Zeke’s “new” contract and workload history

[Bobhaze]

First of all…spoiler alert: I don’t hate Zeke. I appreciate his skills and all the yards he’s logged here. Ok? Just making that clear up front, lol.

Now on to two points I noticed recently involving Zeke that I think reflect poor decisions made by this FO with down the road consequences:

1. Did anyone notice his contract restructure? It may have fallen under the radar for some, but the Cowboys restructured Zeke’s contract, changing his $9.6 million in salary this year, and converts it to a signing bonus. It frees up some cap space, but it also has down the road consequences. It means if the Cowboys want to off load Zeke and his big salary the next two years, that just got harder because the converted salary to signing bonus makes his future cap hit higher than before. Not smart IMO.
   
   
2. Zeke’s huge workload history while garnering huge cap space is a problem. Zeke has had 1654 touches in his 5 years in the league, which already places him as 11th all time in touches in NFL history. That doesn’t count the 650 touches he had in 3 season at Ohio State. The guy has had about 2300 touches in 8 years. Some points on this:

• That is a TON of miles on those tire treads. RBs in NFL history with those kind of touch numbers ALL burnout early unless you’re Walter Payton or Emmitt Smith.
• With a reduced role, maybe Zeke could last a few years as an effective RB. But if they keep giving him the numbers they have for 5 years, he won’t be effective much longer.

Bottom line- I hope this contract restructure doesn’t bite this team’s cap in the posterior in the next two years. And if this front office is so committed to Zeke for 2-3 more seasons, they better get serious about some load management.

 

[Ranching]

First of all…spoiler alert: I don’t hate Zeke. I appreciate his skills and all the yards he’s logged here. Ok? Just making that clear up front, lol.

Now on to two points I noticed recently involving Zeke that I think reflect poor decisions made by this FO with down the road consequences:

1. Did anyone notice his contract restructure? It may have fallen under the radar for some, but the Cowboys restructured Zeke’s contract, changing his $9.6 million in salary this year, and converts it to a signing bonus. It frees up some cap space, but it also has down the road consequences. It means if the Cowboys want to off load Zeke and his big salary the next two years, that just got harder because the converted salary to signing bonus makes his future cap hit higher than before. Not smart IMO.
   
   
2. Zeke’s huge workload history while garnering huge cap space is a problem. Zeke has had 1645 touches in his 5 years in the league, which already places him as 11th all time in touches in NFL history. That doesn’t count the 650 touches he had in 3 season at Ohio State. The guy has had about 2300 touches in 8 years. Some points on this:

• That is a TON of miles on those tire treads. RBs in NFL history with those kind of touch numbers ALL burnout early unless you’re Walter Payton or Emmitt Smith.
• With a reduced role, maybe Zeke could last a few years as an effective RB. But if they keep giving him the numbers they have for 5 years, he won’t be effective much longer.

Bottom line- I hope this contract restructure doesn’t bite this team’s cap in the posterior in the next two years. And if this front office is so committed to Zeke for 2-3 more seasons, they better get serious about some load management.

With all those touches, I don't blame Him for holding out. He's a lot smarter than many around here.

 

[Aviano90]

He's in shape this year, the oline has improved and he's got his QB back. If he has a good year from an efficiency standpoint, his contract concern dries up. If he reverts back to an inefficient battering ram in need of a ton of carries to put up decent stats, then the contract concern will only get worse than it is right now.

 

[Bobhaze]

With all those touches, I don't blame Him for holding out. He's a lot smarter than many around here.

His agent was a genius. If I was a skill position player, especially for the Cowboys, I would hire Rocky Aresenaux in a New York minute. He played JJ like a fiddle.

 

[DCBoysfan]

First of all…spoiler alert: I don’t hate Zeke. I appreciate his skills and all the yards he’s logged here. Ok? Just making that clear up front, lol.

Now on to two points I noticed recently involving Zeke that I think reflect poor decisions made by this FO with down the road consequences:

1. Did anyone notice his contract restructure? It may have fallen under the radar for some, but the Cowboys restructured Zeke’s contract, changing his $9.6 million in salary this year, and converts it to a signing bonus. It frees up some cap space, but it also has down the road consequences. It means if the Cowboys want to off load Zeke and his big salary the next two years, that just got harder because the converted salary to signing bonus makes his future cap hit higher than before. Not smart IMO.
   
   
2. Zeke’s huge workload history while garnering huge cap space is a problem. Zeke has had 1645 touches in his 5 years in the league, which already places him as 11th all time in touches in NFL history. That doesn’t count the 650 touches he had in 3 season at Ohio State. The guy has had about 2300 touches in 8 years. Some points on this:

• That is a TON of miles on those tire treads. RBs in NFL history with those kind of touch numbers ALL burnout early unless you’re Walter Payton or Emmitt Smith.
• With a reduced role, maybe Zeke could last a few years as an effective RB. But if they keep giving him the numbers they have for 5 years, he won’t be effective much longer.

