do the best is rest and become as healthy as possible. However, with the Cowboys insisting on not sitting the star down for a game or reducing his reps, the question of whether that is possible remains a lingering question as we tackle running.

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