Twitter: Zeke's exit may need to happen sooner than later

[aria]

Here's the truth with Zeke. He's doesn't have his rookie burst but if the OL was right and the defense wasn't giving up 20 plus points in the first half like they've done most of this year then Zeke would be putting up numbers that would put him in the top 3 or 4 backs in the league.

How many starting RB’s would be under the same circumstances? That’s like saying if Dak had all day to throw and wide open receivers then he would be a top 2-3 QB in the league.

 

[GimmeTheBall!]

Several Dallas area sports radio guys (Bob Sturm and Jake Kemp specifically) have been chatting quite a bit lately about the Cowboys cutting Zeke at the end of this season, and just taking the cap hit now. Before everyone screams “Can’t do it!”, look at the details of Zeke’s contract as lined out on Spotrac.com: https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/dallas-cowboys/ezekiel-elliott-18952/

I would argue that if this team’s is going to get better faster, we need to get rid of Zeke and his 3.8 ypc and 60 something yards a game, and draft a good young RB out of college with a mid round pick (and a rookie contract) to tandem with Pollard. Cut Zeke as a post June 1 cut, unless some other team is willing to trade for him (which won’t happen).

Here are the reasons:

• Keeping Zeke and the big contract is not the future. It’s the past. Sure it would give us some dead money to deal with but his signing was a mistake to begin with. Cut him at the end of the season and deal with the mistake instead of prolonging it. If this team is rebuilding, you have to suffer some to get better.
• His production continues to drop every year. Sure he hasn’t had a good line this year, but his per game yardage and per carry yards have continued to decline year after year.
  
• He’s lost his dynamic playmaking ability. He hasn’t had a run over 40 yards since his rookie year. Compare that to Derrick Henry who has had 9 runs over 40 yards since his rookie year. Two over 90 yards. Zeke may have taken too much punishment or had too big a load, but whatever the reason, he’s not that special anymore.

I know this will not be a popular opinion. And I know the dead money issue is real. But this team’s future is going to be all about drafting younger, cheaper talent, not keeping declining stars with big contracts. This team is not a player or two away from being relevant.

And for fans who think this would be stupid, I understand that argument. Maybe. But don’t worry. Because this front office won’t make bold moves like this because they are still buried in the delusion that “this roster is close” to being really good. No it isn’t. And won’t be until they recognize it needs a complete overhaul.

 

[aria]

1 million is only 0.00013 of the population, and it didn't kill him or even make him sick enough to worry about death as even an outside concern, so that's not really relevant. Hell, for most 25 year olds it isn't much worse than a case of the flu, especially one as strong and healthy as a pro football player, and we never got any indication Covid knocked him down worse than usual for a person in that situation.

Now, I will accept that we can't say for sure what longer effects could linger, but I also know players have missed a couple of weeks after testing positive and are back playing immediately after, so that makes it a little hard to believe that Zeke playing 4 months after is a problem.

At the end of the day, if the team and team doctors indicate some lingering effect, or Zeke tells us he doesn't feel like he fully recovered, then there is something to discuss. Otherwise it's just unfounded speculation.

COVID makes hime drop passes! He can still get “low key faded” while quarantined but apparently COVID causes fumbles now. Can someone get CNN on the horn and let them know about this breaking news?!

(not talking directly to you Omer)

 

[GimmeTheBall!]

first, bench him. then get rid of him. i bet we could get a 3rd round pick.

 

[Silly]

Dallas didn't win anything with Dak, Zeke, and Dlaw. All they are good enough for is to sell jerseys for Jerry.

Might as well cut them and move on. Start rebuilding the team.

 

[buybuydandavis]

https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/dallas-cowboys/ezekiel-elliott-18952/

Look more closely at SPOTRAC in the contract notes.

Contract Notes:

• 2021 salary fully guarantees on 3/22/2020 (injury guaranteed now)
• 2022 salary fully guarantees on the 5th league day of 2021 (injury guaranteed now)

2021 was already guaranteed *this* March.
2022 will be guaranteed this *coming* March.

To cut him now is to eat his 2021 salary. It's sunk cost.
His 2022 salary is the only money we can avoid, and it will cost us Zeke's play for 2021 and 2022.

Our choice is basically is he worth half price per season. You may not think he's worth half his 2022 salary for each of the next two years either. That's an arguable point too.

But I don't see Jerry cutting him for 2 years when it only saves salary for 1 year.

