Category: Ezekiel Elliott

‘Consummate professional’: Jerry Jones releases official statement on Ezekiel Elliott’s release

The Cowboys owner said the decision to release Elliott was “extremely difficult,” but called it a decision that’s best for both parties. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Not every departing Cowboys player gets an official statement from the club to mark the occasion, but not every player means what Ezekiel Elliott has meant to the franchise.

The Cowboys officially released the beloved star running back on Wednesday after seven seasons, two league rushing titles, and a truckload of highlight-reel memories for Cowboys fans.

Team owner Jerry Jones had this to say about the decision to move forward without the playmaker that Stephen Jones famously called “the straw that stirs our drink” in Dallas:

“Zeke’s impact and influence is seared into the Cowboys franchise in a very special and indelible way. He has been a consummate professional and leader that set a tone in our locker room, on the practice field and in the huddle. Zeke defined what a great teammate should be, and anyone that has ever played a team sport would be lucky to have a teammate like Zeke and be much better for it. His commitment and passion for winning is selfless, and the accountability he brings everyday earned the respect of our coaches, his teammates and our entire organization. He wore the Cowboys Star with pride and purpose every single time he put it on, and we’re a better franchise because of the example he set for veterans and rookies alike. That carried over into our community as well, with Zeke’s generosity and spirit about giving and caring for others.

“We have mutually agreed with Zeke that the best decision for everyone is that he will be able to experience free agency, and we can increase our flexibility and options as well. This is one of the toughest parts of operating a team. Moments like this come, and extremely difficult decisions and choices are made. For the franchise. For me personally. For players too. We will always have a special place and love for Zeke and what he means to our Cowboys family, both as a person and a player. That will never change.”

A former fourth-overall draft pick, Elliott ends his Dallas tenure with 8,262 rushing yards, behind only Tony Dorsett and Emmitt Smith in Cowboys history.

But apart from his stats, his punishing running style, and his considerable toughness in playing through injuries, much of Elliott’s legacy with the team will be his leadership in the locker room, the way he handled himself with the media, and his commitment to community work off the field.

Elliott is now free to sign with another club, and several others have already been named as possible destinations for the 27-year-old free agent.

It’s a sad day for many in Cowboys Nation as a true fan favorite appears to be riding off for new pastures.

But it’s worth pointing out that Elliott and the Cowboys are also free to restructure an entirely new (and cap-friendlier) deal that would bring him back as a short-yardage/red-zone threat and backup to Tony Pollard.

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Now released, Ezekiel Elliott will go down as one of Cowboys’ all-time greats

Elliott’s time with the Cowboys has come to an end and the seven-year vet will go down as one of the best ever to don the star. | From @ReidDHanson

After 11 record-breaking seasons in Dallas, the Cowboys traded Tony Dorsett. After 13 record-breaking seasons in Dallas, the Cowboys cut Emmitt Smith. After seven mostly-spectacular seasons in Dallas, the Cowboys are parting ways with Ezekiel Elliott.

The move, designated a post-June 1 release, will provide the Cowboys with $10.9 million of cap space later in the summer, but none now, while allowing Elliott to shop his services on the open market while teams still have needs and cap space.

Things rarely end glamorously in the NFL. Yet unlike in a great novel or award winning movie, it’s not about the ending but rather the brilliant moments within the story that are ultimately remembered. For Elliott, he’ll be remembered as one of the greatest running backs to ever wear the star.

Elliott entered the NFL as a first round pick out of Ohio State. The former Buckeye hit the ground running for the Cowboys, amassing 1,631 yards in his first season. With Tony Romo injured and a rookie fourth rounder named Dak Prescott filling in under center, the engine of the Cowboys’ offense undoubtedly ran through Elliott in 2016. Dallas posted a 13-3 record, eventually losing to the Packers in the divisional round of the playoffs.

Elliott’s rookie season would go down as his most successful seasons as a pro . Over the course of his career Elliott logged 8,262 yards rushing, third most in franchise history. He was a team leader and lighthearted warrior on the field.

While the heavy workload and constant beatings took their toll, Elliott was a fixture in the lineup. With the exception of six-game suspension in 2017, Elliott would play in 15 or more games every season in Dallas, even playing through a partially torn PCL in 2021 and another knee injury in 2022.

Elliott will always be known for his famous “feed me” gesture. He’ll be known for the 68 rushing touchdown accumulated in a Cowboys uniform. He’ll be remembered for using the Salvation Army’s red kettle during a celebration.

