Is a big contract for Elliott the best decision?

[Stash]

It's probably really good for the Cowboys that TMZ and camera phones weren't a thing during the 90s.

Very true.

That White House would have made afor a heckuva story.

 

[Blackspider214]

Hell no, if Jerry does this it's a sign he's desperately trying to win before for his days are over, at the cost of the teams future. You can kiss off your great OL's of the future.

This OL hasn't been great since 2016. And even then, it gets overrated. You don't need some mammoth great OL to win today. The resources they put into that were stupid.

Also, this same OL without Zeke or Murray looks horrendous. So who exactly is propping up who? This run game was junk without Murray in 2015 and was junk without Zeke in 2017. I hope you don't think this OL is going to make guys look better. They aren't. And now every single one of them have injury issues.

 

[MWH1967]

If the Cowboys have a shot then yes. Is it risky? Depends on how the contract is worded.

 

[Direwolf63]

Then I have to wonder, why not rip off the bandaid now?

I'm guessing that their thought process is that the best chance to win a Super Bowl is to have Zeke on the field right away.

Then the team can move on from Zeke without getting caught with their pants down like they were this year when Zeke unexpectedly held out. If Zeke tries this again 3 years from now, he's gone. The Cowboys simply were not ready this year.

 

[doomsday9084]

It seems like Zeke is being offered around $14m per year. IMO, that is more than he is worth and will hamstring the team in other areas.

With that said, its only a few million dollars more than a value contract. If he was paid $9m per year, no one would have an issue with it. The extra $5m per year isn't franchise crippling. The team killing contract would be doing something like giving the 15th best QB in the NFL $35m per year.

 

[Whyjerry]

I think it is a big mistake. Factor in diminishing production, Zeke's character, and high probability of more off the field trouble and he is ABSOLUTELY not worth it. At least half the term of this contract is going to be a dumpster fire. I am 99% sure of this.

 

[erod]

Like many of you, I find myself conflicted regarding the whole Zeke holdout issue. On one hand, I realize that he truly is a great player and a difference maker on the field. These Cowboys are certainly better with him than without him.

But is it in the team's best interests long term to make him the league's highest paid running back?

It certainly helps this year if they truly feel that they're a championship contender, and may be the difference between getting to the playoffs and not.

But can you trust the guy not to flake out again? Can you trust that once he gets paid he'll be the same iron man on the field that he has been? Can you trust him period?

And in a league that for better or worse (not being debated here) doesn't pay running backs big money, are you screwing up your cap by being the team that pays the most for theirs?

If you pay your running back tops in the league, where else are you short-changing yourself? Who are you forced to let go when there's no more cap room left?

Add it all up and I wonder if paying him is ultimately in the Cowboys long-term best interests?

What say you?

It's a good decision for two reasons.

1. Zeke is basically 75% of the offense either through actual production or as a decoy. It's a bargain from a football standpoint.

2. This is only going to be about $7 million more of a cap hit than he already was. By cap standards, that's nothing. Dak's deal is going to make a huge difference to the cap, not this one. If Zeke flakes out, he won't cripple the cap of the team.

 

[Aviano90]

If he gets that type of scratch he needs to get his home run hitting ability back and he needs to be more effective in the red zone. Don't want to be hearing about stacked boxes preventing this guy from reaching pay dirt.

 

[JoeKing]

IMO, the best course of action is to not reward Zeke's bad behavior and try to be a contender without him until he caves and returns. But I see how it would be good to have him back by paying him. Like many others, I'm just concerned about the message that sends to other young guys on their rookie contract.

 

[QuincyCarterEra]

I too am conflicted, but the Jets can escape Bell's contract after 2 years with minimal (4 million) dead cap space. Bell doesn't mind because he's got $27 million in cash, regardless.

If Zeke's deal is structured similarly, I'll like it better.

According to Spotrac, the likely contract that Zeke will receive would mean we couldnt get out from under him until after four seasons. After three you can cut him with $8M dead cap, and the only thing worse than paying a RB $14M is paying a RB $8M to not be on the team.

Four years is way too long of a commitment.

 

[Doomsdayblitz]

It depends on what your goals are. If they want to make this personal, it will hurt the team. Dak cannot carry this team. If they want to tank this season to expose Dak & get high enough to draft a Herbert, then play hard ball. Just pay Zeke, with lots of incentives & penalties built in. I want to see one more SB before I die. 24 years has been an eternity!

