{"id":18449,"date":"2025-01-11T10:26:59","date_gmt":"2025-01-11T10:26:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=18449"},"modified":"2025-01-11T10:26:59","modified_gmt":"2025-01-11T10:26:59","slug":"breaking-cowboys-ex-ezekiel-elliott-gets-bad-playoff-news-from-chargers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=18449","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING: Cowboys Ex Ezekiel Elliott Gets Bad Playoff News from Chargers"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"m-detail-header--dek\">When will former Dallas Cowboys star get his big playoff chance for his new team?<\/div>\n<div class=\"m-detail-header--flexbox\">\n<div class=\"m-detail-header--meta\">\n<div class=\"m-description--list\">\n<p>The good news? Ezekiel Elliott has himself a job with the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nfl\/los-angeles-chargers\/\">Los Angeles Chargers<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The bad news? A &#8220;job&#8221; doesn&#8217;t mean a &#8220;uniform.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The Chargers are gearing up for their first playoff run under coach\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/tag\/jim-harbaugh\">Jim Harbaugh<\/a>\u00a0as they are traveling here to Texas for the Saturday evening meeting with\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nfl\/houston-texans\/\">Houston Texans<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>As they prepare, the Chargers have sought for help in their backfield where they monitor a few injury concerns. Both J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards were limited participants earlier this week in practice and are listed as questionable for the AFC Wild Card contest.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"m-in-content-ad-row l-inline mm-in-content-ad-row--in-content not-size-a not-size-b not-size-d\" data-ad-group=\"in_content-0\">\n<div class=\"m-in-content-ad not-size-a not-size-b not-size-d\" data-ad-group=\"in_content-0\" data-zone-count=\"4\"><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Dobbins in particular should be fine. But the issues led to a move &#8230;<\/p>\n<p>The signing of Elliott to the team&#8217;s practice squad Monday evening.<\/p>\n<div class=\"m-detail--body-item m-detail--body-item-inline\">\n<figure class=\"l-inline tml-image m-detail--tml-image--inline\"><a><picture class=\"is-loaded\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_380\/MjExOTQ3NjkzOTM1Njk5OTQ0\/zeke-chargers.webp 380w, https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_620\/MjExOTQ3NjkzOTM1Njk5OTQ0\/zeke-chargers.webp 620w, https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_700\/MjExOTQ3NjkzOTM1Njk5OTQ0\/zeke-chargers.webp 700w\" type=\"image\/webp\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1240px) 700px, (min-width: 675px) 620px, calc(100vw - 40px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_380\/MjExOTQ3NjkzOTM1Njk5OTQ0\/zeke-chargers.jpg 380w, https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_620\/MjExOTQ3NjkzOTM1Njk5OTQ0\/zeke-chargers.jpg 620w, https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_700\/MjExOTQ3NjkzOTM1Njk5OTQ0\/zeke-chargers.jpg 700w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1240px) 700px, (min-width: 675px) 620px, calc(100vw - 40px)\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"m-detail--tml-image m-image\" src=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/t_share\/MjExOTQ3NjkzOTM1Njk5OTQ0\/zeke-chargers.jpg\" srcset=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" alt=\"zeke chargers\" width=\"948\" height=\"544\" data-src=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_700\/MjExOTQ3NjkzOTM1Njk5OTQ0\/zeke-chargers.jpg\" \/><\/picture><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"m-detail--tml-image-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"m-detail--tml-image-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Elliott joined the Chargers after spending the first 17 weeks of the season with the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nfl\/dallas-cowboys\/\">Dallas Cowboys<\/a>.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"m-in-content-ad-row l-inline mm-in-content-ad-row--in-content not-size-a not-size-b not-size-d\" data-ad-group=\"in_content-1\">\n<div class=\"m-in-content-ad not-size-a not-size-b not-size-d\" data-ad-group=\"in_content-1\" data-zone-count=\"4\"><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Dallas granted his release before the team&#8217;s regular season finale against the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nfl\/washington-commanders\/\">Washington Commanders<\/a>\u00a0in order to give Elliott a chance to pursue opportunities with a contender for the postseason.<\/p>\n<p>However, Harbaugh was quite complimentary of Elliott, calling back to his days at Michigan when his teams faced Elliott&#8217;s\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/college\/ohio-state-buckeyes\/football\">Ohio State Buckeyes<\/a>..