Everyone keeps raving about how good Ezekiel Elliott looks this offseason

Maybe it was him just being unhappy with his 2020 season. Or maybe it’s the whispers that his best days are behind. It could be the suggestion that his playing time needs to be trimmed a bit. Or maybe it just is what it is. Whatever it is, people connected to the Cowboys can’t stop raving about how good Ezekiel Elliott looks this offseason as he readies himself for the upcoming year.

Elliott appears to have upped his offseason workout routine in order to up his game on the field. His videos posted on social media with his own private running backs coach show a player working on his footwork to become elusive and explosive again. Last year, as we have recounted previously, was a poor year for Elliott. He just didn’t look like the same player who burst onto the scene with the Cowboys as a rookie and was the top dog for a few years.

In that article referenced above, media member Bryan Broaddus talked about how Elliott looked quicker coming out of cuts at OTAs. Now a few of the players are also noting how good Zeke has looked. Quarterback Dak Prescott even went with the ultimate offseason cliché.

“Zeke looks great,” quarterback Dak Prescott said. “He’s in the best shape of his life. Looking fast. Everybody’s seen the clips of him working out independently with his running back coach. His cuts, just how explosive he is. Excited to have a full year with him again and getting him healthy throughout the whole season.”

We have certainly mocked the “best shape of his life” line before, but in this case we keep hearing it from different people. Coach Mike McCarthy and offensive coordinator have both touched on how good Zeke is looking so far. Now we have Prescott chiming in, too. Prescott reiterated it a second time.

“When Zeke’s healthy and Zeke’s doing his thing, he’s the best running back in the league,” Prescott said. “It’s just exciting to see him in the best shape of his life, or best shape he’s been in the NFL. That’s going to be special for us moving forward.”

Not only Prescott is speaking about Zeke, but the guy hoping to get some his reps, Tony Pollard, has commented.

“He’s definitely been locked in,” said Pollard, who worked out with Elliott this offseason in private. “I can tell he’s took the right step forward this offseason, getting his diet right and getting in shape. Me and him, you know, we worked out a lot of times during the offseason. So, we’re both locked in this offseason getting ready.”

So in between what Prescott is saying and what Pollard is saying, it does appear that Zeke decided to really change things up this offseason to overcome the decline he’s seeing in production. A new diet, working on some new drills with a running back coach, it seems like maybe things maybe are really different this year for the Cowboys workhorse back.