Scouts Rank NFC East RBs: It's Zeke Over Barkley, Sanders & AD

NFL Scouts Rank NFC East RBs, And They Give The Nod To The Dallas Cowboys As It's Ezekiel Elliott Getting The Edge Over Barkley, Sanders & Peterson

“I’m interested to see what (coach) Mike (McCarthy) does with that offense,” a former AFC personnel executive said of the 2020 Dallas Cowboys, “but I know when he gets (the players) there he will start with Elliott and go from there.''

"Elliott'' is Ezekiel Elliott, who according to the SI.com EagleMaven position-group-by-position-group series examining the entire NFC East is atop the division ... with all three of the other teams giving chase in that department.

With the help of NFL scouts, the NFC East Examination continues here as John McMullen writes about each of the four:

Washington's Adrian Peterson "is perhaps the best combination of speed and power at the RB position since Jim Brown but he’s also 35 at a position where 30 is a dirty word'' ... The Giants' "Saquon Barkley is "special,'' says one scout. ... The Eagles' Miles Sanders is an "explosive kid and a he’s a home-run hitter.''

And Elliott? 

"Barkley is more explosive but Elliott is far more consistent and durable,'' McMullen writes. "Many talk about Dak Prescott when discussing the Cowboys offense or the impressive WR corps which has now added CeeDee Lamb to Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup but the straw that stirs the drink is Elliott. Everything is built on his sturdy foundation.''

We'll suggest that McCarthy may change some of that, based on how he ran his offense in Green Bay for all of those years; that wasn't exactly a back-centric offense. But in total, the scouts think Dallas has the best running back in the NFC East - and that's saying something.

We've got our latest CowboysSI.com look at the running backs room here, with the suggestion that the new regime might want to find a way to lessen Zeke's load while giving Pollard a chance to contribute. And here: Learn more about what the scouts think of the running backs in the NFC East.