Elliott agreed to a practice-squad contract with the Chargers on Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Elliott was waived by the Cowboys in late December after struggling in his return to the organization. The veteran running back averaged just 3.1 YPC on 74 rushes with three touchdowns while adding 69 yards on 12 catches over 15 games. Elliott began the campaign in a timeshare with Rico Dowdle, but the latter eventually established a stranglehold on the No. 1 running back role, relegating Elliott to 20 percent or fewer of the Cowboys' offensive snaps over his final six contests. While Elliott's contract with the Chargers is a practice-squad deal, Rapoport reports that Los Angeles is hoping that the 29-year-old can quickly get up to the speed. If that happens, Elliott could be a part of Los Angeles' playoff run, though that could also depend on when (and if) Gus Edwards is able to return from an ankle injury that sidelined him for the final two games of the regular season.
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Ezekiel Elliott: Time in Dallas over
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The Cowboys will waive Elliott on Tuesday, Josina Anderson of BovadaHub.com reports.
According to Anderson, Elliott asked for his release ahead of the Cowboys' season finale Sunday versus the Commanders, and Dallas honored his request. His second stint in Dallas left much to be desired, as Elliott scored three touchdowns and averaged a career-low 3.1 yards on 74 carries to go with 12 receptions for 69 yards over his 15 appearances. He was also a healthy inactive for a Week 9 loss to the Falcons, after a slew of missed meetings prompted Dallas to hold him out for that contest. While Elliott will be eligible to catch on with a contending team ahead of the playoffs once he clears waivers, he could struggle to find an opportunity after averaging fewer than 4.0 yards per carry in three straight seasons and offering no value on special teams.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Finds end zone on lone carry
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Elliott rushed once for a one-yard touchdown in Sunday's 26-24 win over the Buccaneers.
Elliott made the most of his one carry, finding the end zone from one yard out for his third rushing touchdown of the season. The 29-year-old running back played just three offensive snaps in the contest, while teammate Rico Dowdle continued to lead the backfield with 46 snaps in the game. With such limited opportunities, Elliott remains off the fantasy radar heading into a Week 17 matchup against the Eagles.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Does little with increased volume
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Elliot gained 30 rushing yards on nine carries and caught his only target for 11 yards in Sunday's win over the Panthers.
The veteran running back saw double-digit touches for the first time since Week 8, while his 41 yards from scrimmage were his highest total since Week 1. Elliott still took a clear back seat to Rico Dowdle, who ran for a career-high 149 yards on 25 totes. Even with the Cowboys' running game finding another gear in recent weeks due to improved play from the offensive line, Elliott doesn't seem likely to take advantage.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Remains afterthought in offense
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Elliott gained four yards on his lone carry in a 27-20 win over the Giants on Thanksgiving.
The veteran back saw only nine snaps, his lowest workload of the season, and over the last three games Elliott has managed only 34 scrimmage yards on eight total touches. With Rico Dowdle cementing himself at the top of the backfield depth chart, there isn't much of a path for Elliott to have significant fantasy value.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Four touches in loss
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Elliott rushed once for eight yards and caught all three of his targets for 16 yards in Monday's 34-10 loss to the Texans.
Elliott played 26 of the Cowboys' 83 offensive snaps Monday, with his 31 percent share being an increase from the 21 percent he handled in the Week 10 loss to the Eagles. Despite the bump in playing time, the veteran running back was unable to produce much in the way of relevant statistics. With teammate Rico Dowdle operating as the clear-cut No. 1 running back in Dallas, Elliott's fantasy utility has all but disappeared.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Coughs up fumble in blowout loss
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Elliott (suspension) rushed six times for 22 yards while losing a fumble in Sunday's 34-6 loss to Philadelphia.
Elliott returned from a team-mandated one-game suspension to resume his backup role for the Cowboys. The veteran tailback didn't make a case to earn more carries upon his return, losing one of four Dallas fumbles Sunday. With Rico Dowdle handling the lead-back role, it is safe to leave Elliott on waivers ahead of next Monday's tilt against Houston.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Available in Week 10
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Head coach Mike McCarthy said Monday that Elliott will be available for Dallas' Week 10 matchup against the Eagles after he didn't travel with the team to Atlanta last week for disciplinary reasons, Jon Machota of The Athletic reports.
Elliott was a healthy inactive for the Week 9 loss to the Falcons, but McCarthy's comments Monday suggest that the running back won't face any further discipline from the team. The 2016 first-round pick has missed several team meetings throughout the season and has expressed frustration with his role, playing behind Rico Dowdle, fullback Hunter Luepke and recently Dalvin Cook. Though he'll be back in the fold for Sunday's game, look for Elliott to serve as little more than a depth piece who likely won't take on a much volume as a ball carrier or pass catcher.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Healthy scratch as expected
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Elliott (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Falcons, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports.
Elliott will be a healthy scratch for the first time in his career. He has reportedly missed several team meetings throughout the season, with the most recent being Friday afternoon, per Jane Slater of NFL Network. As a result, Elliott and the team came to a mutual decision for him to not travel for Sunday's matchup against the Falcons. Rico Dowdle should see a heavy workload in Elliott's absence, while Dalvin Cook should also see some touches.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: In line to be inactive Sunday
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Elliott is expected to be a healthy scratch for Sunday's game in Atlanta, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports.
Archer cited disciplinary reasons as the reason for Elliott not making the trip from Dallas to Atlanta this weekend. As a result, Rico Dowdle is set to lead the Cowboys backfield Week 9, while practice-squad elevation Dalvin Cook and, to a lesser extent, Hunter Luepke will be the options behind Dowdle.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Scores TD in Dowdle's absence
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Elliott rushed 10 times for 34 yards and a touchdown while catching his only target for four yards in Sunday's 30-24 loss to the 49ers.
