Why did Zeke's abilities nose dive?

[Pass2Run]

In Zeke's first two seasons, he was one of the best, or maybe the best, running back in the league. It was all downhill after that. In his last season, he was just a basic running back who could block pretty well and get you some short yardage when you need it. Other Cowboys running backs were productive way longer than Zeke. Calvin Hill, Tony Dorsett, and Emmitt Smith helped their teams way, way longer than Zeke did. Zeke was productive probably about as long as DeMarco Murray was.

What happened? I know some fans say that he got paid a bunch of money and then just got lazy. However, his play last season didn't look lazy to me. It looked like he was working really hard, but he just wasn't anywhere near as good as he used to be. Did his body just wear out? Or did he do a poor job training? Did the pandemic slow him down? What happened?

The guy liked to party too hard....going back to his days at Ohio State.

 

[TheFinisher]

I never really thought of him as an elite back. Sure, he declined, but it’s not like he was ever an explosive player to begin with. He benefitted from running behind an all time great OL early in his career and had some nice productive years, but let’s be honest about his talent level… he had no home run ability.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

I never really thought of him as an elite back. Sure, he declined, but it’s not like he was ever an explosive player to begin with. He benefitted from running behind an all time great OL early in his career and had some nice productive years, but let’s be honest about his talent level… this wasn’t Adrian Peterson.

He wasn't even Bijan.

That being said running him 400 times two seasons in a row did him no favors and his play declined precipitously afterwards.

 

[TheFinisher]

He wasn't even Bijan.

That being said running him 400 times two seasons in a row did him no favors and his play declined precipitously afterwards.

I agree. I’m just saying he never really made defenders miss in space, or threatened defenses with his speed. Any decline was going to be that much more noticeable and he was always a guy that looked destined to have a short shelf life.

 

[diamonddelts]

I never really thought of him as an elite back. Sure, he declined, but it’s not like he was ever an explosive player to begin with. He benefitted from running behind an all time great OL early in his career and had some nice productive years, but let’s be honest about his talent level… he had no home run ability.

Zeke's official 40 time was 4.47. He was very explosive his rookie season. And was always a threat to take it to the house that year. But his speed waned every year after due to torn knee ligaments.

 

[TequilaCowboy]

In Zeke's first two seasons, he was one of the best, or maybe the best, running back in the league. It was all downhill after that. In his last season, he was just a basic running back who could block pretty well and get you some short yardage when you need it. Other Cowboys running backs were productive way longer than Zeke. Calvin Hill, Tony Dorsett, and Emmitt Smith helped their teams way, way longer than Zeke did. Zeke was productive probably about as long as DeMarco Murray was.

What happened? I know some fans say that he got paid a bunch of money and then just got lazy. However, his play last season didn't look lazy to me. It looked like he was working really hard, but he just wasn't anywhere near as good as he used to be. Did his body just wear out? Or did he do a poor job training? Did the pandemic slow him down? What happened?

I feel Zeke wore down but also injuries that hampered his performance. Slowed him down. The biggest thing was the first several years he had an All World OL......now, not so much. Does wonders for a RB. His contract extension did play a smaller role, but more the other stuff.

 

[CalPolyTechnique]

You claimed I said he didn’t break off any long runs his rookie year and you were wrong! I said he didn’t break off a lot of long runs and the stats you provided prove it. The stats you provided claim he broke 3 runs of 40+ yards. Those are long runs. The 14 runs for 20+ yards aren’t long runs.

Your response is a textbook example of intellectually dishonesty.

You said something wrong. Realized the facts don’t back you up and now you’re left making up stuff to try and save face for some reason.

I literally put your own words in quotes and you still refuse to be corrected, loool.

 

[CalPolyTechnique]

It’s not really an opinion lol. Contextually, 3 is a lot. If 4 is the high, then 3 would be a lot.

3 isn’t a lot when it comes to plenty of things, but when it comes to something in which 4 is the most then logically 3 would be a lot.

Just cause you feel like it’s not a lot doesn’t mean that’s the reality. Don’t need to go back and forth any further but simple logic dictates that if 4 is the most, then 3 would be a lot.

Context matters. The number 50 is not much when it comes to money but 50 is a lot when it comes to hamburgers for example. A number doesn’t hold the same value in every aspect, therefore you can’t treat it that way. Just because 3 isn’t a lot in many aspects doesn’t mean that holds the same value when it comes to 40+ yard runs.

To judge what “a lot” is, it must be compared to what your peers do. 3 was tied for second, therefore that would make that “a lot” compared to what the status quo is for the achievement.

Yeah, what you’re seeing is him trying to pivot because he doesn’t like the feeling of being corrected.

