Dallas Cowboys: Ezekiel Elliott situation taking ugly turn?

Running back Ezekiel Elliott continues his holdout and things may be getting tense between him and the Dallas Cowboys after Jerry Jones words on Saturday

An ugly situation could be getting even uglier for the Dallas Cowboys. With running back Ezekiel Elliott currently holding out trying to get a new deal, the team and the player have each tried to apply pressure to one another in order to get what they want.

For Zeke’s camp, the holdout itself is their big ace in the hole. Elliott staying away from the team and working out on his own is letting the decision-makers in Dallas know that he’s serious.

As for the Cowboys, they’ve made a few remarks through the media to try and put the pressure on the running back. One comment came from Stephen Jones, who said that players usually get their deals re-worked at camp as he aimed to convince Elliott to show up and help push negotiations forward.

That comment was fine and didn’t get a rise from Elliott’s people, but apparently the one from Stephen’s dad this past Saturday was not. When asked about their Pro Bowl running back following their preseason game in Hawaii, team owner Jerry Jones jokingly said: “Zeke who?” That drew a few laughs out of those in the room, but the running back was not amused.

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Rocky Arceneaux, the agent for Elliott, said that he and his client not only found the joke unfunny but felt disrespected by it.

"“I didn’t think it was funny and neither did Zeke – we actually thought it was disrespectful.” — Arceneaux, via Chris Mortensen"

One of two things could be happening here. One is, Arceneaux may be trying to make Jones feel as though he personally insulted Elliott. If so, that could prompt him to re-enter negotiations trying to make amends.

Another possibility is that Elliott truly is offended which could lead to things getting worse. We already saw this happen when Philip Rivers commented on his running back’s holdout saying that the Los Angeles Chargers were deep there even without Melvin Gordon. Not long after, word broke that Gordon was asking to be traded.

This time, it’s the owner of the team making a comment which could have the player feeling as though they’re not wanted.

In reality, Elliott and Arceneaux don’t need to be talking about disrespect. While a player is well within his rights to make his money while he can, the fact of the matter remains that Jones has treated Elliott with nothing but respect throughout his career — even when others likely wouldn’t have.

Since entering the league in 2016, Elliott has had a number of off-field missteps which led to a six-game suspension in 2017. He was again investigated this offseason after pushing a security club in Las Vegas at a concert.

Throughout it all, Jones has been adamant that he thinks highly of Elliott and stands behind him. In fact, Jones has even taken some harsh criticism for his support of Elliott.

Putting all that together likely means the team owner could feel somewhat slighted by the way Zeke has gone about asking for more money.

With all that said, a new contract would surely fix everything. If the player gets his money, he will be back to work with a smile on his face. If Jones gets to keep a superstar on the field for his team, he too will be all smiles as he embraces him with open arms.