Unpopular opinion: I don't think Zeke is having a bad year

[Blackrain]

Zeke is not having a bad year but the Oline is not near the dominant run blocking unit it was in say 2016. They are a shadow of there former selves in the run blocking area . That said with the score even on the opening drives Zeke looks good Whole offense looks good .

Problem is as the game goes on THE DEFENSE STOPS NOBODY!!! The kicker misses kicks and all of a sudden we are playing from behind and have to throw the ball . This limits Zekes opportunities .

After watching Barkley the other night for some comparison Zeke seem to be getting tired later in games and lacks the burst I see Barkley displaying . Its possible that a full camp and better conditioning could get him back on track

He is not bad but he could be better

 

[Sydla]

I think the problem lies with unrealistic fanbase who are overly emotional and looking for places to point the finger.
Fans seem to forget that Emmitt, Sanders, Walter Payton didnt lead the league in rushing every year of their careers.

Any attempt at a logical discussion of Zeke around here just turns into a mob of angry fans pointing to his salary....the total.. not the 6.3m this season.

This pattern will repeat when Dak, Amari, and anyone else get a new contract. If they are not the top person in the league at their position these same people will attack.
It's going to be fun.

Wait, it's unrealistic to expect the highest paid TB in the history of the NFL to spit out a great season?

I am not blaming him for our problems, far from it. Coaching, defense, etc are far more to blame at this point. But some of you are such fanboys of certain players at times that you bristle at legitimate criticism. The fact of the matter is Elliott has not had a great year (only a decent to good season) and he's paid to have great seasons. I struggle to understand why some have a problem with that comment.

 

[Bowdown27]

I don’t think he is either but we’re used to the zeke who broke off big runs and changed the game. The whole team isn’t playing together. Like Bill bellichek said good players won’t do well with bad coaching and bad game plans

 

[OmerV]

Whether or not it's true, it does make sense. Lining up under center means Dak has to read during his drop. It makes timing far more critical, which is one thing Dak still struggles with. Many QBs coming from spread offenses in college struggle transitioning to under-center play. Mind you, I'm not saying this is the case, cause I'd have to do film study, but its definitely a thing and it wouldn't shock me if it was true.

The question we were discussing wasn't about the difference between passing when lining up under center versus passing when lining up in the shotgun, it was about passing when lining up under center with a straight drop back versus a play action fake.

 

[iceberg]

i don't think he's having a bad year. but he's certainly not having the year he's been paid to have and that RB's in this pay range should have.

 

[Doomsday]

Dak can't throw a pass when taking a snap from under center unless it is play-action. That makes the offense predictable which hurts the run game's numbers.

That doesn't explain the difference between this year and the previous 3.

 

[LatinMind]

I honestly think

1. Dak is improving as a pocket passer, and he's throwing more passes

2. This is Moore's first year as the OC

3. Dak's contract

In fact, part of this team's problem is that it abandons the run even when it IS working(Bills, Patriots game)

He's not, its actually amazing he's over 1000 yrds with the bipolar playcalling this team has been doing. The change up in blocking scheme, and this his own doing having to get in shape on the fly.

 

[Aviano90]

You are comparing Elliott to a back who had 76 carries in 2015 and was not somebody defenses viewed as the same kind of threat as Elliott.

This is comparable to those who thought Troy Hambrick could replace Emmitt Smith because Hambrick averaged 5.1 yards per carry on 113 carries in 2001 and followed that up with 4.0 on 79 in 2002. The next year with Smith gone, he carried the ball 275 times and averaged 3.5.

DeMarco Murray, like Elliott, average 4.1 YPC his second year after 5.5 his first season, and that was before we became a run-first team, so there was less focus on him than Elliott receives each game.

Not saying 2017 was a great year for Elliott. It wasn't. It just wasn't a bad year.

It wasn’t the caliber of year you expect from Zeke. We didn’t accept it from Randle.

 

[gimmesix]

It wasn’t the caliber of year you expect from Zeke. We didn’t accept it from Randle.

That is not why Randle was released. However, in general the smaller the sample size, the better the back should be expected to do. Defense don't have as much film to notice tendencies nor do they focus as hard on players who aren't perceived as a major threat.

Or are you going to tell me that defensive coordinators gave as much attention to Randle who had carried just 51 times the previous season as they do Elliott? Comparing the two is ludicrous. Randle was an afterthought.

Now, if you want to argue that Elliott should be playing on the same level that Adrian Peterson did before he got hurt, never averaging below 4.4 yards per carry, I can live with that argument even though every situation is different and we don't know how Elliott would have fared on those teams.

