Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott skips training camp start with 2 years left on contract

Ezekiel Elliott is holding out of training camp with the Dallas Cowboys with two years remaining on the rookie contract of the two-time NFL rushing champ.

Owner and general manager Jerry Jones said on reporting day at camp Friday that Elliott was officially a “non-report.” The Cowboys conducted physicals and conditioning tests in Oxnard, California. The first practice is set for Saturday. Jones wouldn’t say whether the Cowboys are negotiating with Elliott’s representatives.

Elliott went through the entire offseason program without any issues but didn’t get on the team’s flight to California on Thursday and failed to report a day later. One of his representatives didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment.

The 24-year-old Elliott is due to make $3.9 million in the fourth year of his contract and $9.1 million in the final year, which is a team option. The fourth overall pick from the 2016 draft has won two rushing titles in his three seasons.

The missing Elliott is an unwanted development for a team hoping to get past the divisional round of the playoffs for the first time since the last of the franchise’s five Super Bowl titles during the 1995 season.