Cowboys insider names Ezekiel Elliott team 'sleeper' in running back room

The Dallas Cowboys have a wealth of running back depth and no obvious plan for how snaps will divvy up when the season starts in September. Debating potential sleepers in a running back room with Ezekiel Elliott, Rico Dowdle, Deuce Vaughn, Snoop Conner, Malik Davis, Royce Freeman and more, one Cowboys insider named Zeke his sleeper pick for the group. Long-time Cowboys columnist Mickey Spagnola believes fans may be overlooking the veteran due to his production level during his final season in Dallas.

Elliott, a former first-rounder, averaged 3.79 yards per carry in 2022 for the Cowboys, however, he was running behind a shuffled offensive line that lost right tackle Terence Steele in the final five games of the season.

“Not sure many are expecting much from Ezekiel Elliott, but, beware,” Spagnola wrote this week for DallasCowboys.com. “He’s healthy. Seemed this offseason to be in great shape. Has a great attitude. And while the Cowboys aren’t expecting to run him in the ground with like 300 carries, it’s the quality of those carries that will become surprising.

“Plus, just go back to the 2022 season when all anyone would say about Zeke is he only averaged 3.79 yards a carry during what was thought to be his final season with the Cowboys. But truth be told, Zeke was averaging 4.2 yards a carry over the first 12 games of the season.”

Elliott leading large group of running backs

Of all the running backs on the roster, Elliott is the only one who’s played the feature back role in the NFL. Despite bringing him back for another run, Mike McCarthy isn’t planning to put the full load on the former first-rounder as he believes that wouldn’t be “fair.”

“We’re running back by committee, but I think he’ll definitely play at the level that he’s played, I know, in my time here. I anticipate that,” McCarthy said this offseason. “I don’t see any drop off in the way he moves. He’s in good shape. … He’s come in here, and he’s picked up right where he left off.”

Last season for the Patriots, Elliott posted a team-high 184 carries for 642 yards and three scores. It was the fewest carries, yards and touchdowns that he’s ever had, but he still loved it. Now, he’s back for more with the team that started it all.

“I don’t know exactly what it looks like, but we’ll see,” Zeke said of the running back-by-committee approach Dallas is taking. “I love football, so I’m gonna do anything it takes for me to help this team win — whatever that is.”