 

[catiii]

Jerry paid Emmitt big time in 1993 and it resulted in 2 more SB wins. Paid Roy Williams big time and that didn't work out. So there's history either way, though I'm not one to think history always repeats itself, this is a more complicated situation.

Whether you pay Zeke big time or not is a decision to be made, there's no way to know if either way will turn out to be right, or wrong, good or bad, great or mediocre.

Glad it's not my decision....

I think the key word here is MORE.

 

[THEHEREAFTER]

All you have to ask yourself is would you risk losing him? You drafted him #4 overall? He's an asset that's appreciated and he's far outplayed his rookie deal. He's top 3 if not #1 at his position at his absolute physical prime. He makes the QB and the entire offense better. He controls the game, the clock and drastically improves the DEFENSE. I don't see how you get "cute" with the situation.

 

[LACowboysFan1]

I think the key word here is MORE.

Yes, indeed. Zeke's jumping the gun a bit....

 

[reddyuta]

they were always going to pay Zeke,that was decided when they took him at 4.anybody who thinks otherwise is crazy.

 

[aikemirv]

My opinion is the guy is a knucklehead until he gets over this ego he's never going to be the best that he could be. This has nothing to do with Prescott.

I agree with that opinion!

 

[LACowboysFan1]

All you have to ask yourself is would you risk losing him? You drafted him #4 overall? He's an asset that's appreciated and he's far outplayed his rookie deal. He's top 3 if not #1 at his position at his absolute physical prime. He makes the QB and the entire offense better. He controls the game, the clock and drastically improves the DEFENSE. I don't see how you get "cute" with the situation.

True, and in the non-salary cap years to me there'd be no question, you do whatever you can to keep him. But there's only so much pie, not saying Zeke has, but at some point you can't afford to keep him. So there's a limit to what you'd pay him, that's the crux of the matter....

 

[noshame]

This OL hasn't been great since 2016. And even then, it gets overrated. You don't need some mammoth great OL to win today. The resources they put into that were stupid.

Also, this same OL without Zeke or Murray looks horrendous. So who exactly is propping up who? This run game was junk without Murray in 2015 and was junk without Zeke in 2017. I hope you don't think this OL is going to make guys look better. They aren't. And now every single one of them have injury issues.

Really? or since 2016 maybe , just maybe everybody has been reading our plays and tendencies.
You certainly need a over-priced RB to win either.

 

[Stash]

All you have to ask yourself is would you risk losing him? You drafted him #4 overall? He's an asset that's appreciated and he's far outplayed his rookie deal. He's top 3 if not #1 at his position at his absolute physical prime. He makes the QB and the entire offense better. He controls the game, the clock and drastically improves the DEFENSE. I don't see how you get "cute" with the situation.

On that, I look at what was done before Elliott ever got here. Murray had a far better season, because the line was improved.

And McFadden had success after Murray left.

So is leading the league in rushing behind this line a big accomplishment for being picked 4th overall? I'd say it's expected based on the investments.

 

[jnday]

Like many of you, I find myself conflicted regarding the whole Zeke holdout issue. On one hand, I realize that he truly is a great player and a difference maker on the field. These Cowboys are certainly better with him than without him.

But is it in the team's best interests long term to make him the league's highest paid running back?

It certainly helps this year if they truly feel that they're a championship contender, and may be the difference between getting to the playoffs and not.

But can you trust the guy not to flake out again? Can you trust that once he gets paid he'll be the same iron man on the field that he has been? Can you trust him period?

And in a league that for better or worse (not being debated here) doesn't pay running backs big money, are you screwing up your cap by being the team that pays the most for theirs?

If you pay your running back tops in the league, where else are you short-changing yourself? Who are you forced to let go when there's no more cap room left?

Add it all up and I wonder if paying him is ultimately in the Cowboys long-term best interests?

What say you?

One factor that I consider in this situation is that the offense is built around and depends on Zeke. That was done intentionally by the team. If Zeke is gone, I think it will expose Dak faults even more. I have always thought that any success that Dak has is directly linked to all of the talent around him and if pieces of that talent start to leave, Dak’s play will suffer more than anyone. We had a glimpse last year how bad this offense can be with poor talent at one of the skill positions. It was beyond horrible.