Elliott’s finable offense was turned into PR gold, bringing attention to the red kettle and allowing him to live on in charitable immortality.

Elliott was a fantastic teammate to seemingly everyone and a close friend to Prescott. He remained supportive of his teammate when he eventually took the backseat to Tony Pollard, Dallas’ newest top rusher.

In the end Elliott gave the Cowboys countless good moments that will be remembered far longer than the unceremonious ending. Like the greats that came before him, his career will continue, just not in Dallas.

Another all-time great has come and gone for the Cowboys. He had a career in Dallas worth celebrating and it doesn’t matter how it ended, when the story itself was so great.

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Cowboys expected to release Elliott today as free agency officially begins

The two-time rushing champ has been a team leader for 7 seasons, but his contract and declining stats may have finally made him expendable. | From @ToddBrock24f7

The end may have come for No. 21.

The Cowboys are believed to be on the verge of cutting two-time rushing champ Ezekiel Elliott, according to a report from Clarence Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Hill cites “a source close to the situation” and says the move could come as early as Wednesday afternoon, the first official day of the new league calendar.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport called the move “likely” after hearing from his own source; Jane Slater had a source tell her “Looking like it” when asked about the veteran’s imminent release.

Elliott and his monster $90 million contract have been a source of friction within the Cowboys fanbase ever since he signed it in 2019. At the time, he had been the league’s rushing leader twice in his first three seasons and might have made it a clean sweep if not for the controversial 2017 suspension that kept him off the field for six games.

The Ohio State product earned his third Pro Bowl nod and topped 1,300 rushing yards after inking the deal, but his production began a steady decline with the 2020 campaign. He finished 2022 with career lows in carries, rushing yards, average yards per carry, receptions, receiving yards, and average yards per catch. For the first time, he failed to log a 100-yard-rushing game all season.

But the former fourth overall draft pick had unquestionably become one of the locker room’s most treasured leaders, with teammates, coaches, and ownership all attesting to his selfless attitude and importance to the fabric of the team. It’s been believed that the front office would try desperately to keep Elliott on the roster, even though it was clear that the financial details of his contract would have to be reworked.

The 27-year-old is set to count $16.4 million against the upcoming season’s salary cap with a non-guaranteed $10.4 million base salary.

Elliott himself expressed a willingness to have his deal restructured in order to remain in Dallas, but Wednesday’s reports indicate that the two sides were apparently finally unable to find a palatable middle ground for the third-leading rusher in Cowboys history.

Releasing Elliott will save the team $4.8 million; designating him a post-June 1 cut would save the club $10.9 million.

But until the move is officially made, there is always the chance that Jerry and Stephen Jones work a miracle. Longtime Cowboys writer David Helman tweeted Wednesday, “I’m personally not 100% sold that this story’s over. the Cowboys are very good at subverting expectations at the last minute, especially when beloved franchise icons are involved.”

In 103 regular-season game appearances, Elliott tallied 8,262 rushing yards and 68 rushing touchdowns on 1,881 attempts.

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Here’s how Cowboys can responsibly create over $40 million in cap space

Recommendations on how Dallas can respect their vets while creating cap room, along with other ways to shave space before the new year. Trade away candidates included. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The Dallas Cowboys made a couple of moves on Friday which didn’t impact the state of the current roster but instead paved the way for some potential returns or additions. They’ll need to make more, however, if they are to be involved in free agency starting on Monday. Mind you, this isn’t even discussing being real players in the race for talent; that feels like chasing a unicorn.

This is in regards to doing much of anything, including their annual sign-their-own-bargain-shop-other-teams strategy. Converting base salary to bonus, Dallas shaved a little over $30 million to their cap space with the adjustments to Dak Prescott and Zack Martin’s deals. But because they were already over the cap, Tony Pollard’s pending franchise tag put them even more in the red. Dallas was $16 million over, according to Over the Cap; the moves gave them just $14.5 million in usable space and that’s not enough.

Dallas will want to carry at least $5 million worth of space into the regular season, and the draft class will take away another $3 million. That’s $8 million the club needs to earmark, meaning that they’ll only have $6.5 million of effective cap space to use.

Dallas currently has 57 players under contract, so they are already above the Top 51 threshold. 51 players of the 90-man offseason roster count against the salary cap, which is $224.8 million in 2023 (plus the Cowboys’ 2022 rollover of another $5.5 million). Each player they sign for more than the minimum will knock someone out of the Top 51, so their impact on the cap will be slightly less.

