Cowboys To Sign Alfred Morris
As Ezekiel Elliott stays away from Cowboys camp, the team will bring back one of his former backups. Alfred Morris has agreed to rejoin the Cowboys, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
Morris was scheduled to visit the Saints, but it looks like he found a more enticing offer with one of his former teams. Morris, 30, played in 28 games for the Cowboys from 2016-17. He closed his first Dallas stint by averaging 4.8 yards per carry for the 2017 Cowboys.
The Cowboys have exchanged proposals with their holdout back, but Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News notes (via Twitter) the last such numbers were discussed July 25. In the meantime, Morris will serve as by far the most experienced backfield option the Cowboys have.
They lost recent Elliott backup Rod Smith to the Giants and drafted both Tony Pollard (Round 4) and Mike Weber (Round 7) this year. Both Pollard and third-year back Darius Jackson (six career carries since being a sixth-round 2016 Cowboys pick) took reps with Dallas’ first-string offense Monday.
Last season, Morris was a late-summer 49ers addition, heading west after Jerick McKinnon tore an ACL. Morris rushed for 428 yards (3.9 per carry) as a 49er. He was the Cowboys’ primary runner during Elliott’s 2017 suspension. While Morris is far removed from his best seasons, two Pro Bowls with the Redskins from 2013-14, he should be relatively fresh. He has taken just 295 handoffs over the past three seasons. And this deal represents some Elliott insurance, with the Cowboys unlikely to carry five tailbacks on their Week 1 53-man roster.
Eric Berry Remains On Cowboys’ Radar
Throughout the 2018 offseason, the Cowboys were connected to Earl Thomas. They eventually offered a second-round pick for him. But Dallas used Jeff Heath and Xavier Woods as its starting safeties last season. Although the Cowboys signed George Iloka and drafted Donovan Wilson in the sixth round, the Heath-Woods duo remains atop the depth chart.
The team, however, continues to examine other options. Cowboys VP of player personnel Will McClay said during an appearance on 1310 The Ticket (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Jon Machota) the Cowboys continue to monitor the status of Eric Berry but reiterated the team believes in its starters and the depth it has assembled.
Berry visited the Cowboys and received some interest from the Browns. Other than that, it has been a quiet offseason for the three-time first-team All-Pro. (Berry and Thomas are the only active safeties to appear on the top All-Pro team three times.) Two years after signing Berry to the then-richest safety contract, the Chiefs cut their longest-tenured defender amid a defensive overhaul. The 30-year-old defender has played in just two of the past 31 regular-season games, having seen Achilles and heel problems sidetrack his career.
Woods and Heath were first-stringers throughout last season, with only two Woods injury absences breaking up the tandem. Pro Football Focus graded Woods as a middle-of-the-pack safety while slotting Heath toward the bottom of that list. The Cowboys rated as Football Outsiders’ No. 16 pass defense DVOA outfit.
Latest On Cowboys, Ezekiel Elliott
The rumors Ezekiel Elliott had plans to leave the country proved accurate, with the All-Pro running back now in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. Elliott is using this time to train, doing so with multiple other NFL players, one of those being former Giant Orleans Darkwa, per Hill (on Twitter).
Elliott trained in Cabo during his 2017 suspension. He is now doing so as part of a holdout. Elliott’s camp does not view training out of the country as different than the Cowboys using Oxnard, Calif., as their camp site, Hill adds. Some members of Cowboys brass, as could be expected, do and believe this is a bad look for Elliott. Jason Garrett said recently he expected Elliott to be at camp.
The disgruntled running back has two years remaining on his contract, after the Cowboys picked up his fifth-year option, but has evidently not seen enough progress in extension talks to risk showing up for camp. Jerry Jones does not appear ready to budge soon.
“The point there is, you don’t have to have a rushing champion to win a Super Bowl. … Emmitt (Smith) was the first one to do it,” Jones said, via CBS DFW. “That’s one of the dilemmas at running back is that the league knows that you can win Super Bowls and not have the Emmitt Smith back there or not have Zeke back there.”
Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones said earlier this offseason an Elliott extension would likely start at Todd Gurley‘s price, calling him “the straw that stirs the drink.” But the team has yet to finalize contracts with Dak Prescott or Amari Cooper. Elliott indeed looks to want Gurley money (four years, $57.5MM, $45MM guaranteed). The Cowboys still have this trio, La’el Collins and Byron Jones as players either holding out or in contract years.
“You’ve gotta do all of the things along with having Zeke that allow you to have other players so that you can win the Super Bowl,” Jerry Jones said. “That’s what we’re going through.”
If Elliott does not report by August 6, he will lose a season toward free agency. Aaron Donald did not let that deadline stop his 2017 holdout, but the Rams superstar also plays a more valuable position. Elliott, though, holds a key stake in the Cowboys’ offense and has accumulated a historic workload through three seasons (NFL-high 1,003 touches since 2016). Staying out of that picture undoubtedly weakens the defending NFC East champions.
This offseason has not seen the progress the summer of 2018 made at the running back spot, when Gurley and David Johnson received market-reshaping deals. The Elliott and Melvin Gordon holdouts, aimed at the Pro Bowlers joining the NFC West duo and Le’Veon Bell as eight-figure-AAV players, have no end in sight.
Lawrence Targeting Season Opener For Return
- Cowboys defensive end Demarcus Lawrence held off on shoulder surgery until after he inked his new deal this offseason. The star pass-rusher is targeting the season opener vs. the Giants for when he will get back on the field,” Pro Football Talk’s Charean Williams writes. “I’m not saying I’m going to overload my workload for the season opener or what they want to do with me or have me off the PUP list by the season opener, but hopefully be ready by the season opener.”
Cowboys Had Talks With Zeke's Agent
- Speaking of players looking to get paid, Ezekiel Elliott is remaining away from the Cowboys as he seeks a new deal. Head coach Jason Garrett had said he expected Elliott to show up on time, but then he didn’t. The good news is the two sides are apparently still talking. The Cowboys “held contract discussions with Elliott’s agent” on Thursday night, a source told Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News. Unfortunately the conversation didn’t lead anywhere, as Watkins reports that “talks remain stale.” Elliott is reportedly looking to eclipse the deal Todd Gurley got from the Rams, and it’s unclear if the Cowboys are going to meet that asking price. Dallas has a lot on their plate with extensions due for several players, and it’ll be interesting to watch how this unfolds.
Injury Notes: Brown, Luck, Gore, Watt, Jones, Lawrence
Here’s the latest on all the injuries to big names as training camps get underway across the league:
- There was a brief uproar earlier when it was mysteriously announced that Antonio Brown would start camp on the Raiders’ non-football injury list. However, the as of now undisclosed issue that caused Brown to be placed on the NFI was described to Field Yates of ESPN as “very minor” (Twitter link). Further, Jerry McDonald of the Oakland Tribune tweets that the Raiders have known of the injury for two weeks, and that Brown will probably only miss a week of camp time. Despite the initial panic, it doesn’t sound like this is anything you need to monitor going forward.
- Andrew Luck was sidelined by a calf injury during the Colts’ offseason program, which sparked some concerns about his Achilles. However, Luck told Tom Pelissero of NFL Network today “my Achilles is not at extra risk of anything. It’s fine” (Twitter link). In a separate tweet, Pelissero notes Luck participated in team drills today, and that his limited workload has only been precautionary.
- Speaking of the NFI, Bills GM Brandon Beane said that running back Frank Gore has been removed from it, per longtime Bills beat reporter Joe Buscaglia (Twitter link). Gore had been dealing with a minor injury, but has passed his physical and is cleared to practice. Gore will be competing for carries in a crowded Buffalo backfield that also features LeSean McCoy and rookie Devin Singletary.
- J.J. Watt started camp on the Texans’ PUP list, but he’s now been removed and cleared to practice, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Watt was limited to just eight combined games in 2016 and 2017 due to injuries, but he played a full 16-game slate last year. Watt wasn’t the only Texan to get cleared, as James Palmer of NFL Network tweets that DeAndre Hopkins was also cleared and activated from PUP.