 

[aria]

first, bench him. then get rid of him. i bet we could get a 3rd round pick.

3rd is definitely realistic, 2nd is a big stretch. Most teams/people with common sense know that most RB’s will have very good success behind a good O line. As of now, since Barkley is injured, I can’t think of a RB that is putting up great numbers behind a bad O line.

In other words, I don’t think there is a team out there that would think what zeke has to offer is worth his contract. Jerrah felt obligated to sign him because he thinks it’s still 1990’s football and because they used the 4th overall pick on him.

I bet if the Giants GM stays (which I hope he does) then he will give Barkley a huge contract because he’s the one that drafted him. If they get another GM I’d think Barkley is traded or goes to FA after his 5th year. Only dummies like the Cowboys and Giants waste top 10 picks on RB’s. It’s no surprise both teams are as bad they are.

 

[aria]

He seems so lazy and lethargic. Makes no effort to secure the ball. Going through the motions. I absolutely loved Zeke his first 2 years here. Now, I despise seeing him on the field. Knowing he swindled us into paying $90million for this garbage.

Jaylon Smith and Tyron Crawford swindled Jerry as well.

I wouldn’t really say he swindled us. Logic and common sense is all it took to know he wasn’t worth it (no offense). The diva was getting tons of yards due to wide open holes and the number of carries. That doesn’t make him elite. IMOF, he ranked average to below average in most individual categories and that was with a great O line. Some people just refused to believe and still do.

 

[Whyjerry]

If this were to happen the decision to extend him will vault to the top of the dumbest moves of GM Jerry’s career.

 

[ItzKelz]

Several Dallas area sports radio guys (Bob Sturm and Jake Kemp specifically) have been chatting quite a bit lately about the Cowboys cutting Zeke at the end of this season, and just taking the cap hit now. Before everyone screams “Can’t do it!”, look at the details of Zeke’s contract as lined out on Spotrac.com: https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/dallas-cowboys/ezekiel-elliott-18952/

I would argue that if this team’s is going to get better faster, we need to get rid of Zeke and his 3.8 ypc and 60 something yards a game, and draft a good young RB out of college with a mid round pick (and a rookie contract) to tandem with Pollard. Cut Zeke as a post June 1 cut, unless some other team is willing to trade for him (which won’t happen).

Here are the reasons:

• Keeping Zeke and the big contract is not the future. It’s the past. Sure it would give us some dead money to deal with but his signing was a mistake to begin with. Cut him at the end of the season and deal with the mistake instead of prolonging it. If this team is rebuilding, you have to suffer some to get better.
• His production continues to drop every year. Sure he hasn’t had a good line this year, but his per game yardage and per carry yards have continued to decline year after year.
  
• He’s lost his dynamic playmaking ability. He hasn’t had a run over 40 yards since his rookie year. Compare that to Derrick Henry who has had 9 runs over 40 yards since his rookie year. Two over 90 yards. Zeke may have taken too much punishment or had too big a load, but whatever the reason, he’s not that special anymore.

I know this will not be a popular opinion. And I know the dead money issue is real. But this team’s future is going to be all about drafting younger, cheaper talent, not keeping declining stars with big contracts. This team is not a player or two away from being relevant.

And for fans who think this would be stupid, I understand that argument. Maybe. But don’t worry. Because this front office won’t make bold moves like this because they are still buried in the delusion that “this roster is close” to being really good. No it isn’t. And won’t be until they recognize it needs a complete overhaul.

This is the worse contract Jerry has ever done. He got bullied into it by Zeke and his agent. Jerry will never admit that he made a mistake. This should have been handled the same way we handle Murray. If that meant Zeke missed most of the season then so be it. Not sure how we will handle it in the offseason but something needs to be done; restructure or trade would be nice. I honestly think we are heading towards a change to Pollard getting more meaningful reps. At least that way we can see what we may have in him.

 

[BHendri5]

Dumb just plain dumb the whole post, it shows that this person has no football IQ!

 

[erod]

Zeke is about his dumb look. He's about weird hair, nose rings, feed me tattoos on his bloated belly, getting drunk and "faded" and chasing girls.

Football comes in about 5th or 6th. He just happens to used to be good at it.

 

[kumizi]

McCaffery and Kamara are the only two backs in the league that MIGHT be worth a big contract.

 

[iamliko22]

I think the year after with no dead money seems like the better bet. But his falloff is definitely huge to what he was and got paid for.

 

[RustyBourneHorse]

Make some people sweat a bit.

