FRISCO – A source close to Ezekiel Elliott on Tuesday afternoon tells CowboysCountry.com that the two-time NFL rushing champion has requested and has been granted his release from the Dallas Cowboys.
This ends his second stint in Dallas – one that lasted 15 games and is not quite a match with the glory that he brought to “America’s Team” during the better part of the two-time NFL rushing champion’s career.
What is the point of Zeke’s request?
Pride is involved; In 2024 through his 15 games, Elliott totaled just 74 carries for 226 yards and three touchdowns for the Cowboys as Rico Dowdle eventually usurped him as the No. 1 back.
Additionally, it is fair to suggest that he might not be in the game plan for Sunday’s finale against visiting Washington as if Dallas plays to “play the kids” (tank?) … Elliott might’ve found himself a healthy scratch – an idea that came up earlier this year, much to Zeke’s disliking.
He will now be subject to waivers in the hopes of landing a job with a playoff contender for the remainder of the season. … along with the hopes of trying to recapture what he once was, starting in 2016 as a first-round rookie when he wasted little time in becoming one of the most productive backs of his era.
There is unhappiness here. But there is also a courtesy here.
While critics will suggest that Elliott at age 29 is capable of going nowhere, the Cowboys at 7-9 are definitively going nowhere. Dallas knew the truth about Elliott’s fading talents a year ago when the club ate his money (part of his blockbuster 2019 six-year contract worth worth $90 million) and cut him.
He spent one year in New England before re-upping here in what was largely a feel-good move. … though by the time he was being accused of failing to focus on attending meetings on time, there was some disharmony.
Maybe it’s not over. But if it is? Elliott was a three-time Pro Bowler and an All-Pro who served as a productive and colorful and sometimes controversial figure here … and who over the course of the entirety of his nine-year career tallied over 9,000 rushing yards and 89 total TDs.
