- Ezekiel Elliott is two games into serving his six-game suspension, and the Cowboys are now 0-2 without him, scoring just 16 points over eight quarters.
- Between Elliott's absence and a few crucial injuries, Dallas' offense has looked dismal.
- At 5-5 and looking up at a crowded NFC playoff picture, the Cowboys will have to drastically improve if they have any hopes of making it to the postseason.
The Dallas Cowboys are falling apart without Ezekiel Elliott
Just two weeks into Ezekiel Elliott's six-game suspension, the Cowboys have already shown how hapless they are without their most dynamic offensive weapon.
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The Dallas Cowboys are falling apart.
Beyond owner Jerry Jones' ongoing war with the NFL, on the field, the Cowboys have looked absolutely atrocious the past two weeks, suffering two bad losses to the Eagles and Falcons. Their offense managed only 16 points combined and the Cowboys fell to a 5-5 record that would have them miss the playoffs if the season ended today.
The first and most obvious cause for their recent offensive woes is the loss of Ezekiel Elliott. After a seemingly never-ending legal battle over his six-game suspension, two weeks ago the Cowboys' star sophomore running back finally started sitting out games to serve his punishment.
Zeke entered his suspension as one of the top rushers in the league, with 783 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground, and 80 or more rushing yards in all but one of his starts. While Alfred Morris was still able to get the Cowboys 100 yards on Sunday night against the Eagles, he's unquestionably less dynamic that Elliott, especially in terms of burst and big-play ability.
Elliott's absence has also made defenses more keen to attack quarterback Dak Prescott with almost reckless abandon, secure in the knowledge that Zeke isn't sneaking behind them to take a screen pass to the house after a sell-out blitz.