Getty The New England Patriots are hosting a free agent running back who's a two-time NFL rushing champion.
Bill Belichick isn’t done kicking the tyres on veteran running backs from around the NFL. Former Dallas Cowboys’ Pro Bowler Ezekiel Elliott becomes the latest seasoned runner to visit with the New England Patriots after league insider Jordan Schultz reported the AFC East franchise is hosting the 28-year-old on Saturday, July 29.
Source: 2x All-Pro RB Ezekiel Elliott is visiting the #Patriots today.
This could impact the RB-needy AFC East, as well as the Dalvin Cook derby, since he and Elliott are considered the top backs available.
Zeke looked terrific in the videos he posted of his workouts.
NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo confirmed Shultz’s report and also included a note about how “the Pats recently had Leonard Fournette in” for a visit.
Welcoming Elliott, who twice led the NFL in rushing in 2016 and ’18, to Gillette Stadium shows Belichick is doing his due diligence about adding another weapon to the backfield. Elliott’s a legitimate scoring threat, particularly near the goal-line, even though he’s lost some of the explosiveness common during his heyday.
Veteran Runner Still Has Value
Elliott averaged just 3.8 yards per carry last season, when Tony Pollard became the new workhorse in the Cowboys’s backfield. Elliott’s decline is best summed up by the deterioration in his yards after contact per attempt.
No. 21 gained just 1.5 yards after contact per rush in 2022, fewer than the modest 1.7 he managed the season before, per Pro Football Reference. The numbers prove defenses are finding it easier to bring Elliott to the ground, at least outside the red zone.
It’s a different story inside the 20-year line, where Elliott still has value. He rushed for 12 touchdowns last season, the joint-second highest tally during a single campaign of his career.
Most of those scores came from close to the goal-line, like this short-yardage plunge against the Detroit Lions in Week 7.
Zeke gives the @DallasCowboys the lead!
📺: #DETvsDAL on CBS
📱: Stream on NFL+ t.co/DSA5AKkBhB
Gaining in traction in short-yardage situations became Elliott’s niche in 2022. The three-time Pro Bowler carried the ball 30 times for 158 yards and three touchdowns on third downs, while adding another four rushes on fourth down, per ESPN. Elliott also ran the ball 35 times in the red zone.
A selective and situational use of Elliott’s talents would suit the Patriots, who don’t need him to be the bell-cow back in their offense.
Patriots Don’t Need a Workhorse
Elliott not having workhorse potential anymore shouldn’t bother Belichick. Not when Rhamondre Stevenson has that role all to himself in the Patriots’ backfield.
Stevenson enjoyed a banner season in 2022, producing numbers the Pats haven’t since the days Corey Dillion was handling the rushing chores, per Evan Lazar of Patriots.com.
Rhamondre Stevenson had the most productive season for a #Patriots running back since Corey Dillon in 2004. His +219 rushing yards over expected between the tackles were the most in the NFL this season.
Gonna miss watching this until September.
Stevenson’s heavy workload last season makes finding a proven backup a smart move for the Patriots. Belichick has long made signing veteran runners a core policy in free agency, with Super Bowl winners Antowain Smith and Rex Burkhead obvious examples.
Adding Elliott would continue this policy and allow a tough grinder who’s been one of the league’s best at various points during his career the chance to prove he has something left.
Fournette would have added more of a receiving element, but Belichick could trust Elliott to lead New England’s power-based rushing attack if needed. Elliott would also offer the Patriots an efficient source of points at the goal-line.
The threat of Elliott in the red zone would help create some easy reads and quick throws for quarterback Mac Jones, particularly to tight ends Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki. Moreover, a two-headed backfield monster of Stevenson and Elliott can ease the pressure on Jones and a still-suspect cast of wide receivers to carry the offense.