LANDOVER, MD - DECEMBER 15: Landon Collins #20 of the Washington Redskins warms up before the game against the Philadelphia Eagles at FedExField on December 15, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)Landon Collins is one of the more feared safeties in the NFL. The Alabama product has three Pro Bowl berths in five years, and is entering his second with the Washington Redskins.
We’re all looking for the ways to pass the time here as we’re home quarantining. The Redskins hosted a Q&A on Twitter, with the 2016 First-Team All-Pro fielding questions from fans. One of them pertains to the league’s running backs.
The NFC East may have had some down seasons, but there’s good running back talent in the division. The Dallas Cowboys have Ezekiel Elliott. Collins’ former team, the New York Giants, drafted Saquon Barkley two years ago, who has quickly become one of the league’s best.
For Collins, Zeke is the toughest to face in the NFL. He revealed as much this afternoon, answering the question from a fan. He’s put up some pretty solid numbers against teams featuring Collins on defense.
Zeke in my opinion https://t.co/weqnHlqaFd
— LANDON COLLINS (@TheHumble_21) March 31, 2020
Ezekiel Elliott is 4-2 in six games against Collins’ Giants and Redskins teams. In those appearances, he has 126 carries for 573 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 4.55 yards per carry. He topped 100 yards times four of the six appearances.
He’s actually missed a number of matchups in that time frame, so it could certainly be worse for Landon Collins’ teams, given what a bell cow back he’s proven to be for the Cowboys.
It could actually be a college game that really informs his opinion of Elliott, though. In the 2014 College Football Playoff semifinal, Zeke had one of the best running back performances in recent memory against Collins and the Crimson Tide defense. He ran for 230 yards and two scores in that Sugar Bowl, including an 85-yard touchdown run to put Ohio State up 42-28, a play that is now known as “85 yards through the heart of the South.” The Buckeyes would hold on to win 42-35.
Assuming the NFL plays as scheduled, the two should meet up twice more as division rivals this fall.
