There has never been a moment since the 2016 season in which Ezekiel Elliott wasn’t considered the lead running back for the Dallas Cowboys. The same can’t be said outside of the organization though, where belief in the two-time NFL rushing champ changes like diapers on a newborn — contingent upon just how colicky his detractors are on any given day. So when backup running back Tony Pollard had a fantastic day in the Week 2 win over the Los Angeles Chargers, the organization celebrated, and it also wasn’t lost on them that Elliott was pivotal in the victory as well, e.g. a touchdown and two third-down conversions on the game-winning drive, but the predictable calling for a change at RB ensued.
One week later, Elliott hammered the Philadelphia Eagles with 116 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns, effectively having his way with the NFC East rival — something he often does with that specific opponent. Elliott is now 7-2 against the Eagles and has amassed 1,227 yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns since joining the rivalry in 2016.
On Monday, Elliott also gained 58 yards after contact (3.41 YAC per touch), making it clear that the first one or two guys weren’t going to be enough to stop him from his mission of burying both Philly and takes from the previous week.
Be it Doug Pederson or Nick Sirianni as head coach, the Eagles simply have no answer for him, or for Dak Prescott, who masterfully aided in the Week 3 thrashing, and it was all the Eagles could do to not file assault charges.
“They were trying to play coverage [and] they were playing a lot of shell, so we had good numbers in the box and we took advantage of that,” Elliott told media after the game. “The O-line, they played their tails off. They were moving guys out of there all night.”
And Elliott who, quiet as it’s kept, also has no fumbles through the first three games, didn’t stop his praise at the offensive front — one that’s absent starting right tackle La’el Collins but has seen backup tackle Terence Steele now put two consecutive good weeks on film — but he continues his praise of Pollard and the other offensive weapons that make it difficult for opposing defenses to know what’s coming and then what to do to try and stop it.
“That’s one thing that I like about this team,” Elliott said. “Everybody can eat. It’s not just one person out there making plays. There’s a whole bunch of people making plays. It’s just so contagious.
“I just like the momentum we’ve got. We’ve got to keep it going.”
Pollard finished the night with 60 rushing yards on 11 attempts, and tight end Dalton Schultz had his best game of the season thus far in adding 80 receiving yards and two touchdowns to the mix. It’s the first time the Cowboys have seen a running back score twice on the ground and a tight end grab two receiving touchdowns in the same game since Hall of Fame halfback Tony Dorsett combined with Doug Cosbie to so in 1985.
So while Elliott loves being fed, he takes just as much pleasure in seeing others get their fill as well, and those focusing on what’s only on his spoon are missing the point: to stack wins.
“When you’ve got a contagious energy, everybody just excited to see each other make those type of plays,” Elliott added. “It’s hard to come back from that.”
