Who will feed 'Zeke next?
After seven seasons in Dallas, free agent running back Ezekiel Elliott has played his last snap for the Cowboys. Now, he has zeroed his sights on his next landing spot.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Elliott has narrowed his search to three teams: The Eagles, Bengals and Jets.
Schefter also adds that a decision could come by the end of next week.
Cowboys’ RB Ezekiel Elliott has narrowed down his options about where to play to the Eagles, Jets and Bengals, and he would like to make his decision about where to sign by the end of next week, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 23, 2023
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To that end, just because Elliott is interested in playing for a certain team doesn't mean the feeling is mutual. Still, Elliott could make for a decent running back signing for relatively cheap at this point in the offseason, and each team makes sense for Elliott in some capacity.
— The Eagles have moved on from running back Miles Sanders, but brought in Rashaad Penny. A running back room that features Penny, Elliott, Boston Scott and Kenneth Gainwell might not be so bad. Plus, Elliott would have the benefit of sticking it to the Cowboys twice a year.
— The Bengals could use some insurance behind Joe Mixon, especially with the departure of Samaje Perine this offseason. Elliott would slot easily into the RB2 role for an offense that doesn't put a major emphasis on running the ball. That would help keep him fresh.
— The Jets are seemingly loading up for a run at the playoffs and maybe a bit beyond. While the team still waits on the finalization of an Aaron Rodgers deal, they've brought in Allen Lazard, Mecole Hardman and have had discussions with Odell Beckham Jr. They could also use some insurance in the backfield with running back Breece Hall coming back off an ACL injury.
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Schefter added context pertaining to what might go into Zeke's decision-making, as well: "Eagles once signed former Cowboys’ RB DeMarco Murray after the Cowboys let him go. Aaron Rodgers would be a lure to the Jets. Joe Burrow was at Ohio State in 2015 when Ezekiel Elliott was there."
It's unclear how much Elliott is asking for, but any deal would likely be short on both years and money, meaning the cap situation wouldn't be mucked up at all for each team.
Elliott isn't the player he once was, but he still offers a fair but of upside in pass protection, short-yardage situations and the passing game. The 2022 season was the first year that Elliott fell below 1,000 scrimmage yards, though he did miss two games.
With news of the landing spots, the book of Ezekiel is not yet finished.
