Zeke’s Big Day

The Dallas Cowboys have yet to play a game without Ezekiel Elliott yet this season, though the second-year running back has been in a constant state of legal limbo as his six-game suspension from the NFL has been on-and-off hold for more than two months.

But it wasn’t until a 40-10 thrashing of the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday afternoon that the Cowboys saw the version of Elliott they had in 2016, when he led the NFL in rushing as a rookie. Elliott’s 219-yard, three-touchdown performance against the 49ers came five days after his reinstated suspension was delayed once again, this time by preliminary injunction granted by a federal court in New York.

“He was driven. He had an air about him before the ball game,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. “He really appeared to have a certain mindset, a peace of mind, and I thought that reflected right before the ball game. It really was not surprising, now that I look back on it with the benefit of seeing him have that kind of ballgame, I think he was in as good a frame of mind as he’s been in all year.”

Both his 147 rushing yards and 72 receiving yards – all on one highlight-reel worthy catch and run – marked season highs, and his three scores matched his previous total for the season.

“I’m really proud of him. The entire game he played with this downhill approach. He had great energy, he was hitting the holes, he was trusting it, he was explosive when he got there,” tight end Jason Witten said. “He’s a young player and he’s dealing with a lot of stuff and it’s ongoing. I’m 35 and in my 15th year, and if I was in that situation, regardless of what you want to say, how mentally tough you are and strong, it wears on you. I’m just so proud of him and really the support system he has around him, just completely being a pro, coming in, not allowing those distractions to get in the way of his job. It’s not easy, and especially with as on-going as this has been for him.”

Elliott’s big day and the Cowboys’ dominating outing followed an anticipated national anthem, given the two teams’ disparate positions on player protests.

It was the Cowboys’ first game since Jones’ comments two weeks ago in which he threatened to bench any player who did “anything that is disrespectful to the flag.” Defensive lineman David Irving raised his right fist as the anthem concluded, much like he did at the Cowboys’ game two weeks ago. All Dallas players stood.

Led by safety Eric Reid, six active 49ers players and two inactive players kneeled during the anthem in what their latest demonstration to protest police brutality and racial inequality in the league. Niners owner Jed York has been among the most vocal owners in supporting players’ First Amendment rights.

Jones, who was not among the 11 owners who met with a contingent of players in New York City last week to discuss social issues, said he was “proud” of how players on his team, including Irving, handled themselves during the anthem on Sunday. But Jones also said player protests continue to be an issue for the league, which is “suffering negative effects.”

“I care about a lot of things, but our ability to be substantive is based upon having a strong NFL, a league that people really are interested in and want to watch, and want to watch the games,” Jones said. “So I am very much at all times, if I’m anything, I am first and foremost a proponent of making the NFL strong and making us have as many people watching the game as we can. If all of this makes you stronger, to represent messages, then let’s not do it in a way that tears down the strength of the NFL.”