If he made the mistake of claiming the Cowboys never beat the Buffalo Bills in the Super Bowl and was corrected by someone, he’d pivot and say “the Cowboys never beat the Bills in Buffalo.”

 

[CyberB0b]

I assume your body can only take so much damage as it happens to most running backs who are as physical as he is.

People say he took the money and stopped caring, but I always see clips of him online working his butt off in the offseason so I don't buy that theory.

Yeah, he had a ton of touches in college and the pros. They rode him into the ground. That’s why you cut bait with a running back not named Emmitt Smith early.

 

[JayFord]

question for some of you all

did you have this kind of negative energy to Todd Gurley?

 

[KJJ]

Your response is a textbook example of intellectually dishonesty.

You said something wrong. Realized the facts don’t back you up and now you’re left making up stuff to try and save face for some reason.

I literally put your own words in quotes and you still refuse to be corrected, loool.

You said something wrong. You didn’t put my own words in quotes you twisted them. You claimed I said Zeke didn’t break off long runs his rookie year and you were wrong! I said he didn’t break off “a lot” of long runs his rookie year. This is what I said, and this is what you claimed I said. Have fun wiping the pie off your face. Lol

Even when he first arrived he wasn’t breaking off a lot of long runs.

He didn’t break long runs his rookie season?

That ain’t accurate.

He had just five runs of 40+ yards in his career; all but two of those came his rookie year.

Similarly, he had 14 runs of 20+ in 2016, the most in his career.

 

[blueblood70]

Is it me or is there far too many Ezekiel Elliott post here??!!

the guy is gone and yet his name appears in three threads now on the front page.. Do y'all have nothing better to do than to open a hot topic and just argue about a player who's not even here anymore demean the guy put him down act like he never did anything....

saying ridiculous things like he only had two good years, try more like 4 and some of you are intimating he was an alcoholic partier who didn't work hard and he had a drop off a Cliff moment in his career when he didn't,

he literally had injuries, we had lots of changes to the team, mostly OL injuries and shuffling, the offensive coordinator but mainly it was his injuries. go look at the start to 2021 and 2022 he came out hot that means he was in shape ready to go, got injured, fell off that's what happens to older players especially if they get hurt,

can we stop disrespecting a player that came out end had one of the best rookie years by a Cowboys player not just a running back but his first season he's being judged on why he didn't repeat that and yet you can put together Tony Dorsett and Emmitt Smith rookie year and that's what Ezekiel Elliott accomplished in his first seaosn. Holding to him to his own accomplishments like he was supposed to do that every year no it's unfair to hold him against his own success his first season almost nobody would have been able to repeat that over and over so he didn't fall off it was a gradual like some have said in some of the threads he just slowly got older and more injured and the team changed around him and that's just the way it goes

Elliott literally put up a career that can be compared to at least stat wise you've seen the meme he had a better stats in the same amount of seasons as Terrell Davis they were better he has two rushing titles would have had three right out of college which by the way is 2 college seasons were ridiculous and yet this man is they act like he only came in here and had two seasons and then like disappeared no he had four really good seasons plus came out in 2021 and started out the first eight games at 5.2 yards per carry he was doing very well also started out close to five yards per carry in 2022 I don't really understand the hate or to say the guy sucked for a very long time he has it he's getting injured he's getting older they cut him and yet here we are all these pages mostly of just dumping on this guy's career, he is now what third all time behind tony and ES22..

 

[JayFord]

Is it me or is there far too many Ezekiel Elliott post here??!!

the guy is gone and yet his name appears in three threads now on the front page.. Do y'all have nothing better to do than to open a hot topic and just argue about a player who's not even here anymore demean the guy put him down act like he never did anything....

saying ridiculous things like he only had two good years, try more like 4 and some of you are intimating he was an alcoholic partier who didn't work hard and he had a drop off a Cliff moment in his career when he didn't,

he literally had injuries, we had lots of changes to the team, mostly OL injuries and shuffling, the offensive coordinator but mainly it was his injuries. go look at the start to 2021 and 2022 he came out hot that means he was in shape ready to go, got injured, fell off that's what happens to older players especially if they get hurt,

can we stop disrespecting a player that came out end had one of the best rookie years by a Cowboys player not just a running back but his first season he's being judged on why he didn't repeat that and yet you can put together Tony Dorsett and Emmitt Smith rookie year and that's what Ezekiel Elliott accomplished in his first seaosn. Holding to him to his own accomplishments like he was supposed to do that every year no it's unfair to hold him against his own success his first season almost nobody would have been able to repeat that over and over so he didn't fall off it was a gradual like some have said in some of the threads he just slowly got older and more injured and the team changed around him and that's just the way it goes

