The Dallas Cowboys have officially cut their long-time offensive leader Ezekiel Elliott just a few years after making him the highest-paid running back in NFL history.
It's a move that the team is making to save money, opening up around $5 million in cap space after they decided to re-sign fellow running back Tony Pollard.
In 2019, Elliott signed a huge six-year extension $100 million deal to stay with the Cowboys. It was a deal that many deemed to be excessive at the time, which has now proven true with a number of analysts naming it one of the worst contracts in the league.
Elliott's play has regressed dramatically in recent years, being a dominant player in his first four seasons before performing at a league average level in the last three seasons.
The Cowboys had reportedly been looking to keep Elliott on the team for next season, but hoped that he agreed a pay cut and a new contract in order for them to make further moves to their roster. But it appears that they could not come to terms, with him now being released.
The decision to release Elliott will have come as a much easier one to make after the team did resign Pollard, who took over as the Cowboys first option this past season.
Pollard had finally emerged as the team's number one offensive weapon after years of extremely promising play, but he had been limited to a bench role behind Elliott. Pollard started just four games, but saw much more playing time and registered over 1000 yards on the ground at 5.2 yards per carry - one of the league's best.
However, Pollard could miss time in the 2023 season after breaking his leg in the Cowboys playoff defeat to the San Francisco 49ers. This has lead to debate on whether the Cowboys will draft a running-back, with Bijan Robinson set to enter the draft - a prospect ranked higher than any other player at the position in decades.
For Elliott, he can now be snapped up on the open market, but it is unclear on which teams will be interested in acquiring him - leading to speculation that he could retire.
A number of running backs remain available on the open market, with only Rashaad Penny and David Montgomery being signed so far.
