5 NFL Stats to Know Through Week 16

Ezekiel Elliott Leads the League With 23.9 Rushing Attempts per Game

Following his six-game suspension, Ezekiel Elliott returned in Week 16 to rush 24 times for 97 yards, with another 21 yards on four catches. It was his ninth game this year with more than 20 carries, making him one of just four running backs this season to average more than 20.0 per game. And none of those other three players are within 2.4 carries per game of Elliott.

Amazingly, the only game in which Elliott did not see at least 20 carries was his Week 2 meeting with the Denver Broncos, in which he was handed the ball just 9 times. If we take that game out of consideration, Elliott's average would skyrocket to 25.8 carries per game.

He has turned his heavy usage into an average of 97.8 rushing yards per game, and needs just 120 more yards to reach 1,000 even with his shortened season. That task will not be made easy with a Week 17 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, who are giving up the fewest (75.9) rushing yards per game of any team this season. But in Elliott's absence, his teammate Alfred Morris did turn 17 carries into 91 rushing yards when these two teams first met earlier this season.