Elliott literally put up a career that can be compared to at least stat wise you've seen the meme he had a better stats in the same amount of seasons as Terrell Davis they were better he has two rushing titles would have had three right out of college which by the way is 2 college seasons were ridiculous and yet this man is they act like he only came in here and had two seasons and then like disappeared no he had four really good seasons plus came out in 2021 and started out the first eight games at 5.2 yards per carry he was doing very well also started out close to five yards per carry in 2022 I don't really understand the hate or to say the guy sucked for a very long time he has it he's getting injured he's getting older they cut him and yet here we are all these pages mostly of just dumping on this guy's career, he is now what third all time behind tony and ES22..

i dont know if they'll understand this

man gave 100% he literally has nothing else he can give us we squeezed blood out of the stone

the comments about him being on drugs and being an alcoholic are disgusting and theres no room for that

1800+ carries will break your body.....Look at Todd Gurley, Terrell Davis, Demarco Murray, Eddie George, Jamal Anderson, Alfred Morris, Chris Johnson heck even Edgerrin James

these RBs at one point were considered the guy...and outside of Johnson and James they pretty much were a shell of themselves and Johnson and James were still good but nowhere near their elite selves

there are VERY few Adrian Petersons and Emmitt smiths who last 9+ years being elite

this forum brings out the absolute worst in people

 

[CowboyFrog]

i dont know if they'll understand this

man gave 100% he literally has nothing else he can give us we squeezed blood out of the stone

the comments about him being on drugs and being an alcoholic are disgusting and theres no room for that

1800+ carries will break your body.....Look at Todd Gurley, Terrell Davis, Demarco Murray, Eddie George, Jamal Anderson, Alfred Morris, Chris Johnson heck even Edgerrin James

these RBs at one point were considered the guy...and outside of Johnson and James they pretty much were a shell of themselves and Johnson and James were still good but nowhere near their elite selves

there are VERY few Adrian Petersons and Emmitt smiths who last 9+ years being elite

this forum brings out the absolute worst in people

Yeah like i said its really not a huge question, the workload and injuries, you hardly need to be a top detective to figure this out.....everything else is just ridiculousness that some posters like to bring here daily because they are bored i guess?

 

[817Gill]

Yeah, what you’re seeing is him trying to pivot because he doesn’t like the feeling of being corrected.

If he made the mistake of claiming the Cowboys never beat the Buffalo Bills in the Super Bowl and was corrected by someone, he’d pivot and say “the Cowboys never beat the Bills in Buffalo.”

Bro was dodging logic like Mayweather does punches lol

 

[KJJ]

Bro was dodging logic like Mayweather does punches lol

Sorry, but 3 isn’t “a lot” and the guy you’re responding to claimed I said Zeke didn’t break any long runs his rookie year which is a lie and I proved it with quotes. He just got caught with his pants down. Lol I’m dodging punches, while both of you are taking them. This has been like target practice for me.

 

[blueblood70]

i dont know if they'll understand this

man gave 100% he literally has nothing else he can give us we squeezed blood out of the stone

the comments about him being on drugs and being an alcoholic are disgusting and theres no room for that

1800+ carries will break your body.....Look at Todd Gurley, Terrell Davis, Demarco Murray, Eddie George, Jamal Anderson, Alfred Morris, Chris Johnson heck even Edgerrin James

these RBs at one point were considered the guy...and outside of Johnson and James they pretty much were a shell of themselves and Johnson and James were still good but nowhere near their elite selves

there are VERY few Adrian Petersons and Emmitt smiths who last 9+ years being elite

this forum brings out the absolute worst in people

just no need to demean a guy who has had great Dallas Career, hes home grown star that many just hate because its the popular thing to do nowadays, no credit all nasty negative comments. hes 3rd all time here some just seem to judge him like troy Hambrick or Mr. meat on the bone boxer short stealer lol bTW on that list Dak nearly got as many yards as old Hambrick..
https://www.statista.com/statistics...layer with,yards and 8,262 yards respectively.

 

[SteveTheCowboy]

He got that bag and that was his only objective. Jones should have realized this when he held out with two years on his contract.

No other explanation makes any sense.

Well Except for him blocking like not other elite ever had to block. Playing injured like no other elite ever did.

Truth and facts get in the way of your hatred. Oops...I mean assumptions and ignorance. Sorry!

 

[SteveTheCowboy]

What you said isn’t accurate, because I never said he didn’t break off any long runs his rookie year. I said he didn’t break off “a lot” of long runs. You might want to go back and read my post again.

Cal poly is a zeke hater. He will twist facts like all haters do.

 

[KJJ]

Cal poly is a zeke hater. He will twist facts like all haters do.

He has a history of twisting comments to fit his agenda. Even when his caught he won’t come clean.