What ‘Surprised’ NFL Insider About Ezekiel Elliott-Patriots Talks

As time went on, it started to feel more and more like Ezekiel Elliott would not land with the Patriots.

This wasn’t the thought toward the end of July when New England hosted Elliott for a free-agent visit. The Patriots had a hole in their backfield, and Elliott is the kind of veteran bruiser New England needed.

But more than two weeks went by after Elliott’s trip to Foxboro, and the 2016 first-round pick remained unsigned. It wasn’t until Wednesday morning that Elliott finalized his one-year deal with the Patriots, who now boast one of the more talented running back tandems in the league.

The time between the initial meeting and signed papers surprised ESPN’s Kimberley A. Martin, who heard only good things about Elliott’s Patriots visit.

“This was similar to Dalvin (Cook),” Martin said Tuesday on “Get Up.” “The moment he went to New England, people thought, ‘Oh, he’s going to sign with the Patriots.’ He had a visit, it went great — even went to dinner with Mac Jones, Rhamondre Stevenson. I had heard from players, like, ‘Oh, yeah. He’s about to sign.’ So, it was surprising he left the building without a deal. But it was always the thought: New England will get him, it’s just a matter of when.”

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick reportedly has long been an admirer of Elliott, who ran for a combined 8,262 yards across his first seven NFL seasons. The three-time Pro Bowl selection no longer is the game-changing player he once was with the Dallas Cowboys, but he has a chance to be a very important piece of the Patriots offense.

Belichick and company can start integrating Elliott this week when New England meets the Packers for a pair of joint practices and a preseason game in Green Bay.