The last two years for Ezekiel Elliott have been underwhelming from money compared to a production standpoint. Although he did surpass the 1,000-yard mark in 2021, he doesn’t possess the same burst and athleticism he did early in his career. This is of no fault to him as a player, running backs typically have a short shelf life in the NFL, and paying the position top dollar hasn’t seemed to work out for the last few teams that did.

The title of this article “This is a Make or Break Year for Ezekiel Elliott” doesn’t imply the Cowboys will give him more money if he does well. It more so refers to the Cowboys wanting to move on from Elliott if he doesn’t return to form. The Elliott contract has Dallas in a sort of economic chokehold at the moment, the team is essentially unable to move on from him.

Last season Elliott fought through a PCL strain that seemed to hold back the Cowboy’s offense down the stretch. A younger, quicker, and more explosive Pollard may have given the offense a breath of fresh air that it lacked.

After this year, the team and Elliott may revisit the negotiation table. If Elliott fails to have a great year once again the team may be forced to move on from him or ask him to take a massive pay cut. The interesting part in all of this is the team will likely ask him to take less money regardless of how he performs considering how overpaid he has been for the last several years. How much of a cut they ask him to take hinges on how productive he proves to be during 2022.

What do you think of Ezekiel Elliotts’ contract? What should the Cowboys try to do after the 2022 season?