Emmitt Smith raves on prospect Ezekiel Elliott, but says Cowboys should pass

Emmitt Smith raved about Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott. The Hall of Famer called Elliott a “special” player before he served as a keynote speaker at The Salvation Army luncheon.

But Smith doesn’t think Elliott makes sense for the Dallas Cowboys in this year’s draft. Smith is high on the current running back group the Cowboys have with Darren McFadden and Lance Dunbar returning, and the signing of Alfred Morris.

“It’s like having five cars and buying another one. I can only drive one at a time,” Smith said. “You’ve got two good cars [in McFadden and Morris], either way it goes. If you get Elliott, you’re still going to have another car. So you may as well roll with what you have.

“I love Ezekiel. I really do. I think he’s very special, but you have two guys. Two veterans.”

Smith particularly liked what he saw from McFadden, who had the fourth-most rushing yards in the league with 1,089. That is even more impressive considering McFadden opened the season as the No. 2 option behind Joseph Randle.

And Morris has been a solid back in his four-year career. He topped the 1,000-yard rushing mark his first three seasons, and then had 750 rushing yards a year ago.

“Like I said, you’ve got two good running backs,” Smith said. “McFadden did not have a bad year. People kind of fell asleep on his year. I thought he had a very good year.”

Even though he doesn’t see a fit for the Cowboys, Smith is happy to see running backs such as Elliott enter the league. In 2013 and 2014, no running back was drafted in the first round.

Last year, that changed when the Rams drafted Todd Gurley and the San Diego Chargers went with Melvin Gordon in the opening round. All signs point towards that trend continuing with Elliott, who could crack the top-10 later this month.

“I love him,” Smith said. “I really do. I think he’s a very, very special kind of running back. But should [the Cowboys] spend their first-round pick on him? Or do you get areas that you definitely need, holes that need to be filled?”

This story was originally published April 14, 2016 at 3:46 PM with the headline "Emmitt Smith raves on prospect Ezekiel Elliott, but says Cowboys should pass."