By: Jeremy Trottier

Coming into this article idea, frankly, I thought there was absolutely no viable way Ezekiel Elliott is remotely a Hall of Fame caliber player, as many of you may be thinking at this moment.  After delving into some more research on the topic, I am not 100% convinced he will make it, but frankly, there are a few players who compare exceptionally well to Zeke who made the Hall of Fame.  In this article, I will be comparing him to two Hall of Fame players who had relatively similar careers to this point in time, as well as gauging his legacy on the sport to determine if he is someone who should be considered for enshrinement. 

Ezekiel Elliott Vs. Currently Enshrined Players

The first thing I did when researching for this article is looked at every current Hall of Fame running back who was enshrined and taking into account their statistical success in comparison to Zeke.  As surprising as this may be, Zeke not only compares exceptionally well to one of these players but also seemingly surpasses another in many metrics across the board. 

The first player he compares well to is Hall of Fame Cleveland Browns running back Leroy Kelly, who played from 1964-1973. In his 10-season career, he had 7,274 rushing yards (217 less than Zeke as of the writing of this on 9/24), 74 touchdowns (18 more than Zeke), 4.2 yards per carry (0.3 less than Zeke average), 2,281 receiving yards (44 more than Zeke), and 13 receiving touchdowns (1 more than Zeke).  They compare almost identically except for rushing touchdowns, which Zeke would likely surpass in 3 more seasons if he is to play that much longer.  For those saying that seasons were shorter in this era, while that is true, Leroy played in 46 more games (20 more starts) over the course of his career, and rushed 52 more attempts in his career.  While they are relatively far apart in games played and started, the rushing attempts are very close as of right now, which shows efficiency per run as well as how productive Zeke has been in his 90 games to date.  Kelly did have 3 more pro-bowl appearances than Elliott, as well as 2 more first-team all-pro appearances. 

The other player worth mentioning in this topic would be Hall of Fame Denver Broncos Running back Floyd Little, who played from 1967-1975.  During this span of 9 seasons, he would play 117 games (27 more than Zeke), start in 105 (15 more than Zeke), have 1,641 rushing attempts (34 more than Zeke), had 6,323 rushing yards (1,168 less than Zeke), 43 rushing touchdowns (13 less than Zeke), 3.9 yards per carry (0.6 less per carry), 2,418 receiving yards (181 more than Zeke), and 9 receiving touchdowns (3 less than Zeke).  Floyd had 2 more pro-bowl appearances in his career than Elliott, and the same amount of first-team all-pro team appearances.  Ezekiel has the upper hand in nearly every major statistic compared to Little aside from receiving yards, which he could surpass this or next season.  Both of these players did play in an era where defense was significantly more dominant though however, which is worth noting, however backs were utilized at a higher level as well so it evens out to an extent. 

Does Zeke deserve to be in the HOF?

The answer for now, despite all this, is no.  While Elliott has performed at the level of other HOF backs so far, he needs to play out at least 3 more seasons and have a pretty decent level of production.  The main reason is legacy, a Super Bowl would go a long way for his resume, or a few more pro-bowl appearances.  Statistics do not carry all of the weight in the world, legacy takes about half of the weight for Hall of Fame inductions.  Zeke does not have a ton of legacy under his belt aside from a phenomenal rookie year. 

I would say breaking into the top 30-35 backs in terms of rushing yards would put him on a good track, which would be Marshawn Lynch (30^th all-time ”“ 10,413 rushing yards).  To put that into perspective, that is 2,922 yards, or almost 1,000 a season if he only plays 3 more years.  Is this attainable?  Absolutely.  Breaking the 10,000 yards mark, getting his touchdown numbers up a bit more, and continuing on the track to at least some deep playoff appearances would put him in HOF talks.  For now, he is a good quality player, but if he retired today, he would not be inducted. 

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By: Jake Rajala and Charlie Vakassian

Ezekiel Elliott has been one of the top running backs in the NFL for a long time. Zeke’s presence on the Dallas Cowboys has been vital for the Cowboys success. Nonetheless, the reigning NFC East champions have bigger leaders (Micah Parsons, Dak Prescot, Trevon Diggs) and a slightly different direction in 2022. 

There have been rumors that the ascending Cowboys could ship out the expensive RB. Cowboys Maven recently asked the world what the Cowboys should do with the “$17 million dollar question”. With that said, we decided to give our testimony on whether the team in Dallas should pardon Zeke. Let’s take a look.

