It is really nitpicking to find things to complain about with the way Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott ran during his rookie season. Elliott was dominant for Dallas, leading the NFL in rushing and establishing himself as a top-five running back in the league after just a single season. He is the biggest reason the Cowboys are the favorites to win the NFC next year.
But two guys who know a little bit about running, Tony Dorsett and Emmitt Smith, have some nits to pick. Specifically they told Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram they wish Elliott would quit hurdling everyone all the time.
“He better stop that. He better stop that. He better stop that,” Dorsett said. “That’s one thing that I don’t like. When you get airborne, you’re at the mercy of the hit, and sometimes you can’t protect yourself. I think as he gets older he may take that out of his repertoire. He needs to stop that. That scares me every time he gets airborne. I’m like oh ...”
Elliott hurdling defenders is quite the sight to see. It’s beautiful in its own way, primarily because of how the running back, who was a hurdling champion in high school, just effortlessly leaps over huge grown men.
The concern with the hurdling for Smith is that “a lot of things” can happen between the time a running back is up in the air and the time a running back lands on the ground.
“Get on the ground as quickly as possible,” Smith said. “Every time I watch somebody run, I’m looking very closely, very tentatively, seeing how they fall because a lot of things happen when you fall.”
These guys know what they’re talking about. Between Dorsett (12 years) and Emmitt (15 years) they have a pair of Hall of Fame jackets and nearly three decades of running the football between them. Elliott, who is 21 years old, has six years less on Earth than Dorsett and Smith had running the ball in the NFL.
And we’re not talking about a “Get off my lawn, youngster!” thing either here. Both Dorsett and Smith have happily embraced Elliott as the future for the Cowboys and one of the primary reasons they have the potential to win a Super Bowl as soon as 2017.
Dallas could still win if Elliott suffered an injury, too, but they’re going to be a much better team when he’s healthy and toting the rock 25 times a game.
If avoiding the hurdling helps to keep him in the lineup, by all means keep your feet on the ground, Zeke.
