Cowboys Show Faith in Elliott as Starting RB

You can call running backs undervalued in the modern NFL but it doesn’t matter: you don’t get drafted fourth overall to ride the bench or share the workload with the rest of the depth chart.

Upon being drafted by the Dallas Cowboys, many expected Ezekiel Elliott to ascend to the role of workhorse in the Dallas backfield sometime before season’s end. Following a freak injury to Darren McFadden, it appears that rise will be accelerated, and the Cowboys are confident Elliott is up to the task.

McFadden broke his elbow trying to catch his falling cellphone over the weekend. The news would be comical were it not so serious, and since then, Elliott has been handling the first-team reps at practice. While there remains a “possibility” that McFadden could return by the start of the regular season according to head coach Jason Garrett, don’t be surprised to see Elliott as the main man thriving behind the Great Wall of Dallas come week one.

“I would hate to overstate anything at this point,” prefaced Cowboys offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, “But [Elliott] is a full-package running back. There is really not a time I would feel uncomfortable with him in the game…which is unusual for a rookie.”

The Cowboys lost then league-leading rusher DeMarco Murray after the 2014 season, and spent 2015 with veteran McFadden as the starter. But far from treading water, McFadden’s skill set and the Cowboys’ elite O-line still helped the rusher finish fourth in yardage on a 4-12 team. In the offseason, the team retained McFadden and signed free agent Alfred Morris, presumably before making the decision to take Zeke at number four.

At Ohio State, Elliott showcased the speed, strength, elusiveness and awareness comparable to current NFL stars Le’Veon Bell and Todd Gurley. By all accounts, Elliott is expected to be the fresh face of a position group determined to prove it’s skill set isn’t extinct, and it all starts with wowing a national audience on opening weekend.