Why the Cowboys should keep Zeke (Jake): 

The Dallas Cowboys are on the brink of making it to the Super Bowl. They have ascending stars like Dak Prescott and Micah Parsons. They still have a short-term window to chase Super Bowl royalty with Ezekiel Elliot on the Boys team. I also feel like Jerry Jones really wants a Super Bowl soon and they haven’t tasted a sweet Lombardi in quite some time. They haven’t won a Super Bowl since 1996. 

When Zeke is playing at a high level, the Cowboys and Prescott are a much more potent team. The Boys have a 26-4 record when their star RB rushes for 100+ yards, according to statmuse. It’s basically impossible to beat a Dak Prescott-led team when Zeke is playing like he’s from another planet. Zeke helps Prescott start in more manageable situations, be more efficient on the play-action game, and he helps his talented defense get more rest.

If the Cowboys ship out Zeke, they could waste Prescott’s talent. We’ve seen Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray very disgruntled with their situation. The Cowboys may feel spoiled with Elliot in their backfield, but Prescott might feel more attracted to a different “dream team” if his buddy isn’t in his offense anymore. The Cowboys shouldn’t take the gas off the pedal just yet. They should follow the Saints formula, where they have their studs Michael Thomas and Ryan Ramczyk recently) restructure their contracts. The Saints are in cap hell every season, but they walk the fine line of chaos and find a way to retain their key stars.

The Cowboys will also likely lose Gallup, so they should really keep the talented Elliot in their offensive attack. Elliot is also 26 years old and I strongly believe he can be more efficient for a couple of more seasons at least. When Zeke is 29 or 30 years old, then they should consider trading him. Prescott, Elliot, and Cooper can absolutely come out guns blazing in an NFC conference that may see the LA Rams, Green Bay Packers, and Arizona Cardinals look worse next season.

Why the Cowboys should trade Zeke (Charles):

The Dallas Cowboys are the cream of the crop in the NFC East, with the most talented quarterback by far, and an explosive offense. A key component of said offense is the star running back Ezekiel Elliot. Coming off of a solid season where he cracked over 1,000 yards and scored 12 times, Elliot is still one of the top backs in the game. This is exactly why the Cowboys should capitalize now and trade Elliot.

There are many star RBs that could be traded this offseason: Saquon, CMC, and Zeke. The Cowboys already have another young cheap, productive RB in Tony Pollard. Pollard is only 24 and had over 1000 total yards while acting as a backup. He could potentially outproduce Elliot if given a chance to start. 

Dallas is also in salary cap hell, $22M over the barrier. They will want to make space. Elliot is under a 6 year, $90M albatross contract. Second contracts for running backs typically do not pan out well. This contract runs through 2027 when Elliot would be 31. Running backs have a short shelf life, and we may have already seen the best days of Zeke. Dallas could save almost $13M against the cap this year by trading Elliot post June 1st.

 Getting that money off the books would be huge, and having a more than capable backup in Pollard lessens the need for a superstar at RB. Other positions are way more valuable to the team, like edge rushers, corners, and wideouts, which all happen to be team needs for the Cowboys this offseason. By trading Ezekiel Elliot, Dallas can focus its efforts on upgrading more premium positions, to make the Cowboys a more balanced team. 

The post Should the Cowboys trade Ezekiel Elliott in 2022? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliot had a career-low single-season performance in the 2020 season. Elliot muscled out a career-low rushing yards per game (65.3), career-low rushing yards per attempt (4.0), and a personal career-low single season rushing touchdown mark (6). It’s safe to say that Zeke’s signature “feed me” gesture wasn’t regularly used. 

Zeke will have his sights set on a stronger rushing effort next season and hope to successfully prove his six-year – 90 million contract extension signed in 2019 was worth it. Zeke should prove to be a reliable, talented RB for his Cowboys offense led by the healthy Dak Prescott at QB. However, there is a question worth pondering: will we see the 2019 Zeke (1,378 rushing yards) or a RB closer to the 2020 version? Is Zeke truly going to show he’s a Top 5 back again? 

With that being said, I’m going to outline the Top 10 RBs heading into next season and where I believe Zeke stands amid the NFL’s top RBs. 

1. Derrick Henry 

The clear top RB in the league is 2020 Offensive Player of The Year Derrick Henry. Henry joined fellow Tennessee Titans RB Chris Johnson as the second Titans ball carrier to have a 2,000 yard rushing season. Henry was just recently named as ESPN’s top RB in the league. The 6’4 240 RB will not see even see fewer defenders in the box with Julio Jones at the wideout position.