For instance, if Dallas signs a player to a one-year, $6.75 million deal it would use up $6 million of cap space because they’d be pushing a player making $750,000 out of the Top 51.

That’s not giving Dallas much of an opportunity to do anything, so here are five ways they could create more cap space. They don’t have to make these moves now, but could pull the trigger next week, next month or even after the draft.

ESPN: Cowboys should move on from Elliott, tag Pollard

The Cowboys have a clear opportunity to improve their running back situation while saving money, but will they follow through on it? | From @CDBurnett7

The Cowboys running back stable was again a topic of debate throughout the 2022 season. Ezekiel Elliott, the former star and a team personality, had a subpar season and was overshadowed by the young Tony Pollard. Although Pollard’s value was obvious, Elliott saw more carries than him with a 231-193 difference yet the efficiency gap was apparent.

Pollard finished the season with 1,007 rushing yards and 5.2 yards per carry while hauling in 39 catches for 371 yards. Elliott on the other hand had 876 rushing yards and 3.8 yards per carry while totaling 17 catches for 92 yards. Elliott edged out Pollard in total touchdowns, with 13 compared to Pollard’s 12, but the latter had a multitude of long scores, including a 68-yard touchdown catch.

Dallas has to make a choice on both backs. with Elliott’s contract digging into their salary cap while Pollard is a free agent in a couple weeks. ESPN’s Bill Barnwell recently broke down many offseason choices, including the Cowboys’ conundrum and how they can improve at the position while creating cap space. He started with Elliott’s situation.

The Cowboys owe Elliott nearly $11 million in 2023 as part of a $16.7 million cap hit. What is particularly notable for the team is how it handled things last offseason, when Elliott struggled through a disappointing 2021. Dallas usually restructures the contracts of its star players every year to create short-term cap space, albeit at the risk of eating more dead money when it moves on from those veterans. The Cowboys conspicuously declined to restructure the deals of Elliott and offensive tackle Tyron Smith last spring, suggesting the organization was preparing to move on from both players this offseason.

Designating Elliott as a post-June 1 release would free up $10.9 million in cap space for the Cowboys, who are projected to be $7.6 million over the cap for 2023. Releasing Smith under the same designation would free up another $13.6 million. Both moves seem likely unless either player is willing to take a pay cut.

It’s interesting to note that Tyron Smith’s situation mirrors Elliott’s and if Dallas elects to move from both, it opens up even more space. Considering Stephen Jones’ reputation with cap space, $24.5 million extra would open the door for a splash signing of some degree, or extensions for other young stars.

Pollard is coming off a serious injury in the divisional round but there’s no doubt of the player he is if he returns to 100%.

Pollard’s situation is suddenly much trickier after his injury, which also required surgery to repair ligaments from a high ankle sprain… I projected Pollard to land a deal in the ballpark of three years and $36 million if he got to free agency. And in hindsight, the Cowboys might have planned to use the $10.1 million franchise tag to keep him for 2023.

Now, with the ankle complicating Pollard’s availability, the 25-year-old might be in position to land only a one-year deal for $6 million or so in free agency, which could cause the Cowboys to let him hit the open market and see if he lands a more significant offer. The easiest solution for the team would be to move on from Elliott, franchise Pollard and add a veteran back who can play early in the season while Pollard gets up to speed, but the Cowboys don’t do easy well.

That last line presents the most concern. The best scenario doesn’t seem unlikely but Dallas has to follow through. Pollard’s franchise tag would be worth $10.09 million according to OverTheCap. This would be cheaper than Elliott’s current deal, allowing the Cowboys to add a veteran back as Barnwell mentioned. A Day 3 selection would also fit the billing to boost the room with Malik Davis’ promising 2022 also a cog in the machine.

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49ers LB fined for out-of-bounds playoff hit on Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott

Dre Greenlaw leveled Elliott on the San Francisco sideline and drew a penalty; the late hit will cost him over $10,000 in fines. | From @ToddBrock24f7

San Francisco safety Jimmie Ward will have last Sunday’s so-called “hip-drop” tackle of Cowboys running back Tony Pollard examined by the NFL’s Competition Committee sometime during the offseason, a move that may result in a new penalty in the league’s rulebook.

49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw didn’t have to wait nearly that long to learn the repercussions of his hit in the same game on Ezekiel Elliott.

