Ezekiel

Elliott

Elliott gets his wish to play for a Super Bowl contender while the Chargers get some much needed depth at running back as they begin their Super Bowl journey in Wildcard Weekend. Expect Elliott to play sparingly, if at all, when the Chargers travel to Houston to face the Texans on Saturday.

But Cowboys, why now? Why not three years ago? Elliott has just four carries over the last two games. Josina Anderson reports that Elliott requested his release, which could mean the Cowboys were planning to make him inactive for Week 18. It could also mean he has a deal lined up with a playoff team. Elliott finishes his 2024 Cowboys tenure with a 74/226/3 rushing line on a career-low 3.1 yards per carry. He turns 30 before next season. It was a great, albeit quick, peak.

Elliott saw four of his nine attempts on the Cowboys’ final drive. They were deep into the clock-killing portion of their beatdown of the Panthers and gave both Zeke and Dowdle a handful of carries to ice the game. The Cowboys aren’t likely to pile up a big lead versus the Bucs next week, so don’t expect this type of workload for Elliott in Week 16. He is not on the fantasy radar heading into the fantasy semifinals.

On one hand, this doesn’t come as much of a surprise. Dowdle has handled 33 of the Cowboys’ last 64 running back opportunities, and that’s after missing Week 8’s game against the 49ers due to an illness. Still, this is the first time McCarthy has gone out of his way to endorse Dowdle as the team’s lead back. Dowdle has earned 15 or more opportunities in his last two games and has totaled 163 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown over that span. He’ll have some RB3/FLEX appeal in Week 11 against the Texans.

It was a typical rushing line for Zeke, who lost his first fumble of the season while attempting to punch in a short touchdown. The veteran running back continues to be rolled out as the Cowboys’ RB2, but he shouldn’t be anywhere near a fantasy roster.

McCarthy said he has not spoken with the veteran back since Friday, but the expectation of this quote seems to be that Elliott will be active again on Sunday against the Eagles. Existing is practically all Elliott does from a fantasy football perspective. His only purpose at this juncture is to siphon away snaps from Rico Dowdle.

Diggs did not practice all week with what Jerry Jones deemed a calf “tear,” but will give it a go as the Cowboys try to get back to .500 against Atlanta. Eric Kendricks (shoulder), Linval Joseph (back), and Zach Martin (shoulder) are also active off the questionable line. Inactive for the Cowboys are Micah Parsons, Ezekiel Elliott, Andrew Booth, DaRon Bland, KJ Henry, Matt Waltezko, and Trey Lance. Elliott was deemed out for disciplinary reasons on Saturday. Bland and Parsons were ruled out on Friday with injuries. Lance is the third quarterback. The other three are healthy scratches.

The Cowboys elevated fellow running back Dalvin Cook, leaving now room on the roster to carry both Rico Dowdle and Zeke. Week 9 will mark the first game in which Elliott has been inactive this season after rushing to a career-low 3.1 yards per carry during the first two months of play.

Zeke got the spot start with lead back Rico Dowdle held out with an illness, accounting for 11 of the 18 backfield opportunities split with recent acquisition Dalvin Cook. Even with the increase in role, Zeke rushed to only 3.4 yards per carry and owns a career-low 3.1 yards per carry mark on the season. Any fantasy value remaining has quickly gone with the wind on the veteran back.

Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Dowdle “became sick upon arriving to Levi’s stadium.” Players rarely miss games because of illnesses, but Dowdle being added to the report this late in the process is an obvious concern. Dalvin Cook, who was elevated from the practice squad this week, would be in line for a share of the Cowboys’ backfield by committee if Dowdle doesn’t suit up. Ezekiel Elliott led the Cowboys with eight carries last week and would be the starter without Dowdle.