2. Christian McCaffrey

The second-best RB in the league belongs to one of the few RBs ever to have 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving in the same season. CMAC will be healthy and seeking vengeance with his new QB in 2021.

3. Dalvin Cook

Dalvin Cook is one of the most electric RBs to play the game in the last decade. Cook has battled nagging injuries, but that hasn’t stopped him from being one of the most productive RBs in the NFL. Cook is coming off a very impressive (1557 yds, 16 TDs), despite missing two games. 

4. Alvin Kamara

Cook and Alvin Kamara are both coming off fantastic seasons and appear to be at the utmost prime of their careers. Kamara proved his contract right with 1,688 total yards and 21 total touchdowns last season. AK was even named ESPN’s second top RB in the league. 

5. Saquon Barkley

ESPN had Saquon Barkley pinned as the No. one RB headed into the 2020 season, but Barkley suffered a devastating leg injury in just Week 2. Barkley fell to number sixth on ESPN’s top ten RB list heading into the 2021 season, but I believe his talent at this stage in his career is enough to keep him labeled as a top 5 back. 

6. Nick Chubb

It doesn’t matter who Nick Chubb has next to him in the Browns backfield, he will be a very efficient RB at all times. Chubb averaged a whopping 5.6 YPC, unleashed 1,067 yards, and cranked out 12 touchdowns in 12 games last season. Chubb’s rushing success over the past few seasons is why an NFL exec boldly stated that he is the best pure runner in the league. 

7. Josh Jacobs

I believe that Josh Jacobs is right in the prime of his career. He’s consistently hard to bring down and he doesn’t slow down when defenses adjust to make him the priority. Jacobs may not be on a sexy team, nor coveted by a season of All Pro honors, but he’s shown to be an elite, reliable talent. Jacobs is 23 years old and he’s due to unveil a career season in 2021 or 2022. 

8. Ezekiel Elliot 

The Cowboys RB is surely a Top 10 RB headed into the 2021 season. ESPN puts Zeke at number seven, but I don’t believe he’s the same player he was and he’s capable of returning to a 1,300+ rushing yard season. The RB with 979 rushing yards last season should be around a 1,100 yard back moving forward, but I believe his prime is behind him and Dak’s return would justify him over the names mentioned above him. 

9. Joe Mixon 

I like Joe Mixon’s pure RB ability and his outlook moving forward. Mixon should capitalize off the improved Joe Burrow in the offense. I believe the RB that missed 10 games last season but unleashed 1,100+ yards in each of the previous two seasons, should be placed in the Top 10. 

10.  Jonathan Taylor

Jonathan Taylor and Aaron Jones are tight for this spot, but the Colts RB with 1,169 rushing yards, 5 YPC, and 11 rushing touchdowns deserves to grab a spot. Aaron Jones is a talented all-around back, but It’s very possible that the strong Colts RB ousts a 1,300 yard+ season in 2021.

The post Is Zeke still a Top 10 RB in the NFL? ranking the Top 10 RBs appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Trenton Roberts (Twitter: @TRobertsNFL)

Background:

As the NFL offseason slowly moves along, there is increasingly less to talk about as we wait for the season to roll around. With more time on our hands, writers and journalists are looking for anything to write about. That was where the idea for this series arose from.

In the NFL today, there are many young talents who seem to already be heading towards acquiring a bust in Canton. Reaching the NFL Hall-of-Fame is one of the most prestigious honors any player can hope to achieve in their careers and is what motivate many players to improve and play at the highest level. In this series, we will discuss how some of these players have already left their marks and what they can do to ensure their eventual enshrinement.

Over the next ten weeks, we will make our way through twenty total players in the NFL today under the age of 28 who are well on their ways to the Hall. Twice a week, a new name will be discussed and debated in order to see where they stand and what they can do in their “Quest for Canton”.

Article:

In 2016, the Cowboy’s started a three-year run of a team drafting a running back with a top five pick in the NFL draft, selecting Ohio State star Ezekiel Elliot with the 4^th overall selection of the class. The Jacksonville Jaguars followed suit the next season, taking LSU bruiser Leonard Fournette with the same selection, and In 2018, the Giants finished the trifecta, selecting Penn State superstar Saquon Barkley as the second overall pick. Since then, each back has gone on to have success in their respective careers, with Fournette playing a key role in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2020-21 title run and Barkley dominating when healthy, even leading the league in scrimmage yards as a rookie.

