Jerry Jones Expects Ezekiel Elliott to Miss Week One for Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys really might be without Ezekiel Elliott for week one at home against the New York Giants. Fresh off their preseason week four loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 17-15, owner Jerry Jones addressed the media and seemingly conceded that there could possibly be a new target date for their star running back to return to the field.

"I just accept that. Zeke will miss games. He can't and won't miss them all," per Jori Epstein of USA Today. A tough break for the Dallas Cowboys indeed should he miss week one, as even though Dallas theoretically should be able to defeat the New York Giants without him, risking a game in the division against an NFC East rival is not a bet anyone in Big D really wants to take.

Stephen Jones spoke earlier Thursday ahead of the game about the Ezekiel Elliott situation.

"Yeah, I mean, we've been preparing for that," Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said of Elliott's holdout continuing into the season via Pro Football Talk. "That's why we brought Alfred [Morris] in. As we've said, we've been so pleasantly surprised, Pollard has been even better than we expected. We're very comfortable with what we have there. We're comfortable with that group if that's what it is. Obviously, we're still going to be doing everything we can to do something with Zeke."

Should Dallas indeed move forward without the dynamic talents of Ezekiel Elliott, rookie Tony Pollard looks to get the start. The speedster out of Memphis was a fourth-round pick by the team in the 2019 NFL Draft and admittedly isn't worried about the pressure or contract situation for his teammate at all, he just wants to take care of business. Earlier this week, Pollard was asked about starting in Week One. Right now, Pollard's only concern is to be at his best when his number is called this season.

"That's not for me to worry about," he said when talking about starting in place of Elliott. "I'm just coming in being the best back I can be, doing whatever the team needs me to do." Furthermore, "It's not what I expected coming into this situation, but I always prepare to be ready for whatever," he said. "Since this situation did happen, the way I that I prepare, I guess I was just ready for it and want to continue to make the most of it."

While the situation looks bleak, there is still time to get the contract done before Dallas' season opener on September 8th. The only question will be is he physically ready to go having missed all training camp.