Right!

 

[Zman5]

Here are some teams that have recently cut big contracts and taken the dead money hit.

• The chiefs- cut Eric Berry and his big contract in 2018, taking a $8 mil cap hit.
• The Vikings cut Stefan Diggs, taking a $9 mil cap hit.
• The Rams- cut Todd Gurley and took an $11 million cap hit.

There are more than I have time to list. I understand why you say this is “illogical” for cap reasons. But it was an illogical contract to begin with.

Diggs was traded for a 1st round pick from the Bills.

 

[charron]

No one can argue that Zeke is not overpaid, he clearly is. But cutting him doesn't make us better. They just need to use the back with the hot hand and not be scarred to draft a guy late so we can cut him in 2023. For example: Pollard should have been given more carries yesterday. If winning is the goal he helped way more than Zeke did but only received 1/3 of the carries. Atleast for yesterdays game Pollard should have been given more carries while he was running 6 yards a touch. That is the mentality winning coaches should have, play the guy making plays regardless of who is paid more.

 

[Bobhaze]

If this were to happen the decision to extend him will vault to the top of the dumbest moves of GM Jerry’s career.

To me, it goes back to a philosophical decision Jerry and the FO made in the 2016 draft. Zeke or Ramsey? In the short term, Zeke was the fun pick with instant results. We all loved it- me included. Ramsey has not necessarily been all world, but I believe he has a longer future as an impactful player than Zeke.

No surprise there. The shelf life of a RB is probably the lowest of all positions. As long as Zeke was on his rookie deal, it was not a problem. Once Jerry decided he had to double down on Zeke long term, it became a bad decision. While Zeke’s stat numbers have been good on paper, his ability to make explosive plays has greatly diminished. He hasn’t had a run longer than 40 yards since his rookie year.

One of my favorite Dallas area sports writers and radio guys is Bob Sturm. He said in 2016 that Zeke was the great short term pick but that we better take advantage of his rookie deal. Because long term investment in RBs was usually not a cap era good decision. I’m afraid that has proven to be true with Zeke.

 

[Bobhaze]

Diggs was traded for a 1st round pick from the Bills.

Since 2000- the last 20 seasons, there have only been 10 WR trades in the NFL that cost a first round pick. That’s 10 trades in 20 years. Btw, Jerry was involved in 3 of those 10. So the point is, not many teams do it for a reason.

 

[TwentyOne]

Several Dallas area sports radio guys (Bob Sturm and Jake Kemp specifically) have been chatting quite a bit lately about the Cowboys cutting Zeke at the end of this season, and just taking the cap hit now. Before everyone screams “Can’t do it!”, look at the details of Zeke’s contract as lined out on Spotrac.com: https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/dallas-cowboys/ezekiel-elliott-18952/

I would argue that if this team’s is going to get better faster, we need to get rid of Zeke and his 3.8 ypc and 60 something yards a game, and draft a good young RB out of college with a mid round pick (and a rookie contract) to tandem with Pollard. Cut Zeke as a post June 1 cut, unless some other team is willing to trade for him (which won’t happen).

Here are the reasons:

• Keeping Zeke and the big contract is not the future. It’s the past. Sure it would give us some dead money to deal with but his signing was a mistake to begin with. Cut him at the end of the season and deal with the mistake instead of prolonging it. If this team is rebuilding, you have to suffer some to get better.
• His production continues to drop every year. Sure he hasn’t had a good line this year, but his per game yardage and per carry yards have continued to decline year after year.
  
• He’s lost his dynamic playmaking ability. He hasn’t had a run over 40 yards since his rookie year. Compare that to Derrick Henry who has had 9 runs over 40 yards since his rookie year. Two over 90 yards. Zeke may have taken too much punishment or had too big a load, but whatever the reason, he’s not that special anymore.

I know this will not be a popular opinion. And I know the dead money issue is real. But this team’s future is going to be all about drafting younger, cheaper talent, not keeping declining stars with big contracts. This team is not a player or two away from being relevant.

And for fans who think this would be stupid, I understand that argument. Maybe. But don’t worry. Because this front office won’t make bold moves like this because they are still buried in the delusion that “this roster is close” to being really good. No it isn’t. And won’t be until they recognize it needs a complete overhaul.

It was never a question.

To even pick a RB in the first round was a NO GO.

To give him a second contract was a brainfart.

But that is what you get by an owner who is braindead and his son who thinks he is intelligent.