Tom E. Curran shares his instant reaction to the Patriots adding Ezekiel Elliott to the roster and what he can add to New England’s offense. Then, Phil Perry shares his thoughts on potential downsides to signing the veteran running back.
Ezekiel Elliott is the newest member of the New England Patriots, but his first action with his new team may not come in Foxboro.
The veteran running back is signing a one-year contract with the Patriots, our Phil Perry confirmed Monday. Elliott confirmed the news on social media and even showed off his new No. 15 Patriots on Instagram, so it sounds like he's ready to hit the ground running.
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There's one twist, however: The Patriots are traveling to Green Bay on Tuesday for joint practices with the Packers on Wednesday and Thursday ahead of their preseason matchup Saturday night at Lambeau Field. So, Elliott would need to travel to New England on Tuesday to sign his new contract, then turn right around and join the team in Green Bay.
According to NFL Media's Ian Rapoport -- as confirmed by our Phil Perry -- that's exactly what Elliott plans to do.
The Patriots place extra importance on joint practices, arguably viewing them as more important than preseason games because Bill Belichick and the coaching staff can put their players in a variety of simulated game situations against another opponent. Elliott already will be playing catch-up after missing the first two weeks of training camp, so the Patriots probably wanted to make sure he could practice with them in Green Bay this week to get up to speed.
That explains why Elliott and New England reached an agreement Monday. The Patriots may have wanted to wait out the market on the 28-year-old running back, but waiting any longer would have put him even further behind the eight-ball in terms of learning the offense.
So, Belichick and Co. are striking now. And with backup running backs Pierre Strong and Ty Montgomery battling injuries, Elliott could see work right away alongside No. 1 back Rhamondre Stevenson and second-year Kevin Harris.
