Where will Ezekiel Elliott pla...

As the NFL league year turned over Wednesday, the Dallas Cowboys made a move that was almost as surprising as it was logical: releasing running back Ezekiel Elliott.

The three-time Pro Bowler whom Dallas selected fourth overall in the 2016 NFL Draft had since rushed for 8,262 yards and 68 touchdowns, routinely finding soft spots in both defenses and team owner Jerry Jones’ heart. This past season, Elliott contributed 876 yards and 12 touchdowns to a 12-5 campaign.

But a contract that stood in stark contrast to the current NFL landscape, paired with the unleashing of a more explosive and younger teammate, prompted the Cowboys to move on.

“We have mutually agreed with Zeke that the best decision for everyone is that he will be able to experience free agency, and we can increase our flexibility and options,” Jones said in a statement. “Zeke’s impact and influence is seared into the Cowboys franchise in a very special and indelible way.”

The reality awaiting Ezekiel Elliott

Four seasons have elapsed since Elliott’s 40-day contract holdout compelled Jones to award his running back a six-year contract worth $90 million including $50 million in guarantees. NFL contracts are far more complex than simply average annual value — and yet, Elliott’s $15 million-per-year mark was wild then and is perhaps wilder now.

Only San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey, who agreed to his current price point with the Carolina Panthers in 2020, has eclipsed the mark since. McCaffrey and his agent Joel Segal argued then that the player “speaks three languages” with elite running, pass-catching and blocking ability. The receiving threat McCaffrey poses was on full display this past season when he caught 85 passes for 741 receiving yards and five touchdowns … atop his 1,139 yards and eight scores rushing. His compensation reflects the value of a hybrid running back-receiver in a league that pays receivers significantly more.

For Elliott, time will not heal all

Two temporal factors now hurt Elliott: The years that have passed since he received a valuation of worth that no longer passes the eye test, and the days that have passed in the 2023 free agency cycle (and legal and illegal tampering cycles) during which three major running back contracts have been awarded.

After Miles Sanders rushed for 1,269 yards and 11 touchdowns last season with the Philadelphia Eagles, the Panthers awarded him a four-year, $25 million deal with $13 million guaranteed, per Spotrac. Jamaal Williams’ 1,066 yards and league-high 17 touchdowns season netted him a three-year deal worth $12 million with $8 million guaranteed in New Orleans. Meanwhile the Lions, who let Williams walk, gave ex-Chicago Bears back David Montgomery a three-year, $18 million deal with $11 million guaranteed coming off an 801-yard, five-touchdown season.

Where will Ezekiel Elliott play next season?

Coaches and executives predicting Elliott’s landing spots to Yahoo Sports included the Atlanta Falcons, Chicago Bears and Cincinnati Bengals among teams who would benefit from his services. If the Los Angeles Chargers complete a trade of running back Austin Ekeler (they have reportedly granted his request to seek one), Elliott could be in consideration to reunite with his longtime coordinator and teammate Kellen Moore, though poor scheme fit and philosophy may outweigh personal familiarity. An even better fit, perhaps, is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who just released Fournette and hired Elliott’s longtime position coach Skip Peete.

Each evaluator believed Elliott would be pursued for some sort of role, because though “the RB market is pretty unforgiving, particularly this free agency,” one of the scouts said, “he's still young 'enough' with a history of production to land an opportunity/role somewhere.

“Think teams are mostly paying for the name,” the executive said. “I think the open market will be humbling for him.”