The Ezekiel Elliott holdout appears to be coming to an end. Elliott is reportedly back in Dallas to sign a six-year, $90 million extension. The running back wins.
The season is just five days away, but safe to assume that Elliott will be in uniform for the opener. Maybe he won't be a workhorse after so much time away from the team, but this is probably the only week you can say that for. If you drafted Tony Pollard, hopefully you already traded him to the guy who has Elliott. Maybe you roll the dice on a timeshare in Week 1, but ultimately it should be Elliott dominating snaps. As usual.
Elliott's been in the league three seasons, one of which was of course marred by a suspension. In the other two, he dominated carries more than all but two or three running backs.
| RB PERCENT OF TEAM, 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Att | Yds | TDR |
| Todd Gurley, L.A. | 74% | 71% | 67% |
| David Johnson, Ariz. | 73% | 72% | 80% |
| Jordan Howard, Chi. | 66% | 76% | 60% |
| Ezekiel Elliott, Dall. | 65% | 68% | 63% |
| Jay Ajayi, Mia. | 64% | 70% | 57% |
| Frank Gore, Ind. | 64% | 63% | 31% |
| Melvin Gordon, S.D. | 64% | 66% | 100% |
| LeVeon Bell, Pitt. | 64% | 72% | 54% |
| LeGarrette Blount, N.E. | 62% | 62% | 95% |
| DeMarco Murray, Tenn. | 62% | 59% | 56% |
| Lamar Miller, Hou. | 59% | 58% | 63% |
| Isaiah Crowell, Clev. | 57% | 56% | 54% |
| Devonta Freeman, Atl. | 54% | 56% | 55% |
| Terrance West, Balt. | 53% | 53% | 50% |
| Matt Forte, NYJ | 52% | 45% | 70% |
| Spencer Ware, K.C. | 52% | 53% | 20% |
| Mark Ingram, N.O. | 51% | 60% | 35% |
| Jeremy Hill, Cin. | 50% | 47% | 53% |
| Jonathan Stewart, Car. | 48% | 45% | 56% |
| LeSean McCoy, Buff. | 48% | 48% | 45% |
| Carlos Hyde, S.F. | 47% | 49% | 40% |
| Rashad Jennings, NYG | 45% | 42% | 50% |
| Latavius Murray, Oak. | 45% | 41% | 71% |
| Robert Kelley, Wash. | 44% | 42% | 35% |
| Devontae Booker, Den. | 42% | 41% | 36% |
| Jerick McKinnon, Minn. | 42% | 45% | 22% |
| Ryan Mathews, Phil. | 35% | 36% | 50% |
| T.J. Yeldon, Jac. | 33% | 29% | 13% |
| Tim Hightower, N.O. | 33% | 31% | 24% |
| Matt Asiata, Minn. | 32% | 33% | 67% |
| Doug Martin, T.B. | 32% | 26% | 38% |
| Bilal Powell, NYJ | 31% | 40% | 30% |
| Chris Ivory, Jac. | 30% | 27% | 38% |
| RB PERCENT OF TEAM, 2018 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Att | Yds | TDR |
| Saquon Barkley, NYG | 74% | 79% | 85% |
| David Johnson, Ariz. | 73% | 70% | 78% |
| Ezekiel Elliott, Dall. | 69% | 73% | 46% |
| Joe Mixon, Cin. | 66% | 69% | 62% |
| James Conner, Pitt. | 62% | 67% | 75% |
| Adrian Peterson, Was. | 61% | 59% | 58% |
| Peyton Barber, T.B. | 60% | 57% | 45% |
| Todd Gurley, LAR | 56% | 56% | 74% |
| Jordan Howard, Chi. | 53% | 48% | 56% |
| Christian McCaffrey, Car. | 53% | 51% | 41% |
| Phillip Lindsay, Den. | 49% | 54% | 50% |
| Marlon Mack, Ind. | 48% | 53% | 69% |
| Tevin Coleman, Atl. | 48% | 51% | 36% |
| Derrick Henry, Ten. | 47% | 52% | 80% |
| Kareem Hunt, K.C. | 47% | 44% | 44% |
| Nick Chubb, Clev. | 47% | 53% | 53% |
| Chris Carson, Sea. | 46% | 45% | 60% |
| Lamar Miller, Hou. | 44% | 48% | 42% |
| Doug Martin, Oak. | 44% | 44% | 44% |
| Melvin Gordon, LAC | 44% | 47% | 63% |
| Sony Michel, N.E. | 44% | 46% | 33% |
| Frank Gore, Mia. | 42% | 42% | 0% |
| Alvin Kamara, N.O. | 41% | 44% | 54% |
| Aaron Jones, G.B. | 40% | 44% | 57% |
| Latavius Murray, Min. | 39% | 39% | 67% |
| LeGarrette Blount, Det. | 38% | 25% | 45% |
| Dalvin Cook, Min. | 37% | 41% | 22% |
| Jamaal Williams, G.B. | 36% | 28% | 21% |
| Matt Breida, S.F. | 36% | 43% | 43% |
| Isaiah Crowell, NYJ | 35% | 42% | 55% |
| LeSean McCoy, Buff. | 34% | 26% | 20% |
| Dion Lewis, Ten. | 34% | 26% | 7% |
| Royce Freeman, Den. | 33% | 27% | 28% |
| Kenyan Drake, Mia. | 32% | 31% | 57% |
| Leonard Fournette, Jac. | 32% | 25% | 71% |
| Alfred Blue, Hou. | 32% | 25% | 17% |
| Josh Adams, Phil. | 30% | 33% | 25% |
Pollard had a nice preseason. Maybe he gets a little more work than Elliott's backups have in the past, particularly on third downs and in the passing game. But doesn't look like something anyone can count on. It's Elliott's backfield.
--Andy Richardson