Cowboys Inside LOOK: 'Roaring' at Zeke Workout
DALLAS - "One more, one more," said Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott in his final offseason session with personal trainer Josh Hicks.
With fellow NFL ball-carriers Melvin Gordon and Ty Montgomery watching, Elliott burst over ladders and weaved in and out of trash cans, cutting through a 90-degree late-July Texas day.
Happy with his final run, Elliott let out a roar as the group celebrated and headed off the empty football field at a local high school for water. With smiles on their faces, Elliott and Hicks shook hands in acknowledgment of their completed summer preparation.
"Zeke's foot speed, quickness and elusiveness has improved the most," said personal coach Josh Hicks. "With his diet as well, he's more lean... I think you're going to see the old Zeke again."
Hicks isn't the only person Elliott has impressed this offseason - his teammates have raved about the running back who looks more like a scatback.
"Best shape of his life," said Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott.
Fellow Cowboys running back Tony Pollard said Elliott is "locked in."
Entering year six with the Cowboys, the former Ohio State star Elliott is coming off his statistically-worst season. In 2020, Elliott ran for just 65.3 yards per game and 979 yards, both career lows, while tying a career-high six fumbles.
Is this season his bounce back year?
"He put in the work," said Hicks. "He's more focused. He's taking care of business. He knows he's a top running back in the NFL."
"With everybody being back and being healthy, I think it'll be a good season," Hicks, a Dallas native, said of the Cowboys. "The guys have a little chip on their shoulder, I know they do. It's going to be an exciting season... Fans are back, it's going to be like a high school game... They get to have fun and put on a show and show what they did in the offseason."
As I watched the two-time NFL rushing champion dart through drills, determined to get each perfectly with a force that made him appear to float, I can attest those sentiments. I had seen Elliott's workout videos featuring his leaner physique on social media that hyped Cowboys fans ... But I was surprised during our visit at his determined-yet-easy demeanor. Whether he has a chip on his shoulder from last season or not, he certainly is running with an effortlessness - and yet an intensity - that should scare opposing defenses.
Elliott and the Cowboys fly to training camp in Oxnard, California on July 20 with a looming date with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Canton, Ohio in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on Aug. 5. ... and a chance for Ezekiel Elliott to "let out a roar'' for the entire football world to hear.
