Getty Images Free agent running back Ezekiel Elliott.
Former Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott’s next team will not be the Cleveland Browns.
Elliott continues to look for a new home after being cut loose by the Cowboys in March. He has received limited interest from teams around the league and one squad that won’t be investigating adding the former two-time rushing leader is the Browns.
Cleveland is looking for some running back depth but won’t be opting for one of the bigger-named veterans like Elliott or Dalvin Cook, per Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot.
“I do think the Browns will add another running back before the season, but it won’t be a big-name back such as a Dalvin Cook or Ezekiel Elliott, and they won’t re-sign Kareem Hunt,” Cabot reported. “I think it will be a potential No. 3 back behind Nick Chubb and Jerome Ford who can serve as a solid No. 2 in the event of injury, and churn out 100 yards if both Chubb and Ford are hurt. I don’t think it will be hard to find a back to fill the role, especially behind this offensive line.”
The Browns were rumored to be interested in Elliott earlier this offseason, although the scuttlebutt didn’t seem to have legs.
“A league insider told Sportskeeda that the most likely landing spots for Ezekiel Elliott are either the Cleveland Browns or the Los Angeles Chargers,” Robert Gullo of Sportskeeda reported on May 15.
Elliott never seemed like a logical fit for Cleveland. The Browns have Chubb, who is among the elite backs in the league. Elliott’s forte is short-yardage situations but Chubb will have that covered with the Browns.
Cowboys Still Open to Bringing Ezekiel Elliott Back
Another team being out of the mix could be good news for the Cowboys, who are still interested in bringing Elliott back at a lower price tag.
“I never shut the door never relative to the potential to smartly add to our team for this year,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said on Monday, June 5. “I will tell you that 99% of my thinking is about this year. Now you got to think about the impact on other years when you make these decisions. So you name it, whether it be Zeke whether it be where we are with like the guys we worked out here today. So it’s all wide open for me.”
Elliott is not the back he once was but still has some good football left in him. He’s coming off a year where he rushed for a career-low 876 yards but did find the end zone a dozen times. Elliott ranks third all-time in Cowboys history in rushing yards (8,262) and rushing TDs (68).
Ezekiel Elliott Needs to Come to Terms With Pay Cut
The Cowboys saved nearly $11 million by parting ways with Elliott. But a reunion in Dallas could be what’s best for both sides, although Elliott will have to come to terms with not being the franchise back anymore.
“It’s his best landing spot. Jerry wants him. He knows what kind of teammate he is. He knows how valuable he can be in the backfield with Pollard,” NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger told the 33rd Team. “It’s just a matter of when he walks into the Star [the Cowboys’ training facility in Frisco, Texas], can he walk in as a $4 million player instead of a $10 million or $12 million player?”
Elliott has played his entire career with the Cowboys, so he’d be able to maintain the sense of familiarity in Dallas, although the playbook will be shifting a bit with Mike McCarthy calling plays.
But Elliott will continue to wait by the phone for a new opportunity to come calling and will sort out his best options before the start of the year.
