NewsBot
New Member
- Messages
- 111,281
- Reaction score
- 2,947
It's not as though the rookie signal-caller doesn't deserve plenty of love. Sunday in Pittsburgh, he posted a triple-digit passer rating (121.7) for the seventh time in nine games as the Cowboys moved to 8-1 with a thrilling 35-30 victory over the Steelers.
But the reality is Prescott hasn't carried the Cowboys. He's had to make some big throws, as he did on several occasions during Sunday's back-and-forth tilt, but this offense runs effectively on the gains continually provided by its other rookie weapon.
Against Pittsburgh, running back Ezekiel Elliott became the first player in the NFL this season to reach the 1,000-yard mark while putting up a career-high 209 yards from scrimmage. Not only did he score two rushing touchdowns in the final two minutes of a dramatic game, but he was also on the receiving end of the longest touchdown pass of Prescott's career, an 83-yard catch-and-run in the first quarter.
It marked the sixth time in the last seven games in which Elliott went over 140 yards from scrimmage—no other player in the NFL has had more than three 140-yard games this season.
He's one of three players with 10 or more touchdowns this season and is on pace to accumulate more yards from scrimmage in one season (2,231) than any rookie in NFL history.
If he continues his pace from the last seven games over the next seven games, he'll finish the 2016 regular season with the fourth-highest yards-from-scrimmage total in NFL history while becoming only the second rookie in league history to score more than 15 rushing touchdowns.
In summary, Elliott is putting together one of the best seasons we've ever seen, and the numbers and the eyeball test indicate he's picking up steam as the 2016 campaign wears on.
Five of his touchdowns have come in the last eight days, in road victories over the Browns and Steelers. And after averaging 3.9 yards per touch during the first three games of his career, he's averaging 6.8 yards per touch the last six weeks.
As good as that talented offensive line has been, and as well as Prescott has played, Elliott is the No. 1 difference-maker this year in Dallas.
The line has been one of the best in football for several years. Two seasons ago, quarterback Tony Romo was the highest-rated passer in the NFL. He's been to three Pro Bowls. Even when healthy, Dez Bryant has been less productive this year than in most of his previous seasons. Jason Witten has always been Jason Witten.
And yet with Elliott on pace to shatter records, the Cowboys have now won more regular-season games in a row (eight) than they ever did with Romo and DeMarco Murray, or with Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith in the 1990s.
Last time they did this—way back in 1977—they weren't yet known as "America's Team." And the difference-maker in a few of those eight wins was a highly touted rookie running back named Tony Dorsett.
But quarterback Roger Staubach led the majority of those victories. And while Prescott will get the Staubach treatment if the Cowboys continue to win, those who have closely watched the Dallas offense this season know Elliott is the straw that has stirred this first-place drink.
When he's not on the field, opposing defenses breathe a sigh of relief and pin their ears back. When he is on the field, there's rarely an answer. He lost yardage only once all day against the Steelers and has been stopped behind the line of scrimmage only six times on 108 touches in his last four games.
This marks the 25th time in which Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has posted a passer rating of 125 or higher. It's only his second loss when doing so. And because it's 2016, Prescott will get a lot of credit for that despite the fact Roethlisberger arguably outplayed him.
They'll bill this as Prescott over Roethlisberger, but it could more accurately be described as Elliott over Big Ben, Le'Veon Bell and the Pittsburgh defense.
Quarterbacks rule modern pro football, but Zeke Elliott rules the Dallas Cowboys.
Brad Gagnon has covered the NFL for Bleacher Report since 2012.
Follow @Brad_Gagnon
Read more Dallas Cowboys news on BleacherReport.com
Continue reading...