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RB Ezekiel Elliott, DAL (4 Viewers)

travdogg said:
To be fair, this is likely his toughest matchup all season. A defense with an elite DT(Vea) and another who is still great in stretches(Suh) and 2 LB's who run like CB's(David, White)
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Yup this was entirely game script. You’re not running up the middle against that D with Zach Martin. You’ve got 0 chance without him. And Zeke isn’t going to get to the edge against those freak athlete LBs. And then TB’s secondary broke, you’re gonna air it out. Pollard was on the field a lot more than I thought he would be but Zeke still dominated the snaps and the touches. He was in on goal line and short yardage and should have scored. Dak looked good and the wrs are an elite group. That’s a good thing. I benched Zeke for Jrob. Went exactly how I thought it would for once.

 
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Ezekiel Elliott rushed 11 times for 33 yards in the Cowboys' Week 1 loss to the Bucs, adding two receptions for six additional yards. 

The Cowboys made zero attempt to #EstablishTheRun this evening, with Zeke entering halftime with all of four carries. There was simply no point against the Bucs' dominant front in a game that took on the air of a shootout from the opening whistle. When he did get the rock, Zeke didn't look particularly quick to the edge, getting caught on a pair of goal-line looks, one a run and the other a reception. There is still no reason to overreact to a poor performance against maybe the toughest run defense Elliott will see all season. He will find himself back in the top eight for Week 2 against the Chargers.
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Dallas played out of the shotgun exclusively.

I watched tonight with the Zeke owner in my league. He was apoplectic.

he didn’t expect a great game, but he expected more than 3 carries at the half.

I'm not sure why Dallas thought getting into a shootout & abandoning the run before they even left the locker room was the right strategy for beating the Bucs, but they were wrong. 

Oof. 

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
Dallas played out of the shotgun exclusively.

I watched tonight with the Zeke owner in my league. He was apoplectic.

he didn’t expect a great game, but he expected more than 3 carries at the half.

I'm not sure why Dallas thought getting into a shootout & abandoning the run before they even left the locker room was the right strategy for beating the Bucs, but they were wrong. 

Oof. 
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The Pats ran less than the Cowboys. 

 
STEADYMOBBIN 22 said:
The Pats ran less than the Cowboys. 
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I’m aware of that. I didn’t say they looked great either. I said as much in the in-game topic.

I didn’t think either team played particularly well. But this is the Zeke topic, & I’m baffled as to why a team wirh Ezekiel Elliott isn’t featuring Ezekiel Elliott. At all.

In a game where controlling the clock & keeping the opposing QB off the field would have been smart to at least attempt,  they didn’t even attempt it.

It was weird. Playing out of the shotgun exclusively may well have been dude to the absence of of Zach Martin, but I still don’t understand why they came out playing like they were down 20 in a 0-0 game. 

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
I’m aware of that. I didn’t say they looked great either. I said as much in the in-game topic.

I didn’t think either team played particularly well. But this is the Zeke topic, & I’m baffled as to why a team wirh Ezekiel Elliott isn’t featuring Ezekiel Elliott. At all.

In a game where controlling the clock & keeping the opposing QB off the field would have been smart to at least attempt,  they didn’t even attempt it.

It was weird. Playing out of the shotgun exclusively may well have been dude to the absence of of Zach Martin, but I still don’t understand why they came out playing like they were down 20 in a 0-0 game. 
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Its almost like you haven't seen the cowboys play a game until tonight. You're describing the Cowboys to a T for the past 5/6 years. 

 
STEADYMOBBIN 22 said:
Its almost like you haven't seen the cowboys play a game until tonight. You're describing the Cowboys to a T for the past 5/6 years. 
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No, I had Zeke last year. I watched many, many painfully terrible games. And they at least tried to run before abandoning it.  The Dak-less Cowboys did this. Now Dak’s back. 

This is the McCarthy Cowboys. And These Cowboys are a hot mess. 

 
Cobbler1 said:
Yup this was entirely game script. You’re not running up the middle against that D with Zach Martin. You’ve got 0 chance without him. And Zeke isn’t going to get to the edge against those freak athlete LBs. And then TB’s secondary broke, you’re gonna air it out. Pollard was on the field a lot more than I thought he would be but Zeke still dominated the snaps and the touches. He was in on goal line and short yardage and should have scored. Dak looked good and the wrs are an elite group. That’s a good thing. I benched Zeke for Jrob. Went exactly how I thought it would for once.
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Agreed...they went into Tampa and were a play or two away from winning that game...not a big McCarthy fan but for how that Tampa D is built that was a smart game-plan... 

