Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor. Sam Greene-USA TODAY Sports

Bengals HC Zac Taylor responds to Ezekiel Elliott rumors

By Mike Santa Barbara | Last updated 3/23/23

On Thursday, news broke that former Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott had narrowed the field for his services down to three teams , the Cincinnati Bengals, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Jets.

However, that seems to be news to Bengals head coach Zac Taylor.

Speaking with ABC Cincinnati, Taylor seemed to imply that Elliott's option was more of a wish list.

"There's a lot of great players that are available right now. We like our team where it's at right now," Taylor said. "But it's always fun when things get thrown around. Sometimes it's the first you hear of it."

Bengals coach Zac Taylor addressed the ESPN report that said former Dallas Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott is considering Cincinnati as one of three finalists. Taylor was the keynote speaker tonight for St. Xavier's 39th annual Athletic Hall of Fame Dinner and Induction. @WCPO pic.twitter.com/i0ltmRSm3t
— Mike Dyer (@MikeDyer) March 24, 2023

If the Bengals and Taylor are surprised, so are the Eagles. According to John Clark of NBC Philadelphia, the Eagles haven't had discussions with Elliott and are "happy" with the backs they have.

As long as Joe Mixon is still on the roster, Elliott makes little sense for the Bengals. Meanwhile, the Eagles passed on re-signing the younger Miles Sanders this offseason, meaning they likely don't plan to allocate a lot of cap to the backfield.

As for the Jets, it's hard to believe they'd want to take carries away from the emerging Michael Carter and Breece Hall, who showed potential during an injury-shortened season.

At 27, Elliott can probably contribute to a team as a complementary back. Elliott posted career lows in carries (231), yards (876) and yards per carry (3.8) in 2022, but he still has a nose for the end zone, scoring 12 touchdowns a year ago.

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