According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, Greenlaw has been fined $10,609 for a late out-of-bounds blow delivered to Elliott late in the second quarter of last weekend’s divisional-round playoff game.

The late hit drew a 15-yard flag for unnecessary roughness at the time. While the foul put the Cowboys offense into 49ers territory with a fresh set of downs, the drive ultimately turned into a nightmare for the Cowboys.

Just five plays after Greenlaw’s penalty came the Pollard tackle, sending him out of the game for good with a high ankle sprain and a fractured fibula. Literally adding insult to injury, Dallas then turned the ball over on the very next snap; Dak Prescott threw an interception in the red zone just as it seemed that a go-ahead touchdown was imminent.

Niners Wire reports that it’s the second time this year Greenlaw has been fined for an illegal hit; he was docked the same amount of money (and was even ejected) for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert in Week 10.

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Discipline or strategy? Ezekiel Elliott didn’t start for Cowboys vs Colts; explanations differ

Tony Pollard took the first snaps vs Indy; Elliott cited a desire to switch things up, but Jerry Jones said Elliott broke a team rule. | From @ToddBrock24f7

When the Cowboys offense took the field for the first time Sunday night, it was also the first time for something else.

Ezekiel Elliott was standing on the sideline. Active and available. Not injured. But technically not starting at running back.

Tony Pollard got the first carry of the game. Elliott wouldn’t see his first action until the offense’s seventh snap.

There are differing explanations as to why.

Team owner Jerry Jones said after the 54-19 win that the two-time rushing champ had violated a team rule during the week, leading to him not starting for the first time in his career when he was otherwise healthy and active.

Elliott, however, told reporters that the Cowboys’ coaches simply switched things up.

Ultimately, it didn’t seem to matter much. Elliott and Pollard went on to split carries fairly evenly on the night and turn in similar stat lines in the big win- 17 attempts and 77 yards for Elliott; 12 rushes for 91 yards by Pollard. Pollard had two touchdowns; Elliott added another during the fourth-quarter barrage.

But in a year when so much has been made of the team’s tandem ground attack and so much dissection of both their running styles and gameday results- especially with questions about both players futures with the club- it did raise a few eyebrows that Elliott started the game as a spectator.

Whether it was punishment or part of a master plan, though, depends on who you ask.

“I think there was a little issue that he had with his coach and some discipline issues,” Jones told reporters Sunday night. “Being tardy for a meeting or a phone going off or something serious, relative to Zeke.”

The 80-year-old admitted that he personally wouldn’t have benched Elliott for such a minor infraction, saying, “I’d be a lot more lenient than that.”

But Jones was quick to point out that it was not a “demotion” and that the incident was “nothing of consequence,” adding that Elliott has had “no behavior issues” within the building.

Not taking the first snap did seem to be the extent of the punishment, as Elliott actually played more total snaps than Pollard, 38 to 28.

Quarterback Dak Prescott brushed off any importance to the whole matter, hinted that the switcheroo was Elliott’s own idea, and joked that Elliott even found a silver lining to coming in late.

“He said going in there second, those guys weren’t as fresh and he was able to bully up on them a little bit more than usual,” Prescott said in his postgame press conference. “At this point, I don’t think it matters who goes in there on the first play of the game.”

The two Cowboys backs currently rank 16th and 17th in the NFL in rushing attempts on the season, and both are in the top 20 in rushing yards. Pollard’s 5.8-yard-per-carry average is fifth-best in the league, while just seven ball carriers have more rushing scores than Elliott’s eight.

“Those two guys have zero ego,” Prescott continued. “They’re each other’s biggest supporters and biggest fans. They’re a special duo… and they’re huge for this team, so it doesn’t matter who’s getting the first snap.”

But it will almost certainly matter to much of the Cowboys fanbase, who will use it all as fuel for the never-ending argument about which back should be the featured rusher in Dallas.

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Cowboys’ roster move sends clear message about Ezekiel Elliott’s status

By not elevating Qadre Ollison- as they had done in Weeks 8 and 10- the Cowboys seem ready for the return of the two-time rushing champ. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Officially speaking, the Cowboys made just one minor roster move on Saturday. But reading between the lines, it answers a major question heading into Sunday’s NFC showdown with the 8-1 Vikings.