 
Boston said:
Agreed...they went into Tampa and were a play or two away from winning that game...not a big McCarthy fan but for how that Tampa D is built that was a smart game-plan... 
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Yup. They point 30 on the board with their kicker missing 3 kicks and had the ball 35 minutes! Helped by some fluke turnovers, sure. But some people are critical about why they didn’t run Zeke into a brick wall all night? Remarkable 

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
I’m aware of that. I didn’t say they looked great either. I said as much in the in-game topic.

I didn’t think either team played particularly well. But this is the Zeke topic, & I’m baffled as to why a team wirh Ezekiel Elliott isn’t featuring Ezekiel Elliott. At all.

In a game where controlling the clock & keeping the opposing QB off the field would have been smart to at least attempt,  they didn’t even attempt it.

It was weird. Playing out of the shotgun exclusively may well have been dude to the absence of of Zach Martin, but I still don’t understand why they came out playing like they were down 20 in a 0-0 game. 
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I think the Cowboys only shot at beating the Bucs was through the air, and they gave a great effort.  Whoever had the ball last with enough time on the clock was going to win that game, and it happened to be the Bucs. 

 
Cobbler1 said:
Yup. They point 30 on the board with their kicker missing 3 kicks and had the ball 35 minutes! Helped by some fluke turnovers, sure. But some people are critical about why they didn’t run Zeke into a brick wall all night? Remarkable 
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It's Dak's offense now and it should be...very impressive effort for a guy coming off that gruesome injury...they are going to be a dangerous team this year and the talent on offense is young enough so that if they can get that D (especially the secondary) squared away in the next year or two they have a chance to become a legit contender.

 
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Boston said:
It's Dak's offense now and it should be...very impressive effort for a guy coning off that gruesome injury...they are going to be a dangerous team this year and the talent on offense is young enough so that if they can get that D (especially the secondary) squared away in the next year or two they have a chance to become a legit contender.
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Their OL was really really impressive pass blocking. Got beat up the middle a couple times because Vea is a monster but otherwise kept Dak reasonably clean. No reason to think they won’t put up a lot of points this year if they’re healthy and in better matchups Zeke gets his share of that. The defense still seems really far off. Some fluky turnovers bailed them out and they looked clueless at times, granted against an elite offense. Impressive speed from some individuals.

 
Cobbler1 said:
Their OL was really really impressive pass blocking. Got beat up the middle a couple times because Vea is a monster but otherwise kept Dak reasonably clean. No reason to think they won’t put up a lot of points this year if they’re healthy and in better matchups Zeke gets his share of that. The defense still seems really far off. Some fluky turnovers bailed them out and they looked clueless at times, granted against an elite offense. Impressive speed from some individuals.
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Agreed...their passing game is gonna be a fantasy goldmine this year with how they are constructed.

 
Cobbler1 said:
Yup this was entirely game script. You’re not running up the middle against that D with Zach Martin. You’ve got 0 chance without him. And Zeke isn’t going to get to the edge against those freak athlete LBs. And then TB’s secondary broke, you’re gonna air it out. Pollard was on the field a lot more than I thought he would be but Zeke still dominated the snaps and the touches. He was in on goal line and short yardage and should have scored. Dak looked good and the wrs are an elite group. That’s a good thing. I benched Zeke for Jrob. Went exactly how I thought it would for once.
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I agree! 
 

I did expect a couple more catches though. The Cowboys were forced to use Zeke to block. He simply wasn’t given many high value touch opportunities. The ones he was given were poorly executed.

 
Seems very premature to be concerned about Zeke, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility that 5 years of very high workloads may be affecting his burst - even if slightly. The next few weeks should be very interesting.

 
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Hot Sauce Guy said:
No, I had Zeke last year. I watched many, many painfully terrible games. And they at least tried to run before abandoning it.  The Dak-less Cowboys did this. Now Dak’s back. 

This is the McCarthy Cowboys. And These Cowboys are a hot mess. 
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But for a couple of missed field goals and a missed PAT, the Cowboys win this game.  I thought they looked just fine.

(Zeke, however, is done.  Stick a fork in him.  The Tampa D is trash, and Zeke couldn't generate any yards against them!  Out of the generosity of my kind ol' heart, I will offer up a mid-tier player for him just so you can get out of this mess.  That's just the kinda guy I am!)  🤪

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
Dallas played out of the shotgun exclusively.

I watched tonight with the Zeke owner in my league. He was apoplectic.

he didn’t expect a great game, but he expected more than 3 carries at the half.

I'm not sure why Dallas thought getting into a shootout & abandoning the run before they even left the locker room was the right strategy for beating the Bucs, but they were wrong. 