Every game is different. Every season is different. Injuries, the quality of defenses you play, the play of the rest of the offense, play-calling, the play of your defense, etc., are a factor in the ups and downs most backs experience. I won't argue that 2017 wasn't a down year from Elliott and less than what we expected, but his production over 10 games was still good and what a lot of teams would gladly take from their starting running back.

This year that we also consider a down year for Elliott, he's still fifth in the league in rushing. His yards per carry is only 0.2 behind fourth-place Dalvin Cook, who most people feel is having a great year.

 

[blueblood70]

I honestly think

1. Dak is improving as a pocket passer, and he's throwing more passes

2. This is Moore's first year as the OC

3. Dak's contract

In fact, part of this team's problem is that it abandons the run even when it IS working(Bills, Patriots game)

I agree only a handful of hater trolls feel like hes having A BAD YEAR..THERE ARE THREADS PROVING OTHERWISE..

true but add Greenbay and CHI games where he had great first halves, was on fire and nothing the second half, yes more, dak, defense getting us behind..

 

[TheRomoSexual]

Of course he's not having a bad year. He's already gained 1000 yards and is averaging 4.4 yards a carry. He's not the problem.

 

[blueblood70]

That is not why Randle was released. However, in general the smaller the sample size, the better the back should be expected to do. Defense don't have as much film to notice tendencies nor do they focus as hard on players who aren't perceived as a major threat.

Or are you going to tell me that defensive coordinators gave as much attention to Randle who had carried just 51 times the previous season as they do Elliott? Comparing the two is ludicrous. Randle was an afterthought.

Now, if you want to argue that Elliott should be playing on the same level that Adrian Peterson did before he got hurt, never averaging below 4.4 yards per carry, I can live with that argument even though every situation is different and we don't know how Elliott would have fared on those teams.

Every game is different. Every season is different. Injuries, the quality of defenses you play, the play of the rest of the offense, play-calling, the play of your defense, etc., are a factor in the ups and downs most backs experience. I won't argue that 2017 wasn't a down year from Elliott and less than what we expected, but his production over 10 games was still good and what a lot of teams would gladly take from their starting running back.

This year that we also consider a down year for Elliott, he's still fifth in the league in rushing. His yards per carry is only 0.2 behind fourth-place Dalvin Cook, who most people feel is having a great year.

lmao so true all the comp with YPC using RBs and QBs this year with under 125 -150 attempts is Ludacris but a back with less then 100 carry's even its laughable.. hes top 5 this year , hes only having bad season next to his great pones and for sure a few backs are having great years which overshadows it a bit when you try to use his contract against him..

 

[Aviano90]

That is not why Randle was released. However, in general the smaller the sample size, the better the back should be expected to do. Defense don't have as much film to notice tendencies nor do they focus as hard on players who aren't perceived as a major threat.

Or are you going to tell me that defensive coordinators gave as much attention to Randle who had carried just 51 times the previous season as they do Elliott? Comparing the two is ludicrous. Randle was an afterthought.

Now, if you want to argue that Elliott should be playing on the same level that Adrian Peterson did before he got hurt, never averaging below 4.4 yards per carry, I can live with that argument even though every situation is different and we don't know how Elliott would have fared on those teams.

Every game is different. Every season is different. Injuries, the quality of defenses you play, the play of the rest of the offense, play-calling, the play of your defense, etc., are a factor in the ups and downs most backs experience. I won't argue that 2017 wasn't a down year from Elliott and less than what we expected, but his production over 10 games was still good and what a lot of teams would gladly take from their starting running back.

This year that we also consider a down year for Elliott, he's still fifth in the league in rushing. His yards per carry is only 0.2 behind fourth-place Dalvin Cook, who most people feel is having a great year.

What would you focus on in 2015? Brandon Weeden with no #1 receiver or our running game behind the best offensive line in football?

 

[Mountaineerfan]

Zeke looks fat plays slower than past years.

 

[DandyDon52]

I honestly think

1. Dak is improving as a pocket passer, and he's throwing more passes

2. This is Moore's first year as the OC

3. Dak's contract

In fact, part of this team's problem is that it abandons the run even when it IS working(Bills, Patriots game)

This is common football mentality, if a team gets behind, especially more than 10 points and they all shift to all pass plays,
with the occasional run.
To me if it is early in the game you could actually run more if that is what is working, forget about the score, just move the
ball and try to score a td, it does not have to be quick score, and often the pass plays dont really help, especially if the defense
is getting to your qb, that is when strip sacks, fumbles, ints happen.
But common football mentality ignores all that and does what they are programmed to do, and that is keep passing,and
stop running the ball.