Dallas elevated offensive lineman Dakoda Shepley from the practice squad to the active gameday roster. As Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News points out, it’s the third time Shepley has been elevated since signing with the club just before the start of the regular season. If the Cowboys are to use him again beyond Week 11, they will have to award him a full-time roster spot.

But the bigger news, perhaps, is what it says that Shepley was the only practice squad elevation.

The Cowboys did not move up running back Qadree Ollison as they had done in their previous two outings. And that seems to be a pretty clear signal that- unlike in Week 8 versus Chicago and Week 10 against Green Bay- lead back Ezekiel Elliott will suit up and play in Minnesota.

Elliott has missed the Cowboys’ last two games with a hyperextended knee, suffered in Week 7’s win over Detroit. He has been practicing with a knee brace, and he says he plans to wear it at U.S. Bank Stadium for the important matchup that quarterback Dak Prescott characterized as “a playoff game.”

The Vikings are allowing a middle-of-the-road 118.3 rushing yards per game; Dallas is averaging 134.6 yards per game on the ground. In the two games Elliott sat out, Tony Pollard set career highs in carries (22) in Week 10 as well as rushing yards (131) and rushing touchdowns (three) in Week 8.

Elliott has just 443 rushing yards so far this season, but the team maintains that his return will bring more than just an extra set of legs to the offensive backfield.

Elliott’s bruising style of play “rubs off on guys,” guard Zack Martin told reporters this week. “I think [the combo of both Elliott and Pollard] gives us something. When you get smacked in the mouth a few times by 21, you’re going to be breaking down in the hole trying to to make a tackle.”

By not elevating Ollison from the practice squad, the Cowboys appear to be prepping for Elliott to get back to his mouth-smacking ways in Minneapolis.

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‘It’s not one against the other’: McCarthy confident in both Pollard, mending Elliott

The Cowboys coach considers himself “blessed” to have two quality RBs and knows Tony Pollard can carry the load if Ezekiel Elliott can’t go. | From @ToddBrock24f7

Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott had “a good day of practice” on Thursday, according to head coach Mike McCarthy, taking full reps in the team portion of work even though he was officially listed on the practice report as limited.

Whether or not Elliott suits up for Sunday’s showdown with the Packers at Lambeau Field has yet to be decided, but McCarthy feels confident in his rushing attack no matter what.

“Tomorrow will be the final test” for Elliott, McCarthy told reporters in his press conference on Friday.

If the two-time rushing champ can’t go due to the knee sprain he suffered in Week 7, it will be the Tony Pollard show once again.

“Whatever they ask me to do, whatever they need me to do, I got it,” Pollard said this week, echoing the sentiment he carried into the team’s most recent outing against Chicago.

Pollard tied career-highs in rushing attempts and rushing yards in the 49-29 win and scored a personal-best three touchdowns. But while his numbers were outstanding, questions arose about his durability as a smaller-built back.

Cowboys running backs coach Skip Peete suggested that Pollard had hit a wall by the time he crossed the goal line the third time against the Bears, claiming that 30 offensive snaps was probably the 209-pounder’s limit.

“I definitely can do more” than 30 snaps, Pollard said this week, per Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. “I’m pretty sure he didn’t mean exactly a 30-play cutoff.”

As ProFootballTalk points out, Pollard was in on 41 snaps versus Detroit, toting the rock on his final one for a 25-yard gain late in the game. And seeing a 52-snap workload against San Francisco in 2020, Pollard turned a 40-yard touchdown on his last play.

On Friday, McCarthy brushed off any notion that Pollard wouldn’t be able to handle a full load if required.

“Tony Pollard’s a man. He’s in great shape. I think Tony,” said McCarthy, “could be a No. 1 feature back.”

His stats sure seem to support that. Pollard’s in the top 20 among all rushers this season, and his average of 6.2 yards per carry is currently leading all NFL running backs who have more than six attempts.

Elliott lags in per-rush average by two yards, but at 443 yards so far this season, he still ranks 23rd leaguewide in just seven games played and is 16th in total carries.

For what it’s worth, NFL Network’s LaDanian Tomlinson picked Pollard to go off in Week 10, making a bold prediction that he’d rack up 200 rushing yards against the Packers on Sunday.

Of course, that would be much harder to do if he’s splitting time with Elliott. But McCarthy says observers are getting too caught up in the idea of which Dallas rusher gets more snaps or more carries than the other.

“I don’t look at it the way everybody wants to look at it,” the coach explained Friday on 105.3 The Fan. “It’s not one against the other; it’s the benefit of having both of them. Obviously, Tony’s numbers speak for themselves and his style of running.

