Few would reasonably believe that Ezekiel Elliott, who notably reunited with the Dallas Cowboys this spring, is the same player — physically and ultimately statistically — that used to be a fantasy football superstar. Drafted in 2016, Elliott finished as a top-five fantasy running back in three of his first four NFL seasons, carrying myriad fantasy managers to championships. Even in his final two seasons in Dallas, when backup Tony Pollard pushed him for touches, primarily receptions, Elliott scored 12 touchdowns each season. He was the No. 6 running back for fantasy in 2021, a top-20 player overall.
The current version of Elliott, who turns 29 in July, seems unlikely to achieve RB1 status, but it may not be as wild a suggestion as one realizes, and he is certainly not a player to ignore. Elliott and the Cowboys parted ways before the 2023 season, with Pollard handling the bulk of the running back touches, but Pollard now is fighting for attention on the Tennessee Titans. We can analyze Elliott’s statistics in his lone season with the New England Patriots and come away unimpressed, but how many Patriots thrived? Can you find any? The rebuilding Patriots won four games.
There were positives in Elliott’s season away from Dallas, enough that there is a pathway to definite fantasy relevance this season, if the Cowboys permit this to occur, which they may. Elliott probably had little chance as a traditional runner for the Patriots, seeking space behind a soft offensive line and pathetic quarterback play, but he did catch 51 passes, 27 of them in the final five weeks when he handled a full workload without injured Rhamondre Stevenson. Elliott caught 17 passes during the entire 2022 season for Dallas, as the offense transitioned to Pollard in that role, but it hardly meant Elliott was no longer capable of the skill. He proved it last season.
Elliott averaged 20 touches per game over the final six contests in 2023, finding the end zone three times. No, he did not look like the same player he once was, in his burst or ability to break tackles, but he remained a savvy player with a nose — and the body — for the end zone. A motivated Elliott proved he could catch passes and he has shown no decline in blocking ability, a prerequisite which should earn him ample snaps. Elliott remains a punishing player at 225 pounds. We can debate how many touches the Cowboys intend to provide him as they avoid clarity, especially as a pass-catcher, but you know he is getting the short-yardage plays and touchdowns.
This is why it seems like a mistake to overlook Elliott in fantasy. While he is among the older starting running backs in the sport and unlikely to recapture the fullness of past glory, he doesn’t need to be that same player statistically to greatly aid fantasy managers. Elliott needs snaps, and even though Rico Dowdle averaged 4.1 yards per carry backing up Pollard last season, he hardly looked fluid catching passes. Dowdle has struggled to stay healthy, and he is not as good as Pollard in the open field. The Cowboys focused on other positions in the draft and free agency. Perhaps Dowdle, Royce Freeman, Deuce Vaughn, Malik Davis or Snoop Conner emerges as a third-down option to catch passes, but do not assume this. The Cowboys are open-minded, but the team knows Elliott can handle the workload, and he can’t wait to prove it.
Elliott showed he can for a dreadful Patriots offense last season, and the Cowboys are far from that. It would not be a reach to expect him to approach or surpass 1,000 rushing yards and double-digit touchdowns again, just as he did during the 2021 season. He scored 12 touchdowns in 2022, and he probably would’ve gotten to 1,000 rushing yards if he hadn’t missed a pair of midseason contests. Elliott was not the same player of his first several seasons in terms of efficiency, but volume counts for quite a bit, too. In this backfield, Elliott sure seems likely to get all the volume he can handle, and even if QB Dak Prescott attempts 600 passes, the offense is proficient enough to provide more than 250 touches — many in advantageous situations — to its lead running back.