Elliott’s effort questioned in Cowboys defeat
Dak Prescott had FRISCO — a rough outing on Sunday. So did Ezekiel Elliott and the rest of the Dallas Cowboys.
It’s hard to find much good for the Cowboys after a 25-point blowout loss to the Denver Broncos. But the effort level within the game is what stands out the most to coach Jason Garrett. Prescott passed with flying colors even though the passing game must improve. Elliott, the former Ohio State Buckeye, did not.
Garrett wasn’t pleased with Elliott’s efforts after the Broncos intercepted Prescott twice, including a 103-yard return for a touchdown by Aqib Talib late in the game. Elliott wasn’t seen trying to prevent that score, and had his hands on his hips on an earlier interception as Chris Harris Jr. returned it 23 yards.
Hall of Famer and TCU great LaDainian Tomlinson blasted Elliott for “quitting” on his team in analyzing the game for NFL Network. Garrett wouldn’t say Elliott “quit” on the team, but said he certainly didn’t play up to the team’s standards on those two interceptions.
“One of the things we preach to our team on both sides of the ball when there is a turnover, everybody is involved,” Garrett said. “If you’re an offensive player, become a defensive player on a fumble or an interception.
“Zeke is one of the most natural competitors I’ve ever been around. He loves to play. He loves to practice. I think we’ve seen that through his first year playing. Those two plays were not indicative of the kind of competitor that he was and we have to get that addressed.”
Expect the Cowboys to address it by showing those plays to the team this week as a teaching moment of what not to do. Expect them also to show plays where Elliott showcases his competitive nature. Garrett said he had “no idea” why Elliott had such an uncharacteristic game, although frustration likely set in with Elliott, who had only a career-low 8 yards on nine carries.
“I haven’t spoken to him specifically. He certainly could have been frustrated,” Garrett said. “Obviously, he had been very productive as a running back over the course of his career and certainly in the NFL up to this point and he had a game where he carried the ball nine times for 8 yards, so there’s no question frustration could have set in.
“We’ll certainly address it with him, but we have to address that with our entire team. That’s not the way we play.”
Prescott, on the other hand, drew praise from Garrett for how he handled his forgettable day. Prescott had his second career multi-interception game, was sacked twice and hit seven times and injured his ankle on a run on the last play of the first quarter. But Garrett admired how Prescott didn’t sulk in the moment and kept attacking as best he could.
Garrett pointed to a sequence late in the game when Von Miller sacked Prescott on second down. Prescott then scrambled for 11 yards on third down to give the Cowboys a fourth-and-3. Even though the Cowboys failed to convert the fourth down, Garrett raved about the fight Prescott displayed.
“No. 4 is a special player,” Garrett said.
Elliott’s worst game until Sunday was his NFL debut against the Giants last season. He rushed for 51 yards on 20 carries. He didn’t have the best encore after that, rushing for 83 yards and fumbling twice at Washington.
But Elliott got it together in Week 3, beginning a stretch of four consecutive 130-plus yard games and ending up as the league’s rushing champ with 1,631 yards. He had a streak of 16 games with at least 80 rushing yards come to an end Sunday. Garrett is confident that Prescott, Elliott and the rest of the team will respond and rebound the right way when they play the Cardinals on Monday.
“We’ve got to go back to work,” Garrett said. “There were some things in that game ... that were good. We’ve got to build on those.”
Santana Moss said in a radio appearance Monday that Robert Griffin III took credit for coach Mike Shanahan and offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan being fired by Washington after the 2013 season. Griffin, also a former Cleveland Brown, responded on Twitter, saying, “To openly lie about me is a betrayal.” Griffin tweeted that he was the “good soldier” in an “impossible situation” with the Redskins after Shanahan said he never wanted him as his quarterback. Moss says Griffin taking joy in the Shanahans being fired was “the dumbest mistake you can ever make in this league” and that when Jay Gruden was hired as coach, he ripped Griffin in meetings because he wasn’t doing the things needed to win football games.