May 13, 2021

Ezekiel Elliott's 2020 season was one of two tales. He was dominant early on and then he faded into obscurity over the back half of the season, but it was not entirely his fault. Superstar quarterback Dak Prescott was lost for the season in Week 5 due to a compound fracture in his ankle, and with it, came the destruction of the Cowboys' hopes for a productive season. Elliott played the remainder of the season with quarterbacks Andy Dalton, Ben DiNucci, and Garrett Gilbert at the helm. If that wasn't bad enough, the Cowboys' offensive line was decimated as well. All-Pro left tackle Tyron Smith only played two games, and all-pro guard Zack Martin only played in 10 games, often playing through injury when active. I am not putting too much stock into the Cowboys' season when evaluating Elliott's 2021 outlook because so many things went wrong. The good news is that the abysmal season Elliott put down has significantly decreased his value, especially in redraft leagues, where he is lasting until the eighth or ninth overall pick. I would draft him inside the top-five as the fourth running back off the board because I am expecting a tremendous bounce-back season for Zeke with a healthy Prescott. In the five games that he played with Prescott last year, Elliott was the RB3 overall and averaged 18 carries for 73 yards and one touchdown per game for an average of 23.1 ppg. Without Prescott, those numbers dropped dramatically to 15.5 carries for 61.5 yards and .1 touchdowns per game for an average of only 11.8 ppg, a 51% drop in production. Prescott also significantly boosted Elliott's usage in the receiving game as he averaged 4.8 receptions for 34.6 yards per game with him and a dismal 2.8 receptions for 16.5 yards without him. The fact of the matter is that Zeke is a fantasy superstar with Prescott and a mediocre RB2 without him. Combine that with the return of a healthy offensive line and Elliott is in store for a monstrous 2021 season. Do not let him slip past fifth overall in redraft leagues.--Frank Dyevoich, Esq.