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While it by no means is the end-all be-all to whether or not star Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott is holding out, there is now reason to be a little concerned. The organization travels from Dallas to California for training camp on a team plane, much the same way they do when taking road trips for games. Unlike those road trips, however, players are not required to use that as their method of transportation.
Multiple local media members are reporting that despite having a seat reserved for Elliott, the two-time NFL rushing champion, who would like to get a contract extension done sooner rather than later, is not aboard the plane.
Whether or not Elliott would join the team for training camp or hold out has been a constant discussion for the last several weeks. He now has until Friday morning to report or he will start being fined $40,000 per day until he does.
Elliott is entering the fourth year of his rookie contract, but will currently have to wait until 2021 to be an unrestricted free agent. On April 24, the Cowboys invoked the fifth-year option, available only to first-round picks, which will keep him under team control through the 2020 season.
Elliott was the fourth overall pick in 2016.
He is slated to earn just over $3.85 million in base salary this season, with another $9.09 million in 2020, an amount based on the top average salaries at his position and being a top-10 pick.
Earlier in the offseason, executive VP Stephen Jones acknowledged the need for the team to give Elliott a new deal and referenced the one signed by Los Angeles Rams RB Todd Gurley last offseason. Gurley inked a four-year, $57.5 million extension with $45 million in total guarantees.
Dallas has several other key young players with expiring contracts in 2019 or 2020, including quarterback Dak Prescott, wide receiver Amari Cooper, cornerback Byron Jones and linebacker Jaylon Smith. In April, the team agreed to a five-year, $105 million deal with defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, who they had placed the franchise tag on for the second consecutive season.