Bottom line- I hope this contract restructure doesn’t bite this team’s cap in the posterior in the next two years. And if this front office is so committed to Zeke for 2-3 more seasons, they better get serious about some load management.

My guess is the team is anticipating the cap increasing significantly in the coming years with the influx of new revenue such as the TV deal and gambling licenses etc. to ease the cap hit if they decide to unload Zeke in a couple of years.

 

[jazzcat22]

Agree his workload needs managed better, but it needs to be managed inside the 20's, not inside the red zone.

This is they first time ever I seen someone talk about number of carries in college. How about that be considered in every player then. I don't think that is a fair thing to use against Zeke for your case.

Anyone thinking the team planned to dump Zeke in a few years are just dreaming, and is probably a Zeke "disliker" as he will play most of his contract. He is not done by any means.
I never seen a fan base hate on so many players as we have here. The salary cap always works itself out, and is not a detriment as many think it is.

 

[Aftershock]

Source for touches ranking all time list?

 

[blueblood70]

Agree his workload needs managed better, but it needs to be managed inside the 20's, not inside the red zone.

This is they first time ever I seen someone talk about number of carries in college. How about that be considered in every player then. I don't think that is a fair thing to use against Zeke for your case.

Anyone thinking the team planned to dump Zeke in a few years are just dreaming, and is probably a Zeke "disliker" as he will play most of his contract. He is not done by any means.
I never seen a fan base hate on so many players as we have here. The salary cap always works itself out, and is not a detriment as many think it is.

 

[TwoCentPlain]

If they don’t use the money saved this year, it rolls over and is a wash if they cut him next year.

Cowboys didn’t need to restructure the salary. Made no sense to me unless they are planning on using the money.

The paying fans want to see Dak and Elliott so Jerry gave them what they wanted.

 

[Bobhaze]

Agree his workload needs managed better, but it needs to be managed inside the 20's, not inside the red zone.

This is they first time ever I seen someone talk about number of carries in college. How about that be considered in every player then. I don't think that is a fair thing to use against Zeke for your case.

Anyone thinking the team planned to dump Zeke in a few years are just dreaming, and is probably a Zeke "disliker" as he will play most of his contract. He is not done by any means.
I never seen a fan base hate on so many players as we have here. The salary cap always works itself out, and is not a detriment as many think it is.

When I use college numbers with Zeke, it’s not “against him”, it’s just something that must be taken into consideration. RBs are human with finite physical workload limits. I’m mentioning workload not as a criticism, but a fact that needs to be studied FOR THE TEAM.

 

[conner01]

My guess is the team is anticipating the cap increasing significantly in the coming years with the influx of new revenue such as the TV deal and gambling licenses etc. to ease the cap hit if they decide to unload Zeke in a couple of years.

Teams know where the cap is going
For them barring unforeseen situations like last year, it’s pretty predictable
Tv revenue is consistent
More option for revenue are coming with direct contract expiring
Revenue is going to keep growing like it has with this one exception we just seen, and will likely grow even faster

 

[Bobhaze]

Source for touches ranking all time list?

Norm Hitzges mentioned it oh his radio show today.

 

[conner01]

Zeke is still a manageable cut in 2023
That didn’t change
The cost is higher but the cap will be too
His deal was designed to be able to move on at that time and they likely will unless he gets an Adrian Peterson dna transplant

 

[Aviano90]

When I use college numbers with Zeke, it’s not “against him”, it’s just something that must be taken into consideration. RBs are human with finite physical workload limits. I’m mentioning workload not as a criticism, but a fact that needs to be studied FOR THE TEAM.

His college touches aren't concerning. Emmitt Smith had 756 touches.

https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/emmitt-smith-1.html

 

[PAPPYDOG]

First of all…spoiler alert: I don’t hate Zeke. I appreciate his skills and all the yards he’s logged here. Ok? Just making that clear up front, lol.

Now on to two points I noticed recently involving Zeke that I think reflect poor decisions made by this FO with down the road consequences:

1. Did anyone notice his contract restructure? It may have fallen under the radar for some, but the Cowboys restructured Zeke’s contract, changing his $9.6 million in salary this year, and converts it to a signing bonus. It frees up some cap space, but it also has down the road consequences. It means if the Cowboys want to off load Zeke and his big salary the next two years, that just got harder because the converted salary to signing bonus makes his future cap hit higher than before. Not smart IMO.
   