 

[superonyx]

Wait, it's unrealistic to expect the highest paid TB in the history of the NFL to spit out a great season?

I am not blaming him for our problems, far from it. Coaching, defense, etc are far more to blame at this point. But some of you are such fanboys of certain players at times that you bristle at legitimate criticism. The fact of the matter is Elliott has not had a great year (only a decent to good season) and he's paid to have great seasons. I struggle to understand why some have a problem with that comment.

Now that not what I said at all.
You tried to frame it that way for a reason.

His pay doesnt suddenly change his production from what it is. Also just looking at stats good or bad is a good way to arrive at the wrong conclusion.

What is unrealistic is to look at his $6.3m this season or 12.5M average and expect him to break 1600 yards every season. Setting a bar based on stats alone and ignoring everything around those stats is elementary.

You want to put people into boxes to make yourself feel more comfortable with your own opinions. This isnt new to this thread. This is your style. I get it. I see through it.

Being objective and refraining from overly criticizing a player for their production within the ultimate team sport is not being a fanboy. Its thinking beyond the surface. You can choose to stay on the surface if this is your comfort zone.

 

[gimmesix]

What would you focus on in 2015? Brandon Weeden with no #1 receiver or our running game behind the best offensive line in football?

I sure wouldn't focus on a running back who didn't carry the ball more than 15 times a game and had more than 65 yards rushing in just one game. Defenses were not concerned about our running game when Randle was in there.

In contrast, Elliott had only one game in 2017 with fewer than 21 carries, and rushed for 100-plus yards in five of his 10 games. Defenses take that seriously.

 

[Aviano90]

I sure wouldn't focus on a running back who didn't carry the ball more than 15 times a game and had more than 65 yards rushing in just one game. Defenses were not concerned about our running game when Randle was in there.

In contrast, Elliott had only one game in 2017 with fewer than 21 carries, and rushed for 100-plus yards in five of his 10 games. Defenses take that seriously.

So you would focus on Brandon Weeden. Got it.

Defenses were concerned with our running game, whether it was Randle or DMC that year. Randle just sucked.

 

[Sydla]

Now that not what I said at all.
You tried to frame it that way for a reason.

His pay doesnt suddenly change his production from what it is. Also just looking at stats good or bad is a good way to arrive at the wrong conclusion.

What is unrealistic is to look at his $6.3m this season or 12.5M average and expect him to break 1600 yards every season. Setting a bar based on stats alone and ignoring everything around those stats is elementary.

You want to put people into boxes to make yourself feel more comfortable with your own opinions. This isnt new to this thread. This is your style. I get it. I see through it.

Being objective and refraining from overly criticizing a player for their production within the ultimate team sport is not being a fanboy. Its thinking beyond the surface. You can choose to stay on the surface if this is your comfort zone.

It's really not thinking beyond the surface. It's simply trying to muddy the waters to offer up a defense of a player who, frankly, has not had a great year. As I said, it often comes from those who bristle at any real fair criticism of one of the team's "star" players.

Further, as much as you want to try to separate what he's paid from what he does on the field, it doesn't work that way. He got the largest contract in NFL history for a TB because the team believes, expects and needs him to put out great seasons as often as he can.

That's why they paid him. If they just wanted decent to good seasons, they could have found that for far less money and used the saved money elsewhere. That's the type of thinking most NFL teams use when constructing a roster. What's the value placed on a position and production from a position? In this case, the Cowboys paid their TB elite money and they expect, more often than not, great results. They haven't gotten that consistently this year. You can excuse some of his play on OL issues. But as has been noted through a lot of analysis, Zeke himself isn't have a great year that has little to do with his OL. He shows little burst like he did as a rookie and seems lacking in ability to hit a big play now. That's not all the OLs fault.

And if people want to argue that it's too much to expect a TB to consistently deliver because that's the nature of the position, then guess what? You just proved why it was foolish to pay a TB a crap ton of money.

 

[TheTruthIsOutThere]

Zeke is getting paid on past accomplishments. While he deserved to be paid, he is currently not playing up to the standards that got him his raise.

But I'm against paying running backs big money, I mean look at the other two big name guys that recently got paid and what they are currently doing. Backs are easily replaceable, we could have drafted someone that could have gave us at least 75% of Zeke's performance, oddly enough we are getting that after paying him.