It seems as though a suspension is almost inevitable for Ezekiel Elliott at this point.
The Dallas Cowboys running back and 2016 rushing leader is under investigation by the NFL — and has been since before last season — over accusations that he abused a woman in February 2016 and again over several days that July. And according to Dan Patrick, NFL owners are pressuring commissioner Roger Goodell to wrap up the investigation and dole out some sort of punishment to Elliott.
“He’s going to get punished for something that happened at Ohio State, he was not charged for it, with sexual assault, but he’s going to be suspended maybe one or two games,” Patrick said on his radio show Thursday, as transcribed by CBSSports.com. “What is happening is other owners are saying to the commissioner, hey, you punished us, make sure you punish the Cowboys here. That’s sort of what’s going on behind the scenes.”
The belief is that Elliott has built a case against himself, too, after a couple of incidents this offseason. The 22-year-old pulled down a woman’s shirt and exposed her breast at a St. Patrick’s Day parade in Dallas and allegedly was involved in an altercation at a bar Sunday, though Dallas police since have suspended that investigation.
Still, if the NFL’s investigation has taken a year at this point, it seems unlikely the league will decide to let Elliott off the hook, even if the suspension is only one game.
Thumbnail photo via Brad Rempel/USA TODAY Sports Images