   
2. Zeke’s huge workload history while garnering huge cap space is a problem. Zeke has had 1645 touches in his 5 years in the league, which already places him as 11th all time in touches in NFL history. That doesn’t count the 650 touches he had in 3 season at Ohio State. The guy has had about 2300 touches in 8 years. Some points on this:

• That is a TON of miles on those tire treads. RBs in NFL history with those kind of touch numbers ALL burnout early unless you’re Walter Payton or Emmitt Smith.
• With a reduced role, maybe Zeke could last a few years as an effective RB. But if they keep giving him the numbers they have for 5 years, he won’t be effective much longer.

Bottom line- I hope this contract restructure doesn’t bite this team’s cap in the posterior in the next two years. And if this front office is so committed to Zeke for 2-3 more seasons, they better get serious about some load management.

They should count their lucky STARS that this bozo is their Boss!!!

 

[atlantacowboy]

First of all…spoiler alert: I don’t hate Zeke. I appreciate his skills and all the yards he’s logged here. Ok? Just making that clear up front, lol.

Now on to two points I noticed recently involving Zeke that I think reflect poor decisions made by this FO with down the road consequences:

1. Did anyone notice his contract restructure? It may have fallen under the radar for some, but the Cowboys restructured Zeke’s contract, changing his $9.6 million in salary this year, and converts it to a signing bonus. It frees up some cap space, but it also has down the road consequences. It means if the Cowboys want to off load Zeke and his big salary the next two years, that just got harder because the converted salary to signing bonus makes his future cap hit higher than before. Not smart IMO.
   
   
2. Zeke’s huge workload history while garnering huge cap space is a problem. Zeke has had 1645 touches in his 5 years in the league, which already places him as 11th all time in touches in NFL history. That doesn’t count the 650 touches he had in 3 season at Ohio State. The guy has had about 2300 touches in 8 years. Some points on this:

• That is a TON of miles on those tire treads. RBs in NFL history with those kind of touch numbers ALL burnout early unless you’re Walter Payton or Emmitt Smith.
• With a reduced role, maybe Zeke could last a few years as an effective RB. But if they keep giving him the numbers they have for 5 years, he won’t be effective much longer.

Bottom line- I hope this contract restructure doesn’t bite this team’s cap in the posterior in the next two years. And if this front office is so committed to Zeke for 2-3 more seasons, they better get serious about some load management.

The FO just continues to prove the point that they don't know how to manage a football team. Zeke was a poor choice at #4 overall in the draft. We gave him a new contract with 2 years left on his rookie deal thus negating the upside of a first round contract. There is nothing special about him. He's as good as our offensive line.

 

[Bobhaze]

The FO just continues to prove the point that they don't know how to manage a football team. Zeke was a poor choice at #4 overall in the draft. We gave him a new contract with 2 years left on his rookie deal thus negating the upside of a first round contract. There is nothing special about him. He's as good as our offensive line.

So far, he’s not HOF special, but he has been very good. But what good are his yards and production if after 5 seasons with him, it has translated to making the playoffs twice, and one wild card win? That’s how we should always judge value IMO. What has that player meant to this team in terms of playoff accomplishments? Too many Fans and apparently our FO are more enamored with stats than playoff wins.

 

[jazzcat22]

His college touches aren't concerning. Emmitt Smith had 756 touches.

https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/emmitt-smith-1.html

I almost mentioned this in my post, what were Emmitt's touches, as well other top RB's also.
How about how many passes a QB throws, including college. Should that be a concern for the arm. WR's running routes, does that not put wear and tear on the legs. I know getting hit by DL and LB's takes a toll. But it is what they do. Some can go on, other hit a wall. We will see with Zeke, but not for another 4 or 5 years before it should be questioned.
Carlos Hyde will have to hit a wall soon. Don't see him playing 4 more years, as he wants Emmitt's record.

 

[Aviano90]

The FO just continues to prove the point that they don't know how to manage a football team. Zeke was a poor choice at #4 overall in the draft. We gave him a new contract with 2 years left on his rookie deal thus negating the upside of a first round contract. There is nothing special about him. He's as good as our offensive line.

How did the team negate the upside of a first round contract?

 

[John813]

So far, he’s not HOF special, but he has been very good. But what good are his yards and production if after 5 seasons with him, it has translated to making the playoffs twice, and one wild card win? That’s how we should always judge value IMO. What has that player meant to this team in terms of playoff accomplishments? Too many Fans and apparently our FO are more enamored with stats than playoff wins.

IMO he was a Romo pick, in that they were in a win now mode with the 4th overall. Dallas saw that Randle was a knucklehead and McFadden could put up yards against weak defenses but struggled vs the good ones.
So, they believed their hype that Romo could play till his 40's and took the player that would possible extend Romo's career and bring back 2014 offensive efficiency.


They got lucky Dak fell to them even though he was plan C/D and he also could manage an offense as efficient as he did as a rookie.