Cowboys, Elliott agree to 6-year, $90M extension
Ezekiel Elliott has ended his holdout and signed a six-year, $90-million extension with the Dallas Cowboys, the team announced.
The contract, which contains $50 million guaranteed, will make Elliott the highest-paid tailback in football. He'll also be tied to Dallas through the 2026 season, as the extension won't kick in until his rookie deal ends following 2020.
The two-time rushing champion is expected to begin practicing with the Cowboys on Wednesday as they prepare for their season opener on Sunday versus the New York Giants, according to ESPN's Todd Archer. Dallas is tentatively planning to give Elliott 20-to-25 snaps in Week 1, NFL Network's Jane Slater reported.
The 24-year-old flew into Dallas on Tuesday after spending all of training camp and the preseason in Cabo, Mexico, where he had been training throughout his holdout - a signal that an agreement was in sight.
Previously, Elliott had demanded an extension that would make him the richest player at his position. Dallas appeared reluctant to comply at first, and the contract battle threatened to get ugly when Elliott's representation responded harshly to the "Zeke who?" joke that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones made during the preseason.
Ezekiel Elliott's career rushing stats
| Year | Yards | TDs | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1631 | 15 | 5.1 |
| 2017* | 983 | 7 | 4.1 |
| 2018 | 1434 | 6 | 4.7 |
*Missed six games due to suspension
Elliott's return will push rookie Tony Pollard, who'd been getting ready to take over the bell-cow role, down the team's depth chart.
Meanwhile, the Cowboys ultimately reset the market for running backs despite previously vowing not to give record deals to any of their contract-needy stars. Dallas is still trying to hammer out extensions for quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver Amari Cooper, who are both free agents after the 2019 season.