“But the thing about Zeke, especially in the game like we’re getting ready to play here on Sunday: there aren’t too may people who want to tackle Ezekiel Elliott, let’s be honest. I go back to the first time I saw him play in 2016 up there [in Green Bay]. He came ripping past our sideline, and I was like, ‘Holy hell…’ He’s a powerful runner. Those are things that don’t show up on a stat sheet, but Zeke brings a toughness, an attitude, you talk about a great teammate. There are so many other great qualities that he has that do not show up as rushing attempts.”

Even in street clothes, Elliott was Pollard’s biggest cheerleader during the Week 9 win. He may be again this weekend if Pollard gets a second straight start. Or Elliott may play, knee brace and all, and share backfield duties with Pollard. The Cowboys don’t know.

And right now, with the ground game humming, McCarthy doesn’t particularly care.

“We’re so blessed to have two outstanding running backs,” McCarthy said. “The most important thing is to get both those guys their touches, but the reality is, it gives us a chance to go attack a defense and not really worry about who’s in the game.”

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Ezekiel Elliott joins chorus of Cowboys lobbying WR Odell Beckham Jr.

The running back is the latest Cowboy to publicly call for the free agent WR to come to Dallas, but will the front office make it happen? | From @ToddBrock24f7

The calls for the Cowboys to sign free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. are getting louder.

And they’re coming from inside the building.

Ezekiel Elliott joined a growing chorus of Cowboys publicly lobbying for the three-time Pro Bowler to bring his pass-catching talents- and his rehabbed left knee- to Dallas. Following Wednesday’s practice, Elliott talked about what the nine-year veteran would bring to the locker room.

“We know the type of player Odell is,” Elliott said, per Patrik Walker of the team website. “We know how explosive he can be and what he can be for this offense. It’d be great to get him down here in Dallas- another weapon in our repertoire… We want him. We want OBJ.”

Beckham has been seen as a high-profile option for the Cowboys all season long, after they traded Amari Cooper to the Browns. CeeDee Lamb has taken over the WR1 role on paper, but is not having the kind of clearly dominating campaign the team had hoped for since opposing defenses have been able to make him the focus of their pass coverages.

Michael Gallup missed the first three games of the season recovering from his own ACL tear and had yet to catch more than four balls or log over 50 receiving yards in a game this year. James Washington is still waiting to make his Cowboys debut, and a host of young and/or inexperienced receivers has been left to try to provide a reliable and consistent on-field threat.

Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy praised Beckham, a former first-round draft pick, on Monday after a weekend report claimed that the team had Beckham “in their sights” and “firmly on their radar.”

McCarthy told reporters of the longtime Cowboys rival, “I’ve heard so many excellent things about him over the years. I think those are conversations for the future.”

That future came Tuesday when owner Jerry Jones did his coach one better, saying on Dallas radio, “Odell is someone that we have all the appreciation in the world for what he is as a competitor and know that the Cowboys star on that helmet, when he puts it on, could look pretty good.”

Former Cowboys receivers Michael Irvin and Dez Bryant have made no secret that they want to see Beckham in silver and blue, and second-year linebacker Micah Parsons made his sales pitch via a Twitter exchange with Beckham on Tuesday.

Parsons had more to say about it after Wednesday’s practice.

“[Expletive], we could use him. I think he’s a great player,” the Penn State product said, again via Walker. “He’s a guy that you want on the team. Beside all of that critic stuff that people make up and [expletive] about him, I think he’s a great dude… I think he can add real value to the team and help us do what we wanna do… If the guy is on the market and he’s talking about he wants to win games then, [expletive], me too. I wanna win games just as bad as you do. If you wanna win games, come and win games over here. Help us get to that Bowl.”

That’s exactly what Beckham did in 2021 with the Rams. After a midseason split with Cleveland, Los Angeles brought Beckham aboard for their final eight games; he scored the first touchdown in Super Bowl LVI before re-tearing the same ACL he first injured in 2020.

But even with a growing medical history and having just turned 30 years old, most believe that Beckham has plenty left in the tank, enough at least to help out on a contending team that is asking him to be an ensemble contributor, not the leading man.

But now that the coach, owner, and several A-list players have been so vocal and so up front about painting that picture for their fans, the Cowboys have all but painted their own front office into a corner when it comes to actually getting a deal done.

It starts with a phone call.

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