The Dallas Cowboys former star Ezekiel Elliott dedicated pretty much his entire youth to the team, though the team decided to break up with their running back before hitting a decade of relationship. The veteran remained in the group of RBs who had to stay unsigned into training camp before the New England Patriots decided to give him a spot in the roster.
After heading to the Patriots, Elliott said that the team’s offense is a great fit for a player in his position while heaping praise on Pats lead-back Rhamondre Stevenson for having a similar play style. Besides other players, he also has something interesting to say about the team’s future Hall of Famer head coach Bill Belichick.
Elliott describes Patriots HC Bill Belichick as a “funny guy”
Following the NFL GOAT Tom Brady, only a few athletes had been able to earn praise from the otherwise tight-lipped Bill Belichick. However, Zeke remained unbothered about the fact and his two-word description for the HC was a “funny guy” when he was describing him on the team website.
The ex-Cowboys vet was seemingly elated after getting rid of the devaluing saga of running backs in the NFL and heading to the new season with the potential of earning a Vince Lombardi trophy.
“Shoot, just going out and competing for a championship. It feels good. I’ve been at home for a while, so it feels good to get back to ball, getting out there on the field and playing the game that I love.”
Meanwhile, Belichick said the first step for the footballer to earn a permanent spot in New England is learning the team’s plays and terminology as players like Randy Moss and Corey Dillon struggled to have a quick grasp on the Patriots’ offense while others like Chad Johnson could never even get accustomed.
Why was Ezekiel Elliott cut from the Cowboys?
Ezekiel was set to earn $10.4 million in salary for the 2023 season while having a cap hit of $16.4 million and for a team having troubles with the limited cap space, there was no chance left for the Cowboys to keep Zeke enrolled in the roster.
Besides that, the 28-year-old also hit career lows in several categories last season, albeit Dallas head coach Mike McCarthy said the decision to cut the former Ohio State player was totally based on financial structure.
“Business [and] capanomics, that’s real. You have to make decisions and sometimes those decisions factor into the next decision or two that’s coming down the road.”
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During the league’s annual meeting, the franchise’s CEO Stephen Jones disclosed their plan to cut the RB’s salary before releasing him from Dallas, but they didn’t intend to insult their long-time star by offering him a lackluster deal. Hence, they decided to part ways with him to save $10.9 million in cap space with $5.8 million in dead money.
“The last thing we want to do is do anything that would be insulting to a player, to a great player, like Zeke, who was one of the best players to ever put on a Cowboys uniform. There are sensitivities when you get into making offers.”
Do you think that McCarthy’s team made the right decision by cutting him ahead of the new season? You can share your take in the comment section.
