Zeke cannot do what Pollard does

Fumbling is never good. But it didn't matter. Washington had our number top to bottom.

 

Zeke has had one good game this season. Last week. He is not good anymore. But hey, he was back!! after last week's fluke game lmao.

 

Pollard was amazing today.

 

You can’t start a RB on track for 8 fumbles in a season after 11 games. He needs to be benched but is a protected species at the Cowboys.

 

Everything depends on it.

 

Zeke is done. He runs hard for a few plays after he fumbles, and that's it. I'm so sick of seeing him run two or three yards and then just dive forward even if he isn't tackled. It's lazy, it's infuriating, and it's unacceptable for a player making that kind of cash.

 

It's bigger than that. Elliott did fumble, but it led to Washington getting 3 points. "Maybe" we would have scored a TD. Wouldn't have mattered.
The bigger problem besides the obviously terrible O line is that he only ran the ball 10 times. Pollard only ran 4 times. That's just inexcusable.

 

Ugly game. I hated that that ~20 yd run he had got called back, because it was one of the best ribs he’s had in awhile, and actually got me out of my seat.

 

Elliott is a volume back that can no longer be depended upon being given the ball at a high volume.

Quite the pickle.

 

The line has nothing to do with my question, I was asking why Zeke himself has declined. Could be wear and tear, but at age 25 that'd be unusual, especially given his size, he's pretty compact. Maybe playing injured, though every NFL running back plays injured, just the nature of the game.

You could be right, but realistically I don't think we will be able to tell until next year, assuming T. Smith and Collins are back, and Martin returns to his natural position at guard. Of course then it'll be "he's only good if the line is good" if Zeke returns to form. Which could be, but if he's just down because of the Covid he had, or for any other reason that won't be around next year, we'll may never really know.

Thanks for the thoughts...

 

I don't know how you can realistically discuss the idea of Elliott declining if you exclude talking about the O line. It's a package deal. It's directly related just like the pass protection. And yes, Elliott has been playing with a hamstring injury. When there are lanes, he looks fine, but that's not good enough for some fans. No one is running very well behind this line, not consistently.

 

You missed my point. I was questioning those who said Elliot himself wasn't the same as he was in past years, regardless of the line. Certainly the line has something to do with his success, as with ANY running back, but IF Zeke isn't the guy he was in 2016 or 2018, then why did the player himself decline. In other words, IF the line was good and Zeke didn't return to form, then you could make the assumption he was "washed up" so to speak. But the line isn't good, at this point you have to take the line out of the equation, there have been many comments that have said Zeke was never great, it was all line. But we can't go back in time and put the young pup Zeke in behind a line that's not very good, like this one, and see if he did as well as he did back then.

I just need to see Zeke behind a somewhat better line to make further evaluations. IF we get Smith and Colliins and Martin back, in good shape, then can make up my mind then...

 

It's fairly clear to me. He needs to iron out the fumbling issue and he's fine considering the circumstances.

 

Fumbling can come in bunches, that's not unusual. In his first year he had 2 fumbles in the second game, and immediately there were fans who said "he's a fumbler" (On the Dallas Cowboys website that took comments at the time, I believe). Then he went 5 games with no fumbles and only 3 more the remaining 8 games. In 2017 he had one in two consecutive games 3 times, but none in the other 10 games. Just last year he had only 3 total, none in consecutive games. Now this year he has 6, but 5 of those came in the first 6 games. 1 fumble in the last 5 games. The one in the W game only resulted in a field goal, hardly the reason the Cowboys lost. If he hadn't fumbled, is there any real expectation the Cowboys would have won?

I wouldn't call 1 fumble in the last 5 games an "issue". It happens...

 

The last one looked like he just tried too hard. Certainly not the worst thing that happened in the game.

 

Reminds me of Felix Jones. Felix was extremely explosive until he was made the primary back and started getting beat down with excessive carries.

 

There are two elements to running the football - making yards/tds, and ball security. Ball security should be pretty much an unconscious thing, it's just drilled into you long enough that you don't really think about it during a game. You're focused on making plays. But if you have to make it more of a conscious thing, it affects your running. Everybody runs better with the ball tucked into the crook of one arm, leaving the other arm free to swing to balance your body, make stiff arms, etc. If you have to have both arms around the ball, you're not going to be quite effective in actually running. I suspect that's part of the cause of some of Elliot's lack of production, and also why he had the 103 yard game at Minnesota. He got to where he didn't think about ball security so much. Have to wonder now if the latest fumble will set him back.

In any case, his fumbles are not the biggest reason we're dead last in the NFC East. He could have had zero fumbles and it might have resulted in one more win. Maybe.

This year is a wash, plenty of blame to go around, Zeke gets more than his share imho, and it's largely due to his salary, which is silly, because signing a big contract doesn't make you a better runner. It can make you worse, but there's no way to tell if that's the case with Zeke, we're not on the team, not in meetings, not living next door to Zeke, not personal friends with him. To say he's not trying, or has lost a step, or has a bad attitude is pure conjecture. If that's your opinion, fine, but we don't all have to agree with it...

 

dude really what a clown

Jones was a dimple on Zekes buttox..even trying to make comp between the two is laughable..

 

Thing is...fumbles were never a problem before.

Most people don't know that Eddie Georges first two Ohio State runs were fumbles.....near/at the endzone. So good runners do have ruts...so to speak.

I can't for the life of me figure out why zeke is fumbling. If I were a hater like Aria, Roy or starfan...I;d say "the fat got in the way" ...or "too much blunt".

Maybe it's like you said....he's changing the way he runs for more bling yards instead of just hammering?

(PS>..you didn't say that EXACTLY....but if zeke is swinging his free arm around...it;s changed)