Ezekiel Elliott vs Dalvin Cook: Which newly signed RB is a better pick in 2023 fantasy football?

Ezekiel Elliott and Dalvin Cook were both released by their former teams during the 2023 NFL offseason. After spending weeks in free agency, they both signed contracts to join new teams at basically the same time.

Elliott has officially joined the New England Patriots and Cook signed with the New York Jets.

Changing teams will almost always have a major impact on a player's fantasy football value, for better or for worse. They will be playing in a new offensive scheme and with a much different roster around them. It's also unclear what their workload will look like as they establish their place on the depth chart and in the game plan.

Both Ezekiel Elliott and Dalvin Cook have been among the best running backs in fantasy football during their best years in the NFL. Much has been made about Elliott's regression with the Dallas Cowboys over the last two seasons, but he has remained relevant in fantasy football. This includes being a touchdown vulture as a short-yardage specialist.

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Ezekiel Elliott's projected role with the Patriots

Ezekiel Elliott

This particular role of short-yardage plays, including in the red zone, should carry over with Elliott to the Patriots. Bill Belichick has been known to prefer a committee approach to his running back position.

Ezekiel Elliott played RB2 to Tony Pollard with the Dallas Cowboys last year, so he's already comfortable with sharing a backfield.

Elliott should slot in right behind featured back Rhamondre Stevenson now that Damien Harris has departed for the Buffalo Bills. Harris averaged more than ten touches per game when healthy last year, so Elliott has a clear path to offensive usage.

If he can turn his touches into touchdowns, as he did with the Cowboys, he holds fantasy football value in 2023.

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Dalvin Cook's projected role with the Jets

Dalvin Cook

Dalvin Cook has been a workhorse for the Minnesota Vikings. He has dominated their backfield touches over the last four years to be among the league leaders in rushing yards. He's also been among the most productive fantasy football running backs during that time.

The veteran will enter a much different situation with the Jets this year. He's expected to be a part of a shared backfield for the first time in his career. He also may need to play a backup role for the first time ever. The Jets are crowded at the position, including promising prospect Breece Hall, among three other legitimate options for touches.

How the Jets will split the workload out of their backfield during the 2023 NFL season is still completely unknown. The one thing that's certain for Cook is that he won't dominate the touches like he did with the Vikings, even if he's named the starter. He's highly likely to take a step back in fantasy football this year, but just how much is yet to be seen.

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Ezekiel Elliott's ADP makes him more valuable than Dalvin Cook in 2023 fantasy football drafts

Dalvin Cook is listed as the 27th running back and 65th overall player in 2023 fantasy football drafts, according to his current ADP. By comparison, Ezekiel Elliott is the 49th running back and 158th overall player.

This means while Cook is still being selected between the 6th and 7th rounds in most fantasy drafts, Elliott is often available in the late stages of drafts beyond the 12th round.

Their projected roles with their new teams, along with their current ADP, gives Elliott significantly more relative value. He registered a solid 968 total yards and 12 touchdowns last year in what is likely to be a similar role. He's quietly becoming a late-round sleeper in 2023 fantasy football, while Cook has legitimate bust potential at his current ADP.