Cowboys’ “biggest bust” for the 2024 season

The Dallas Cowboys had a terrible offseason - losing several key players and choosing not to replace them, making no big free agency moves, passing up better players in the draft, putting off contract negotiations with their best players, and well, re-signing an old player who’s past his prime.

Of these questionable decisions, perhaps the most questionable of all was the Cowboys’ decision at running back. They lost starter Tony Pollard to the Tennessee Titans, and rather than look for a proven veteran, they brought back their old running back from 2016, Ezekiel Elliott.

Bleacher Report predicts Ezekiel Elliot to be Cowboys’ “biggest bust”

Unsurprisingly, Bleacher Report selected Elliott as the “biggest bust” for the Cowboys heading into the 2024 season. They noted Elliott’s steady decline over the last three years. Elliott was once an elite back for Dallas, but that was a long time ago. In 2016, he was a star player but by 2019, when the Cowboys signed him to an expensive extension, he’d started to decline.

By 2023, the Cowboys had let him go and he signed with the New England Patriots, where he had an even worse season, with a career-low average of 3.5 carries. Elliott is expected to be the Cowboys’ No. 1 running back, with Rico Dowdle, Deuce Vaughn, and veteran free agent Royce Freeman behind him on the depth chart. It’s unclear whether it would be better to have Dowdle and Zeke split time, but it’s rather pointless to even consider, as it seems Dallas is content to have Zeke be the main back. Here is what BR said about the decision:

“In short: 2016 is a long time ago. Reuniting with Ezekiel Elliott is a fun concept, but Dallas might not be happy with the outcome. He averaged 4.2 yards per carry in 2021, then 3.8 in 2022 and 3.5 with the New England Patriots last season. Elliott doesn’t produce like a top back anymore.”

We’d love for this prediction to be proven wrong, but it’s hard to bet against it.