Elliott took advantage of Rico Dowdle (illness) being a late scratch, as the former led the Cowboys in carries and rushing yards while Dalvin Cook mustered just 12 rushing yards on six attempts. Elliott powered in a one-yard touchdown in the second quarter to give the Cowboys a 7-3 lead, but Dallas fell behind in the third quarter and had to abandon the run. Dowdle's likely to recover in time to face the Falcons in Week 9, which would likely revert Dallas' backfield to a timeshare, with the possibility of Elliott being bumped back down to a backup role.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Another poor showing
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Elliott carried the ball eight times for 17 yards in Sunday's loss to the Lions.
His longest gain went for only six yards as Elliott once again failed to make any kind of impact. The veteran back is averaging a career-low 3.0 yards per carry and has shown nothing that would suggest he's a threat to Rico Dowdle as Dallas' No. 1 RB. With the Cowboys on bye Week 7, they could use the break to evaluate their backfield and decide whether or not Dalvin Cook, who currently is stashed on the practice squad, deserves a look in Elliott's place Week 8 against the 49ers.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Firmly in No. 2 role
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Elliott carried the ball six times for 17 yards and failed to catch his only target in Sunday's win over the Steelers.
The veteran RB took a back seat to Rice Dowdle, who amassed 114 yards from scrimmage and a receiving TD on 22 touches. Elliott has shown very little this season in his return to Dallas, managing just 3.3 yards per carry, and he hasn't seen double-digit touches since Week 1. While he still has some utility for the Cowboys due to his pass protection skills, there's little reason for fantasy GMs to give Elliott a roster spot, even in the deepest formats.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Dehydration cited for LP
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Elliott was limited at Thursday's practice due to dehydration, Joe Hoyt of AllDLLS.com reports.
Elliott was one of two Cowboys (also, WR Ryan Flournoy) tacked on to the injury report Thursday for such a reason. Typically, dehydration is a short-term concern, but his listing on Friday's report bears watching to see if he may go into the weekend with a designation for Sunday's game at Pittsburgh. In his return to Dallas this season, Elliott has found the going tough, averaging 7.5 touches for 29.3 yards from scrimmage per game while scoring one TD on the ground through four contests.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Six total touches in win
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Elliott rushed five times for 19 yards and secured his only target for five yards in the Cowboys' 20-15 win over the Giants on Thursday night.
Elliott saw markedly less opportunity on the ground than backfield mate Rico Dowdle, who logged 11 carries. Eight of Elliott's rushing yards also came on one tote, underscoring how tough the sledding was on the ground for the veteran back. Elliott has now seen fewer carries than Dowdle in three consecutive contests, dimming the former's already suspect fantasy outlook considerably heading into a Week 5 road matchup against the Steelers on Sunday, Oct. 6.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Limited to three carries
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Elliott had three carries for six yards in Sunday's 28-25 loss to the Ravens. He added one reception on two targets for six yards.
The Cowboys didn't utilize their ground game much as they faced a significant deficit, but Elliott saw only four touches to Rico Dowdle's 11. Elliott has seen his opportunity drop in each week of the season, and he's picked up only 62 yards on the ground on 19 carries on the campaign. His workload could rebound in a positive game script, but it seems unlikely that he'll deliver much at this point in his career.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: RBs to Sit
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Elliott played fewer snaps than Rico Dowdle in Week 2 against New Orleans (30-28), and hopefully that's a sign of things to come. Dowdle has more upside than Elliott, who struggled against the Saints with six carries for 16 yards and two catches for 16 yards on three targets. Elliot did score 12.9 PPR points in Week 1 at Cleveland since he found the end zone, but the Ravens should be able to contain Elliott and Dowdle in this matchup. Baltimore allowed Isiah Pacheco to score a touchdown in Week 1, but he was held to 78 total yards. And last week, the Ravens held the Raiders backfield to 41 total yards and no touchdowns.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Poor showing in loss
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Elliott carried the ball six times for 16 yards and caught two of three targets for 16 yards in Sunday's loss to the Saints.
Rico Dowdle got the start in the backfield for the Cowboys, and while Elliott eventually saw a comparable workload (eight touches to Dowdle's 11), the veteran was less effective. So far, Elliott's return to Dallas hasn't gone well. He's averaged just 3.5 yards per carry through two games, and only a three-yard TD plunge in the opener has salvaged his fantasy production. A breakout seems unlikely Week 3 against a stingy Ravens run defense that's allowed the fewest rushing yards per game in the league through two weeks.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: RBs to Sit
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Elliott had a solid performance in Week 1 in his return to the Cowboys with 10 carries for 40 yards and a touchdown at Cleveland, and he added two catches for 9 yards on two targets. He alternated drives with Rico Dowdle for the majority of the game, and that seems like a pattern that will continue in Week 2 against New Orleans. Elliott will likely have to score to boost his Fantasy value, and we'll see if the New Orleans run defense is for real based on what happened in Week 1 against Carolina. The Saints held Chuba Hubbard, Miles Sanders and Mike Boone to a combined 15 carries for 43 yards and no catches on two targets. I would only use Elliott as a flex at best in Week 2.
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Cowboys' Ezekiel Elliott: Alternates possessions in Week 1
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Elliott rushed the ball 10 times for 40 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 33-17 win over the Browns. He added two receptions for nine yards.
Elliott was on the field for Dallas' first possession, but he alternated drives with Rico Dowdle for the entirety of the game. Elliott was the more efficient of the duo by averaging 4.0 yards per carry, and he also plowed into the end zone from three yards away late in the second quarter. A continued even split between Elliott and Dowdle would be bad from a fantasy perspective for each rusher, though Dallas will presumably be willing to turn to one more consistently if either Elliott of Dowdle can prove effective with his opportunity.
