Rushing Leader Ezekiel Elliott Named FedEx Ground NFL Player Of The Year

Feb 04, 2017 at 01:30 PM

Rob Phillips

DallasCowboys.com Senior Writer

Dak Prescott insisted Ezekiel Elliott share the stage with him at NFL Honors as he accepted the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

Elliott received an award of his own Saturday night, showing just how impactful the Cowboys' rookies were during a terrific 13-win season for the franchise that drafted them.

The NFL's 2016 rushing leader was named the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Year, recognizing his contributions to the league's fifth-ranked offense.

Atlanta's Matt Ryan won the FedEx Air NFL Player of the Year award.

A first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl selection, Elliott rushed for a league-best 1,631 yards with 15 touchdowns, third-best in the league and the most by a Cowboys running back since Emmitt Smith's 25 in 1995. He did not play in the team's regular-season finale and finished 178 yards shy of Eric Dickerson's 1983 rookie rushing record.

Elliott won the FedEx Ground Player of the Week award in Weeks 4 and 5, when he rushed for a combined 272 yards and three touchdowns in Cowboys wins over the San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals.

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