Ezekiel Elliott paces the Cowboys with three TDs in a romp over the 49ers.
Star RB produces dominant outing days after ruling stops suspension
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Ezekiel Elliott made the most of his legal reprieve, taking advantage of a legal ruling that put his suspension on hold and responding with the most productive game of his career.
Elliott gained 219 yards from scrimmage and tied a career high with three touchdowns just days after winning in court and the Dallas Cowboys beat the winless San Francisco 49ers 40-10 on Sunday.
“I put that aside when I get with these guys,” Elliott said. “These guys do a good job of giving me something else to think about, keeping me up no matter what’s going on out there. I’m just happy to be out here and be able to play with them and go and get another win.”
Elliott was granted his second temporary restraining order Tuesday, putting his six-game suspension over domestic violence allegations on hold and then gave the Cowboys (3-3) a big boost on the field.
Unstoppable force
Elliott matched his season total of rushing touchdowns with two in the first quarter and then took a short pass from Dak Prescott 72 yards for another touchdown on Dallas’ first possession of the second half to put the 49ers (0-7) away. Elliott ran for 147 yards on 26 carries to go with the big catch, setting a career high in scrimmage yards in a game.
“He went out there and just played the game,” Prescott said. “He put everything behind him and stayed within himself, stayed within the game, stayed within each and every play and did what he does best.”
That performance spoiled the starting debut of rookie quarterback C.J. Beathard , who was sacked five times, lost two fumbles and failed to lead the 49ers into the end zone until he scored on a run with the game out of hand in the fourth quarter.
Beathard finished 22for-37 for 235 yards, but his fumble on a sack by DeMarcus Lawrence late in the first half ended a promising drive that went down to the 5.
“They brought a lot of pressure, which we hadn’t seen them do much of,” Beathard said. “I guess when you’re a rookie, they try to see what you know and put you on your heels a little bit.”
Bryant ties TD record
The 49ers, the first team to lose five straight games by three or fewer points, were never really close against the Cowboys.
The 49ers got off to a good start when they forced a three-and-out on the opening possession. But Trent Taylor fumbled the punt return, setting up Dallas at the 20. Elliott ran three straight times and scored his first touchdown of the game from 1 yard out.
While Elliott delivered most of the big plays for Dallas, tight end Jason Witten added an impressive catch of his own in the second quarter. He pulled in Prescott’s 18-yard pass to the end zone with one hand to put the Cowboys up 20-3. Dez Bryant then delivered a big touchdown catch of his own in the fourth quarter, tying Bob Hayes’ franchise record with the 71st in his career.
The Cowboys lost kicker Dan Bailey to a right groin injury in the first half, forcing coach Jason Garrett to scramble a bit. Dallas went for the 2-point conversion following their first touchdown after Bailey’s injury and couldn’t convert.
Safety Jeff Heath then made two of three extra points in the second half and performed well on kickoffs in his first game kicking since high school. Heath is the first non-kicker or punter to make multiple extra points in a game since ex-Oilers linebacker and current Packers general manager Ted Thompson made four in 1980.