What “Zeke” has done through five seasons, however, dwarfs anything the other two have accomplished, as well as the majority of every other first five years a running back has had in league history. In that time, the young Cowboy’s rusher has already led the league in rushing yards twice and led as well in rushing yards per game in each of his first three seasons. 

Through a players first 50 career games, Elliott finishes third in yards from scrimmage since the merger, with his 6,300 trailing just Edgerrin James (6,506) and LaDanian Tomlinson (6,425). He also made an immediate impact in Dallas, totaling 1,631 rushing yards and 15 rushing scores as a rookie and helping propel the Cowboys to the second-best record in the league (13-3) and pairing with fellow rookie, quarterback Dak Prescott, to dominate the league.

Despite a down year in 2020, in which the team lost Prescott early to injury and never recovered, Elliott’s early years remain some of the greatest in history. He ranks in the top 15 in NFL history in both rushing yards and touchdowns through a players first five seasons, with all 14 ahead of him either currently or soon-to-be enshrined in the Hall. Zeke should return back to prior form with a healthy Prescott keeping defenses honest once more in 2021 and continue his run as one of the best backs of this generation.

As it stands, Zeke is already well on his way to Canton, and should join the ranks of the greats soon enough should he continue his amazing career start!

Tune in early next week as we hit the quarter-way mark of the series and break down another legendary running back of this generation: Carolina Panthers superstar Christian McCaffrey.

The post Ezekiel Elliot has proven to be a historical talent at the RB position appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Jeremy Trottier

The Dallas Cowboys are in a pretty good situation right now with franchise QB Dak Prescott returning as well as a huge influx in the draft of defensive talent.  They look to be primed for a playoff run more than likely if Dak can revert to form.  However, one of their moves in the last few years has been questionable, which was paying Ezekiel Elliott so much so quickly.  

In this article, I will be going over a few reasons as to why paying Zeke such a large amount in his extension could be a poor decision, as well as why that is the case.

Previous Large RB Extensions

One of the most notable experiences we have witnessed recently of a RB getting a large extension then dropping off significantly is Todd Gurley.  Gurley went from one of the top backs in the league at the time, arguably the top back, to off the Rams within a few seasons.  At the time they paid the richest running back contract ever seen, which was four years $60 million and $45 million of which being guaranteed.  He now remains unsigned this offseason after his one year deal with the Atlanta Falcons, only three years after the giant extension.

This is not that much of an uncommon occurrence either, here are a few more to prove the point:

• Le’Veon Bell ”“ four years $52.5 million ”“ outcome was off the New York Jets within 3 years of extension
• Devonta Freeman ”“ five years $41.3 million ”“ outcome was off the Atlanta Falcons before end of contract
• David Johnson ”“ three years $39 million ”“ outcome was traded from Arizona Cardinals within two seasons
• Jerick McKinnon ”“ four years $30 million ”“ outcome was multiple underperforming seasons with injuries hampering some of them
• Leonard Fournette ”“ four years $27.2 million ”“ outcome was cut from the team in 2020 and signed elsewhere
• Christian McCaffrey ”“ four years $64.1 million ”“ outcome has been injury riddled seasons with minimal production due to such, unknown future as of now

Not all extensions have been bad, Alvin Kamara performed extremely well in his 2020 campaign after his relatively large extension.  Dalvin Cook has also been exceptionally talented within his own right after his five year extension.  However these previous extensions have been majorly led with negative connotations so far.

There Are A lot of RBs Out There

One of the reasons I believe this contract extension was much too early, rather than lucrative, was because of the amount of running backs on the market is extraordinary, and they keep coming in with every draft.  Paying Zeke for four years, or any running back for that matter, can lead to some major issues if they flop.  Last year Zeke did decent, but had a lot of issues as well with Dak not playing most of the season.

If this trend continues, the Cowboys will be locked into his guaranteed money, and likely will not have the ability to bring in a true replacement due to this constraint.  Having two running backs on relatively middle of the road contracts at once rather than one on a massive one has seemingly worked a few times now.  Tampa Bay had quite a few running backs in the rotation, Ronald Jones, Leonard Fournette, Ke’shawn Vaughn, and LeSean McCoy being the primary four.  Clearly having one running back is not necessarily the winning formula every time.

Now is this to say Zeke did not deserve to get paid?  No.  It is more the duration and extreme guaranteed values for four years that end up coming back around to be an issue.

The post Why the Cowboys are wrong to pay Zeke so much money appeared first on Pro Football Mania.