Least Surprising About Cowboys 3-1 Start: Ezekiel Elliott

It was not difficult to predict that success for the two-time NFL rushing champion was within his reach. Right?

FRISCO - How does one separate the analysts, media members and fans who paid close offseason attention to Ezekiel Elliott's presence and future with the Dallas Cowboys ... from the ones who failed to do so?

By taking note - and tsk-tsking - those who are surprised as Zeke's successful opening month to the season.

“There’s no question that what you put in in spring, what you put in in training camp, that’s what you get out during the season,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said via 105.3 The Fan. “He put it in during the offseason, and it’s paying dividends for him.”

And for the Cowboys.

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As chronicled in this space, Zeke's offseason - from Frisco to Oxnard and back - was very much about a new commitment to supplementing his powerful running style with additional elusiveness. He shed 10 pounds from his previously-228-pound frame and from highlight workout videos to eye-witnessed daily sessions in Oxnard, well ...

It was not difficult to predict that success for the two-time NFL rushing champion was within his reach.

In Week 1 in a close loss at Tampa Bay, the pass-happy offense relegated him to "pass-protection back'' - which he did extremely well. In Week 2 and 3 wins, respectively, over the Chargers and Eagles, he shared some of the load with Tony Pollard.

This past Sunday, he punished a good Carolina Panthers defense for 143 rushing yards and a touchdown, plus a 47-yard sprint marking his longest run from scrimmage since his rookie year.

Add it all up? Elliott is arguably as fine a "complete running back'' as there is in the NFL.

The fact that he's also a $12 million running back bothers some critics. And at 26, he's got wear and tear from carrying a load as he enters his sixth NFL season.

But the people here inside The Star were never bothered. And now, as on Sunday the 3-1 Cowboys host the New York Giants, they're not surprised.

"You hear it,'' Elliott recently said of the criticism. "But what really matters is what's going on in this building. They're not the ones signing the checks, they're not the ones sending the wires, so I don't think it matters.''

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