Getty Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott
Ezekiel Elliott entered Week 5 with a sore knee. He left with an aching hip.
The Dallas Cowboys workhorse took an awkward tumble in the second half of Sunday’s blowout win over the Giants, landing hard on the pylon following a seven-yard sprint toward the end zone. Elliott immediately reached for his lower back and appeared in significant pain, prompting an evaluation from the medical staff.
Elliott would return a few plays later looking no worse for wear — he hit paydirt on a four-yard touchdown reception — but the incident left a figurative and literal impression on the two-time NFL rushing champ.
“I fell on the pylon. That thing is kinda hard,” Elliott said after the game, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “Maybe we should find a new spot for it. … I think it is foamy, but it’s hard. The base of it is hard too. It’s definitely not soft. It definitely hurt. It kinda stabbed me. I lost my wind.”
Ezekiel Elliott: “I fell on the pylon. That thing is kinda hard. Maybe we should find a new spot for it. … I think it is foamy, but it’s hard. The base of it is hard too. It’s definitely not soft. It definitely hurt. It kinda stabbed me. I lost my wind.”
The Cowboys did not report any new injuries coming out of their fourth consecutive victory. But team vice president Stephen Jones did solve the mystery as to the exact cause of Elliott’s discomfort.
“We came through the game it sounds like pretty good without our any surprise injuries other than obviously Zeke landed on that pylon tough. I think all of our technology this day and time, we got cameras in those pylons and everything,” Jones said in his postgame remarks, via Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News.
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Zeke Enjoyed Monster Outing vs. New York
The pylon incident was merely a footnote on Elliott’s outing against the Giants, whom he gashed for 110 rushing yards and one touchdown on 21 carries, averaging 5.2 yards per tote behind Dallas’ dominant offensive line. He also added two catches and the aforementioned score.
Collectively, the Cowboys piled up a whopping 515 total yards of offense, 201 of which came on the ground. Backup RB Tony Pollard aided the cause with 75 yards on 14 attempts (5.4 YPC).
“I think it’s tough on defenses, especially when we’re running the ball the way we can,” Elliott said of the two-headed attack, per the Dallas Morning News. “You’ve got two different backs with two different styles. You don’t know how to fit the runs. We run differently. I think it’s tough on that defense. It keeps both of us fresh, and it’s been working out pretty well. We’ve just got to keep that up. I hope we can keep that 200-yard rushing streak alive.”
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Elliott Discusses Diggs, Potential INT Record
Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs is the talk of the town after notching his NFL-best sixth interception amid Sunday’s win. Made aware the single-season league record stands at 14, Elliott didn’t rule out the possibility of Diggs rewriting the history books.
“OK, that’s a lot (laughs). But if they keep throwing at the kid, he’s gonna get more,” he said, via The Athletic. “You keep throwing at 7, he’s gonna pick you off. I think it’s about time QBs stop looking his way.”
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Follow Zack Kelberman on Twitter: @KelbermanNFL