Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott reportedly spent the last six weeks in Cabo San Lucas while serving a suspension handed down by the league and upheld in court.
And it was hardly a Mexican vacation.
According to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, Elliott spent six weeks training and getting in shape for the Cowboys’ potential playoff push.
The Sunday Night Football broadcast team reported Elliott spent much of his time in Cabo training on a field custom-made for him on a driving range at the resort where he stayed.
Elliott won’t only come back to the states Monday -- his six-game ban ends Sunday night at the conclusion of the Cowboys’ game in Oakland -- with a toned physique, but also with a documentary telling his side of the story, the Star-Telegram reports.
The Cowboys lost their first three games with Elliott, looking anemic on the offensive side of the ball. They bounced back to win two in a row heading into Oakland Sunday with playoff hopes still alive.
Dallas plays at home against Seattle and on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles to close the season.
Offensive coordinator Scott Linehan told the Star-Telegram he expects Elliott to be in shape upon his return to the team this week:
“I’m sure he’s in shape. I’d be shocked,” Linehan said. “He’s really a world-class athlete. He stays in shape and he trains. I’m sure he’s been doing that. In a lot of ways it’s probably the break he’ll feel a little bit like he feels when he comes to training camp. He’s got a little break between OTAs and training camp now. So he’ll probably have those fresh legs and I’m sure he’ll be ready to go. I don’t know that there’s any model to go by with a guy being gone for a length of time. But a lot of times if you do it right you stay in shape, it can be a benefit for you just as far as how you feel at the end of the year versus if you’re playing every game.”
The second-year running back was suspended by the league in September. A lengthy appeals process went through four different appellate courts before Elliott's camp conceded and he served his six-game suspension.
