FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The free agent running back market got a lot thinner on Monday, with Dalvin Cook signing with the New York Jets and longtime Dallas Cowboys star Ezekiel Elliot announcing on social media he is signing with Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.
Elliot's deal is for one year and up to $6M, with a $3M base salary, $1M in bonuses, and up to an additional $2M in incentives.
Locked on Patriots host Mike D'Abate joined Peter Bukowski on Locked on Sports Today to break down what this move means for the Patriots and their running back room in 2023.
"The buzz around the team right now is that this is going to strengthen their core as opposed to shake it up," D'Abate said. "Rhamondre [Stevenson] is still the top back, he's still the guy that's going to get the lion's share of the carries. But what this does for the Patriots is it provides them with a solid complimentary back that came come in and not only receive out of the backfield but also run the ball effectively on early downs."
New England has traditionally split early down work between two running backs, and after a productive visit with the team (his only one since being released by the Cowboys in March) Elliott will get a chance to carve out a valuable role in Belichick's offense.
Zeke had a career-low 876 rushing yards in 2022, but he still totaled 12 touchdowns and provided value as a short-yardage back and pass protector despite a 3.9 yards per touch mark last season - the worst among backs with at least 100 touches
A split role seems like a great scenario for Elliott to get back on track and provides much needed depth to New England's running back room, which was weak behind Stevenson especially with Ty Montgomery nursing a left leg injury.
The Patriots play in Dallas during Week 4, with the game scheduled for October 1.