Inside Ezekiel Elliott’s turbulent return to the Dallas Cowboys that led to his awkward release
Maybe it was just me, but the return of Ezekiel Elliott to the Dallas Cowboys never felt like it would end well.
From his forced entry on the roster in the place of a draft selection to repeated tardiness to meetings and getting left in Dallas on a team road trip, Elliott’s circle around the block never had the flare and excitement that his initial seven-year tenure brought.
But it did have the drama.
Here is how it played out from start to finish for one of the more polarizing figures to wear The Star.
The Sell
When the second day of the 2024 NFL Draft went by without the Dallas Cowboys taking a running back with any of their three selections, the reality of an Ezekiel Elliott return started to settle in.
“He’s someone of interest,” owner Jerry Jones said on April 26 after the third round had concluded. “I saw him play his last games for New England, and he played well enough to be a starter. We have it in our power to feel good about the running back room.”
Despite not having one running back on the roster that had started a game in the NFL, Jones and his draft decision makers went the entirety of the next day without adding another body to the position room. The next day, the Cowboys signed undrafted free agent Nathaniel Peat, a backup from the University of Missouri, who would go on to touch the ball just seven times in three preseason games before being released at the end of training camp.
Two days after the draft, the Cowboys announced the signing of Elliott, opting to bring the veteran back after a season in New England that saw him rush for a career-low 642 yards and three touchdowns instead of bringing in a fresh body to the room.
“Zeke, as we all know, is one of our favorites,” executive vice president and director of player personnel Stephen Jones said. “He’s laid it on the line for this franchise. He’s the ultimate competitor and we obviously think a lot of him.”
Shortly after the announcement, Elliott tweeted three words in all caps:
“RUN IT BACK.”
Run It Back
It was clear that bringing Elliott back was not just for show for the organization early on. Less than a month after signing, Elliott ran with the first team in OTA availabilities and was one of 10 players that participated in the team’s annual charity home run derby.
His front and center presence had everyone believing that he would be a featured part of the Cowboys offense, even if his training camp and preseason usage was left to little-to-none.
When asked about his limited practice reps in Oxnard, Calif. and his zero touches in the preseason, head coach Mike McCarthy said that the team was saving the 29-year-old for the beginning of the season – a rational thought process for a player that had his fair share of mileage. It even made sense for a player that expected to be a big part of a team that was in line to be a playoff contender.
“It was important for me to get back here and finish what I started,” Elliott said. “I got unfinished business. I’m here to chase a ring.”
One Final Hurdle
Back in the state of Ohio where he first put himself on the map at Ohio State, Ezekiel Elliott trotted out for the first snap of the season with the offense and immediately hit the highlight reel with a move he’s gotten so used to performing in the past: a hurdle over an unsuspecting would-be tackling Cleveland Browns defender.
Later in the first half, he got back in the end zone for the team’s second touchdown of the season and his first in his return to Dallas. His first start saw him account for a healthy 49 yards and a touchdown in a big 16-point win on the road.
“It felt good to be back out there with the star on the helmet,” Elliott said postgame. “It definitely felt great scoring that touchdown. I had a lot of emotions, I had to lay there and soak that in. It’s good to be back.”
What initially felt like a return that might be justified by the front office ended up being the last time that we would see Elliott shine while wearing a Cowboys uniform.
His 49 yards against the Browns would end up being the most he would account for all season in a game. But even stranger, his 12 touches would be the most he would be a part of the offense for the rest of the year as well.
When the team plane departed Cleveland riding the high of a week one win and a semi-productive day from Elliott, it would all go downhill from there.
Rico’s Emergence, Zeke’s Slide
The running back by committee approach never proved to be effective for Dallas through the first half of the season, as the Cowboys rushing attack led by Elliott and fifth-year undrafted free agent signing Rico Dowdle was a mainstay at the very bottom of the NFL in rushing yards per game in the league.
As the season unfolded with dramatics and embarrassing losses, the Dallas run game was now front and center as one of the major issues on a team that had a lot of problems to deal with as the weeks went by.
