Conspiracy Theory: Zeke was always gonna get the contract he just signed. Stephen Jones was blowing smoke that "they were not gonna set the market" despite having the best RB in the NFL.
Zeke's running style is punishing. They were likely gonna hold his carries extremely low even if he signed weeks ago. Why? They wanted to see who they had behind him.
Enter Tony Pollard. He ran really well with the starting OL. He caught it well too. I personally think he needs to improve his pass pro, but pretty much he's gonna be a weapon for the 'boys.
Zeke's been working out and is in tremendous shape. He couldn't assimilate getting hit, but that's good since RBs can take only so many before they begin to break down, hence the short life span of every RB not named Emmitt Smith.
Preserving Zeke as much as possible is key towards the Cowboys getting every ounce of value out the contract they gave him. Having TP as his backup and a more dynamic offense will do wonders for Zeke.
He's back down to his rookie weight. That means the burst and homerun ability he has will manifest itself more often than not. I'm expecting a monster year from him.