<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYeah, like most people who watch football, very familiar,\u201d Harbaugh said this week.\u00a0\u201cAnd personally, I\u2019ve got some bruises from days competing against Zeke. It\u2019s great to see him, he\u2019s here and we\u2019ll start having at it today.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"m-in-content-ad-row l-inline mm-in-content-ad-row--in-content not-size-a not-size-b not-size-d\" data-ad-group=\"in_content-2\">\n<div class=\"m-in-content-ad not-size-a not-size-b not-size-d\" data-ad-group=\"in_content-2\" data-zone-count=\"4\"><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>He expanded on the praise, claiming &#8220;better is welcome&#8221; when it comes to the Chargers. But will the &#8220;better&#8221; back get to see the field on this playoff journey?<\/p>\n<p>Harbaugh believes if they get past the Houston Texans in the AFC Wild Card, that is a possibility. In reality, that may be a bit more complicated. If Dobbins and Edwards cannot play, the Chargers&#8217; backfield depth is trimmed significantly, leaving Hassan Haskins and Kimani Vidal to carry the load on the active roster.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"m-in-content-ad-row l-inline mm-in-content-ad-row--in-content not-size-a not-size-b not-size-d\" data-ad-group=\"in_content-3\">\n<div class=\"m-in-content-ad not-size-a not-size-b not-size-d\" data-ad-group=\"in_content-3\" data-zone-count=\"4\"><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Those two are both young backs with not near the experience of the veteran Elliott. The question then becomes how much tread does he have left on the tires?<\/p>\n<p>Elliott was given the opportunity to split carries with Rico Dowdle in Dallas this season, but the tenured practice squad back essentially phased him out of the game plan toward the end of the season. Elliott had only 226 yards on 74 carries in 15 games.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps things change in a better offensive system with an apparent need at running back though Elliott&#8217;s days of being a bruiser are well past him now.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mm-embed-card--list\">\n<div class=\"m-card--media\"><a class=\"m-card--image-link\" tabindex=\"-1\" href=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/nfl\/dallas-cowboys\/mike-mccarthy-coaching-return-im-a-winner-dallas-cowboys-announces-bold-message-to-jerry-jones\" rel=\"\"><picture class=\"is-loaded\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/ar_16:9%2Cc_fill%2Ccs_srgb%2Cg_faces:center%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_220\/MjExOTEwODAwNDM1MTI4Mjk2\/usatsi_25120777.webp 220w, https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/ar_16:9%2Cc_fill%2Ccs_srgb%2Cg_faces:center%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_320\/MjExOTEwODAwNDM1MTI4Mjk2\/usatsi_25120777.webp 320w, https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/ar_16:9%2Cc_fill%2Ccs_srgb%2Cg_faces:center%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_640\/MjExOTEwODAwNDM1MTI4Mjk2\/usatsi_25120777.webp 640w\" type=\"image\/webp\" sizes=\"220px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/ar_16:9%2Cc_fill%2Ccs_srgb%2Cg_faces:center%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_220\/MjExOTEwODAwNDM1MTI4Mjk2\/usatsi_25120777.jpg 220w, https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/ar_16:9%2Cc_fill%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cg_faces:center%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_320\/MjExOTEwODAwNDM1MTI4Mjk2\/usatsi_25120777.jpg 320w, https:\/\/athlonsports.com\/.image\/ar_16:9%2Cc_fill%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cg_faces:center%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_640\/MjExOTEwODAwNDM1MTI4Mjk2\/usatsi_25120777.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"220px\" \/><\/picture><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When will former Dallas Cowboys star get his big playoff chance for his new team? The good news? Ezekiel Elliott has himself a job with the\u00a0Los Angeles&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18450,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hot-news","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>BREAKING: Cowboys Ex Ezekiel Elliott Gets Bad Playoff News from Chargers - 24\/7 News America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=18449\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BREAKING: Cowboys Ex Ezekiel Elliott Gets Bad Playoff News from Chargers - 24\/7 News America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When will former Dallas Cowboys star get his big playoff chance for his new team? 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