Time To Bet On Ezekiel Elliot Not To Report By Week One?

Posted on August 06, 2019, by Travis Pulver

The Dallas Cowboys find themselves having to deal with what can only be described as a ‘good problem.’ They don’t have one or two star players that have earned extensions, but three—Dak Prescott, Amari Cooper, and Ezekiel Elliot.

But it is the one that they need most Ezekiel Elliot, that is not in camp. If you listen to the rumor mill, it is starting to sound like he may not be reporting anytime soon.

At first, when his holdout began, it sounded like he would be reporting sooner rather than later. But according to what former NFL great Eric Dickerson said during an appearance on FS1’s undisputed, Elliot’s holdout could last into the regular season.

This information is coming to the world secondhand, of course. Elliot hasn’t said anything to Dickerson, but Elliot’s agent told Dickerson that it could—hearsay.

So, does that mean Elliot could hold out into the season if the Cowboys don’t make a big enough offer? Maybe. But it could also be Elliot’s agent leaking false information to enflame the fan base and put some pressure on the Cowboys front office.

It does make it a little harder to figure out how to approach the prop bet on Elliot that BetOnline.ag is offering:

·        Will Ezekiel Elliot play for the Cowboys in Week 1?

o Yes       -200

o No        +150

But with little to no information coming from either side, it is hard to say who will blink first—or if anyone will. The Cowboys have made it clear how important they think Elliot is to the success of the team. They have made it sound like they are willing to do what it takes to make Elliot happy.

However, they know the shelf life of an NFL running back, especially one that gets a workload like they give Elliot. So, they don’t want to sign him to a long-term extension like the Rams did with Todd Gurley only to find out he has a serious knee issue and will require ‘load management.’

But at the same time, that is why Elliot wants to get paid now. He is all too aware that his career could take a turn off one bad play (and injury). If he doesn’t get paid while he can, it may never happen.

So—what should you do? How should you bet this?

Well, apparently there was some significance to August 6; if he didn’t report, he couldn’t accrue a year f service towards free agency. This would matter if he was considering free agency, but according to the rumor mill, he isn’t.

Rumor has it that he and the Cowboys are committed to coming up with something both sides can live with before Week One. Several media outlets reported on Tuesday that Elliot received a new offer from the Cowboys (as did Prescott and Cooper) that would put him in the top five.

Will ‘top five’ be enough for Elliot? Or will he insist on being No. 1? Only time will tell, but with Jerry Jones being as committed as he is to win one more Super Bowl, he is not going to throw away the team’s shot this season for a few million dollars.

So,take the ‘No.’