The Dallas Cowboys used Ezekiel Elliott to great effect, but at what cost?

Ezekiel Elliott finally took over in the Dallas Cowboys offense but at what cost?

Elliott’s 240 yards from scrimmage was integral to the Cowboys’ 26-24 win over the Detroit Lions but he took a beating during the game.

An ankle injury early in the game forced him off the field for a few plays and later was hit by bursitis in his knee. Bursitis is a painful inflammation that effects the small, fluid-filled sacs (bursae) that cushion the bones, tendons and muscles near joints, according to the Mayo Clinic.

“I’m beat up. I was already sore in the first quarter,” said Elliott, who rushed for 152 yards, the third-most in his career. “I knew what type of game it was going to be. I knew how to grind through it.”

Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said he expects Elliott to be available to practice this week and ready for the Texans in Houston on Sunday night.

“He’s such a competitor. He can’t stand not being out there,” Cowboys’ vice president Stephen Jones said on KRLD/105.3 The Fan. “He’s a warrior. He is obviously playing with pain, but at the same time, when you dial his number up, you don’t see it when the play starts. So, hats off to him. As we’ve said from the get-go this year, he’s in the right place in terms of where his head is, where his mind is. This is a season where he’s wanting to show everybody what he’s really about and certainly he’s done that to this point.”

Elliott credited Rod Smith for giving him plays off to get his injuries attended to be trainers. But Elliott was in there when the Cowboys needed a game-winning drive in the final minutes. Elliott’s 34-yard, over-the-shoulder catch set up Brett Maher’s game-winning field goal.

“You want the ball in the best player’s hands at the end of the game and Dak [Prescott] dropped it like ring the bucket, and he made a hell of play,” Guard Zack Martin said. “And you know, Brett stepped up — big time kick, game winning kick when we really needed it. So, full team effort today.”

Elliott’s 29 touches (25 rushes, four receptions) are a season high. His 88 receiving yards the second-most in his career to his 95 yards at Pittsburgh as a rookie in 2016.

“He was physical, he was downhill at them, I thought he saw the holes really well and hit them, he made a lot of dirty runs in the game, made a lot of big plays running the football and obviously had a huge impact in the passing game,” Cowboys’ coach Jason Garrett said. “The screen for the touchdown and then the big play at the end. He’s an outstanding football player. We’ve known that from Day 1 and he certainly played one of his best games for us.”

Elliott, who lead the NFL with 426 rushing yards, told his teammates before the game that their season, in many ways, hinged on beating the Lions and evening their record at 2-2 and not falling to 1-3.

“He’s a young player but he’s one of the leaders on our team. He took it upon himself in so many ways in the game yesterday to somehow, someway make more yards, make first downs, make touchdowns, do the things that made a difference in the game,” Garrett said. “He’s never been shy about saying what he needs to say. He has a great confidence about himself and he just has a great spirit that he plays with and it’s contagious throughout our team.”