An NFL franchise's worst fear is seeing a first-round pick go down early with an injury; just ask Dante Fowler Jr. and the Jacksonville Jaguars. But everyone breathed a sigh of relief when Dallas Cowboys first-rounder Ezekiel Elliott shook of an unintended fall in his first day of minicamp.
Running backs coach Gary Brown admitted that like an overprotective parent he feared the worst when the rookie rusher slipped while making a cut during drills. But Elliott got up as if nothing had happened.
"We don't need that," Brown said. "That's why I told him to slow down a little bit."
Other than that, Elliott made a near flawless first impression on his NFL peers. The 90-minute practice saw the OSU product catch passes, make cuts and impress in individual drills.
"He's obviously got talent and has a good background," offensive coordinator Scott Linehan said. "He got a little head start with some information, emailed him and all that stuff so he could have it. He did a great job of getting himself prepared from a mental standpoint, which shows a lot of his preparation that he probably has a good background in. Those are all really good signs. The talent looks obvious to me. Fun to have him."
The rookie camp still has two more days to go. Next week Elliott will join Dallas' veterans for the second week of on-field teaching sessions. There, Elliott will work alongside fellow running backs Darren McFadden, who rushed for 1,089 yards last season, and Alfred Morris, who has posted three 1,000-yard rushing seasons in his career.
Elliott couldn't be happier to be working with the pros at the NFL level.
"The draft process is crazy with the combine and then the draft part [with] all the traveling and not really having a home," Elliott said. "So it's a relief to finally be able to have a stable environment and do what you love and that's play ball."
Elliott is coming off a season at Ohio State in which he ran for 1,821 yards and 23 touchdowns while averaging 6.3 yards per carry. In 35 career games in school, Elliott scored 44 total touchdowns.
Follow Brandon Katz at @Great_Katzby
