Ezekiel Elliott's comments on reduced role are exactly why Cowboys fans love him

Though it wasn't a huge surprise, everyone couldn't help but scratch their heads when the Dallas Cowboys signed Ezekiel Elliott in the offseason. It was among the Cowboys' first roster moves after they shockingly did not draft a running back with any of their seven picks.

Elliott was set to count $6 million in dead money stemming from his 2023 release. While Mike McCarthy is fond of Elliott and Elliott is popular in the locker room, it was no secret that he is no longer a starting running back.

It became obvious early in training camp that Rico Dowdle was the best running back back on the roster. Dowdle and Elliott split work in the first couple of games, but the former has since established himself as the clear lead back.

Elliott, meanwhile, has taken a distant backseat behind his former protege. The two-time rushing champ is frustrated with his reduced role and answered some tough questions from reporters on Thursday.

Ezekiel Elliott voices frustration to Cowboys coaches about diminished role

That is class personified from Elliott, which is no surprise.

After logging 13 snaps in the season-opener, Elliott has yet to play more than eight snaps in a game, per Pro Football Focus. He saw just three snaps in Week 3 vs. the Ravens and managed seven snaps (six carries) last Sunday against the Steelers while Dowdle was treated like a workhorse. Elliott has even started losing snaps to fullback Hunter Luepke in the last few weeks.

With all due respect to Elliott, nobody wanted Dowdle to come off the field Sunday night. Dowdle racked up 114 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown on 22 touches. He ranked top-five among running backs for the week in missed tackles forced, explosive runs and first down runs. It was a career performance, so Elliott picked a strange time to voice frustration with his role.

In fairness to Elliott, though, he might be the Cowboys' best red zone back. Dowdle almost lost the Week 5 game with a fumble at the goal line on Dallas' final possession. If not for Dak Prescott diving on the loose football, Dowdle would have gone from hero to zero.

You can understand why the Cowboys wanted to ride the hot hand in Dowdle, but he made a reckless decision to try to leap into the end zone.

At the end of the day, Elliott is a prideful player. There's an argument to be made that he deserves more touches around the goal line. However, with the way Dowdle is running, Zeke's case for a bigger role might fall on deaf ears.

We'll find out Sunday when the Cowboys take on the Lions.

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