Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: More touches could be on deck

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Tuesday that he expects Elliott to handle a "serious load" of opportunities during Thursday's game against the Saints, Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Elliott has been managing knee stiffness since Week 4, but he was a full participant at practice Monday. Jones' optimism should be taken with a grain of salt, however -- Dallas has recently opted to limit Elliott's workload, resulting in back-to-back games in which the star running back failed to tally double-digit carries. Even if he does see more work Thursday night, it will come against New Orleans' stout defensive front. Through the first seven contests of the season, Elliott averaged an outstanding 19.7 touches per game.