His close friend and quarterback Dak Prescott mentioned how hard it must have been on Elliott early in the season to take on a role as a back with sparing usage compared to when he was a featured piece for so long in his career.
“It’s definitely a little different,” Elliott said on Oct. 10. “I just keep my head down and continue to work and be ready when my opportunity comes. I want to be there, I don’t know.”
In a separate conversation with reporters, it was reported that Elliott said he was “dumbfounded” with his lack of touches as the season went on. While Jerry Jones said later that the report was “an exaggeration” of how Elliott really felt, it was known that he had a conversation with Mike McCarthy about his usage.
“I’ve talked to them a little bit, I’m just letting it play itself out,” Elliott said.
Two days later, Jerry Jones offered a reason for Elliott’s decrease in time on the field, once again implying that he was being saved for the latter part of the season.
“We’re saving him,” Jones said. “And we should be. Rico [Dowdle] is an outstanding running back…[but] his big problem has been what? He’s had trouble with injuries throughout his career. So it’d be madness to just rely on him for the duration of the season and into the playoffs…Zeke is there, he will be there, because we want to protect him during this particular time.”
From Bad to Worse
What exactly were the Cowboys saving him for? We may never know.
Less than a month later, a team source told the Star-Telegram that Elliott had been habitually tardy to team meetings and had missed three team meetings leading up to the Cowboys’ trip to Atlanta to take on the Falcons that led both sides to agree that Elliott would not be allowed to travel with the team.
“He was being punished,” Jerry Jones said about the decision. “He just couldn’t make the trip, wasn’t necessarily a better option.”
“It sucked. It definitely sucked a lot,” Elliott said about not travelling. “I’m just going to put my best foot forward.”
After that moment, some expected Elliott’s release to follow soon thereafter. He would not only make it to the following week, but he would get six carries in the next game including a crucial fumble that crippled Dallas in a blowout loss to Philadelphia. It came just hours after the news broke that his friend and quarterback in Prescott would not return for the rest of the season.
“I’ve been better,” Elliott said when asked how he was doing mentally at that point. “I’m working things out.”
Over the next seven games, Elliott was handed just 20 carries on the field.
Off the field, Elliott was rarely seen saying words in the locker room, whether to the media or fellow teammates. He would come in, do his business and walk out.
A moment after the team’s win in Carolina saw him try to crack a joke in the locker room with fellow teammates that was not well received, as one teammate walked away from him scoffing mid-sentence. The next week, he would see the field for a career-low three snaps in a big win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
His confidants and supporters in the locker room were few, if any. His impact on the field was non-existent. It was clear that Elliott would not return in 2025. What we maybe didn’t anticipate was how quick he would actually hit the door.
The Release
On Tuesday, news broke that Ezekiel Elliott had requested his release from the team going into the final week of the season. He cleared waivers on Wednesday and is now free to join any squad, specifically a playoff team in Elliott’s hopes to compete for the Super Bowl ring he desperately covets.
“Out of respect and appreciation for Zeke and wanting to provide him with an opportunity to pursue any potential playoff participation possible, we are releasing him from the Cowboys roster today,” owner Jerry Jones said in a statement. “As I have said many times previously, Zeke’s impact as one of the greatest to ever play with the Star on their helmet will never change and is etched in our record books and history forever. We thank him, love him and wish him the absolute best.”
Elliott’s one season – which had its fair share of dramatics, storylines and questions that may never be answered – ended in an awkward fashion on New Years Eve.
While the question still remains if we will ever see Elliott on an NFL field again, it’s hard to discount the impact he made in his first tour with the team. He finishes third in franchise history in rushing touchdowns and rushing yards, but the sourness of the attempted rekindling in Dallas didn’t allow the return of the highlight reel, physical presence that his previous version brought from 2016-2022.
However much the legacy of Elliott in Dallas will be remembered, it should still be looked back on with excitement, but disappointment. Reliable, but questionable in the end.
Regardless, the current era of the Dallas Cowboys can’t be brought up without his mentioning. Will that eventual ride off into the sunset leave us remembering the greatness of No. 21? Or will it be the failed No. 15 that leaves the lasting impression?
This story was originally published January 2, 2025 at 10:01 AM.
