Elliott learns off-the-field lesson, stays at home more

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott said he has learned his lesson about the spotlight that follows America’s Team and he has made a point to curtail his off-the-field activities.

Elliott got a lot of attention in March for pulling down the top of a woman at a St. Patrick’s Day parade, drawing national headlines and the scrutiny of the NFL.

The result has been a slowing of his off-the-field activities. Asked if he has stayed at home, he said, “Shoot, I’ve been doing that the past six weeks.”

“Just trying to learn to stay out of the way,” Elliott said. “Whatever you do is going to be seen.”

Although he played at high-profile Ohio State, he said he has learned the spotlight with the Cowboys is “definitely” more intense than he expected.

Elliott said it’s a painful and needed lesson to learn, considering how fleeting an NFL career can be if you continue to make mistakes.

“I think it’s just life,” said Elliott, who was wearing a Stetson hat when he met with the media Wednesday. “You learn from your mistakes, and if you don’t, it can be brutal. So it’s just part of life.”

Beasley review

Wide receiver Cole Beasley is taking it slow during minicamp, trying to heal a nagging hamstring injury that’s been troublesome since Week 10 of last season.

“I feel OK. If I had to play today, I could,” he said. “It’s just something I played through and I’ve done everything I needed to do, but it hasn’t gotten better.

“We decided to change it up a little bit and see if we can get this thing right before camp and it’s just June, so there’s no reason to push it right now.”

Beasley said the plan “in a couple of weeks” is to work with quarterback Dak Prescott in small throwing sessions to ready himself for the run-up to camp.

He said the current diagnosis is believed to be tendonitis in the hamstring.

“It’s not anything that effects me running routes at the snap,” Beasley said. “It’s only after the catch, when I look to open it up at that point.

“I can’t really put a percentage on it because, like I said, I could play today if needed, but I’d like it basically just to get right and completely go away.”

Dysert’s view

Zac Dysert isn’t ready to give up on his football dreams quite yet. He’s with his seventh NFL organization in five years, and is hoping to break through with the Cowboys.

This might be the best chance Dysert has had. The Cowboys are committed to Dak Prescott and Kellen Moore, but don’t have a clear-cut favorite for the No. 3 job.

Dysert and undrafted rookie free agent Cooper Rush are the two options for now.

“That’s what I’ve understood it as,” said Dysert, the Denver Broncos’ seventh-round draft choice in 2013 out of Miami-Ohio. “I’m just trying to put myself in a position to win that job. I’m getting in the playbook, getting in the film room, getting as comfortable as I can. When training camp comes, I’ll be ready to go.”

Dysert, 27, has become a journeyman quarterback in the league. He spent time with the Broncos in 2013-14; had stints with the Chicago Bears, Houston Texans and Buffalo Bills in 2015; and the Miami Dolphins and Arizona Cardinals last season.

The Cowboys claimed Dysert off waivers from the Cardinals on June 5.

“For me, this is my dream,” Dysert said. “This is what I’ve wanted to do since I was a kid. I’m going to do it as long as I can and hope something comes out of it. Hopefully I get a shot sometime.”

This story was originally published June 14, 2017 at 5:33 PM with the headline "Elliott learns off-the-field lesson, stays at home more."