- Byron Jones, DeMarcus Lawrence, Tyrone Crawford and Noah Brown will start camp on the PUP list for the Cowboys, according to Todd Archer of ESPN.com. Fortunately, Dallas is expecting all of them to be ready for the start of the season. Lawrence had offseason shoulder surgery, Jones had surgery on his hip, and Crawford is also dealing with a hip injury. Last we heard, there had been no progress in extension talks between the team and Jones.
Latest On Cowboys, Ezekiel Elliott
Ezekiel Elliott was not on hand for Cowboys training camp on Friday. With that, Elliott will be subject to substantial fines, though it’s not certain as to whether the Cowboys will look to collect from their star running back (Twitter link via Jane Slater of NFL.com). 
Meanwhile, Elliott is looking for a deal that would exceed Todd Gurley‘s four-year $57.5MM pact with the Rams, Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) hears. If the Cowboys give him a deal to match, the Cowboys could eventually have three players (including quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver Amari Cooper) among the top three salaries at their position.
Last season, Elliott posted 1,434 yards and six touchdowns on the ground while adding 77 receptions, 567 yards, and three scores in the passing game. Of course, Elliott also ran behind one of the NFL’s better offensive lines, and only ranked 18th in Football Outsiders’ success rate.
Coach Jason Garrett has said that he expects Elliott to report to camp, but, so far, there’s no sight of No. 21.
Dolphins To Host Allen Hurns
Wide receiver Allen Hurns is healthy and will visit the Dolphins on Thursday, a source tells ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). The Cowboys are still interested in bringing him back as well, Schefter hears. 
The Cowboys released Hurns earlier this week when he declined to accept a pay cut. Presumably, the Cowboys would only be interested in bringing him back on a cheaper deal with little or no guarantees.
The Dolphins, meanwhile, could use some depth to support their top quartet of DeVante Parker, Kenny Stills, Albert Wilson, and Jakeem Grant. Hurns, who once caught 64 passes for 1,031 yards and ten touchdowns for another Florida team, could represent a low-risk, high-upside addition for the Fins.
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/24/19
Here are today’s minor moves, which feature a few recognizable names:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: WR/RS Jaydon Mickens, G Norman Price, DL Bijhon Jackson
- Waived: RB Elijah Hood, G Ian Silberman, DT Elijah Qualls
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: QB Taryn Christion
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: C Daniel Munyer, RB Aca’Cedric Ware
- Waived: DE Dadi Nicolas, G Nico Siragusa
Kansas City Chiefs
- Released: TE Neal Sterling
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: RB Derrick Gore
Miami Dolphins
- Waived: LB Jayrone Elliott
New York Giants
- Claimed: WR Da’Mari Scott
- Released: CB Tony Lippett
- Signed: TE Isaiah Searight
- Waived: TE Eric Dungey
New York Jets
- Signed: TE Temuchin Hodges (formerly known as Bucky Hodges)
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DL Damontre Moore
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: TE Troy Niklas
- Waived: WR Xavier Ubosi
Jason Garrett Expects Ezekiel Elliott To Report To TC
Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett expects running back Ezekiel Elliott to report to training camp and is not anticipating a holdout, as Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News tweets.
It’s uncertain whether Garrett has any inside information or if this is just coach-speak. In any event, Elliott’s reporting would be a welcome development for the Cowboys, who are contemplating a future without Elliott but who obviously want Zeke to be a focal point of their offense for at least 2019. Elliott, for his part, must report to camp by August 6 in order to earn an accrued season towards free agency.
A report last week indicated that Elliott was considering a holdout, and although we heard at the time that the situation could go sideways in a hurry, we also heard that the relationship between player and team had not yet become strained and that the two sides were still working towards an agreement. However, another report on Saturday suggested that Elliott was planning to leave the country this week, and it’s unclear how long he was planning on being away.
It’s also unclear if Dallas and Elliott’s camp have made any progress towards an extension. The Cowboys do not seem to be close to striking a long-term pact with any of their extension-eligible standouts, but if Elliott does report, at least they could avoid a little drama.