Oof. 
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The way Dallas played on offense should be a blue print to how you beat the Bucs. They had no chance running the ball. Getting in a shootout was their only chance and it would have worked if not for the missed kicks.

 
This team, seems to me, will clearly score a lot of points, not all of which performed by Amari Cooper. Better days ahead, no question. Them Cowboys will not attempt passes on 80% of their plays every game, that's just crazy.

 
Mongidig said:
The way Dallas played on offense should be a blue print to how you beat the Bucs. They had no chance running the ball. Getting in a shootout was their only chance and it would have worked if not for the missed kicks.
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I was shocked that the Bucs D looked like the Dallas D. 

there was very little defense in this game. 

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
I was shocked that the Bucs D looked like the Dallas D. 

there was very little defense in this game. 
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I think you’re focusing a little too much on the defenses, and not enough on the fact that these are simply two of the best offenses in football. Both sides are absolutely loaded at Quarterback and Wide Receiver. Elite offenses are typically going to trump elite defenses, particularly with how things are called in the league now with flags every other play. It’s heavily weighted for offenses to succeed. 

 
JoeJoe88 said:
I think you’re focusing a little too much on the defenses, and not enough on the fact that these are simply two of the best offenses in football. Both sides are absolutely loaded at Quarterback and Wide Receiver. Elite offenses are typically going to trump elite defenses, particularly with how things are called in the league now with flags every other play. It’s heavily weighted for offenses to succeed. 
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I understand that. 

Part of playing elite offense to me means balance. Neither of these teams were balanced, and Dallas never even attempted balance. 

It was a weird game. They paid Elliott an awful lot of money to ignore him. 

If this is the evolution of the “new look NFL”, then I’m not a fan. 

 
Gally said:
I would venture a guess that the Dallas passing game will make a lot of teams look like they have no defense.  They are elite.  
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That’s possible.

It’s also possible that lack of balance on offense will result in more losses that aren’t as close.

Time will tell. It was certainly a fun game, but it was also kind of weird. 

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
I was shocked that the Bucs D looked like the Dallas D. 

there was very little defense in this game. 
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The BucsD was thin in the secondary coming into the game. Then they lost a couple guy’s. If the Cowboys didn’t keep Zeke in to block they would have gotten to Dak often. I think he was an unsung hero of this game.

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
That’s possible.

It’s also possible that lack of balance on offense will result in more losses that aren’t as close.

Time will tell. It was certainly a fun game, but it was also kind of weird. 
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I think the lack of running had more to do with Tampa being so stout upfront than anything. They knew their best chance at success on offense was through the air, and it was. They played a hell of a game. I’m not a cowboy fan, but I felt bad for them after this one. 

 
Mongidig said:
The BucsD was thin in the secondary coming into the game. Then they lost a couple guy’s. If the Cowboys didn’t keep Zeke in to block they would have gotten to Dak often. I think he was an unsung hero of this game.
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It was just kind of a weird game. 

Maybe McCarthy’s a genius - I dunno. I still think they should have tried to run the ball.

and yes, I get that the Bucs are tough against the run. No team is impervious though. 

I’m reasonably sure it was because Martin was out, because otherwise why have a 1-page playbook? Playing exclusively out of the shotgun means no PA passing, ineffective screens, and very little creativity. 

But hey, y’all are right, they scored a lot of points, so I must be crazy to think a little balance would have helped them win. 

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
Shaq Barrett, too. They were both impressive. 
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Their front is stacked across the board but Vea to me shined the most out of those stars. The LB are excellent as well.

I wouldn't doubt Zeke because of this match up. I thought the Cowboys offensive line played good for the most part. The Bucs defense is just too good to plan to run the ball on them.

 
JoeJoe88 said:
I think the lack of running had more to do with Tampa being so stout upfront than anything. They knew their best chance at success on offense was through the air, and it was. They played a hell of a game. I’m not a cowboy fan, but I felt bad for them after this one. 
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But they didn’t even test it? Like not at all?

Waiving the white flag to an opponent’s run defense is a terrible way to play football, and it made the Cowboys 1-dimensional from the jump. 
 

 
Hot Sauce Guy said:
I understand that. 

Part of playing elite offense to me means balance. Neither of these teams were balanced, and Dallas never even attempted balance. 

It was a weird game. They paid Elliott an awful lot of money to ignore him. 

If this is the evolution of the “new look NFL”, then I’m not a fan. 
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I think it’s just basic math. With Vea playing the Bucs only allow 2.5 yards a rush. These stats included games against Kamara and CMC. I think with the top offensive lineman out you lean into your strength against your  enemies weakness. 
 

Zeke averaged 3 yards a carry. Not too shabby.

 
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