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Ezekiel Elliott has been great for the vast majority of the 2016 season, but Sunday marked the moment his MVP campaign kicked into full swing.Elliott scored three touchdowns in the Cowboys dramatic 35-30 win over the Steelers on Sunday, including two in the final two minutes of action. In addition to two rushing scores, he added in an 88-yard touchdown on a screen and finished the day with 209 yards from scrimmage. As many have pointed out, hes one of just three rookie backs to rush for 1,000 yards in his first nine professional games, joining Adrian Peterson and Eric Dickerson.And yet, as great as Elliott undoubtedly is, I keep going back to a number from ESPN Stats & Information. Do you know how many times Elliott was even touched by a Steelers player on his three touchdowns?Zero.Elliott traveled 129 yards from scrimmage on those three plays and never even had to beat an unblocked defender one-on-one. Zeke showed great patience in hitting his hole and accelerating past the flat-footed Robert Golden on his final score, and the Steelers might have been trying to allow Elliott to score on his second touchdown, but one would think Elliott would run into a Steelers defender just based on sheer electric football chance.Theres a third actor in this discussion, and its the reason Elliott went untouched on those plays. The Dallas Cowboys offensive line is as dominant as any unit or any individual player in football on a week-to-week basis. Despite losing Lael Collins to a foot injury, Dallas five-man gang of Tyron Smith, Ronald Leary, Travis Frederick, Zack Martin?and Doug Free has been the backbone of an offensive renaissance in Dallas. The Cowboys are averaging 28.7 points per game, the fourth-best rate in the league, while starting a rookie fourth-rounder at quarterback and missing their star wideout for a large portion of the season. The offensive line is making everybody on this offense look great. They, collectively, deserve serious consideration as league MVP.The question youre probably asking at the end of that paragraph is fair: Can an offensive line actually win the leagues most valuable player award as a crew? The answer isnt entirely clear. The idea was broached several years ago when the Giants had an offensive line which was worthy of similar consideration.Several entities actually hand out MVP awards, but the most familiar one is The Associated Press award, which is revealed as part of the NFL Honors ceremony in February. I asked several members of the electorate whether they would be allowed to vote for positional groups, and while none had in the past, theres apparently nothing in the rules against voting for an entity like the Cowboys offensive line over an individual player. Thats enough for us to consider the possibility.I hesitate to say that a group of offensive linemen will never win the MVP award -- after all, a kicker won the trophy in 1981 -- but the odds are stacked against any offensive lineman getting the credit he deserves, if only because the NFL is terrible at honoring linemen. This isnt a media issue, either. When NFL players voted for this years Top 100 Players list, they ended up including more running backs (10) than offensive linemen (seven) in a game in which teams routinely line up one back behind five linemen. The league pays lip service to the importance of the game in the trenches, but everything else has to go right for a lineman (or linemen) to even garner passing attention for a major award.This is that year. Theres no obvious MVP candidate: My favorites?heading into last week were?Tom Brady and Matt Ryan, both of whom had off nights during their respective teams Week 10 losses to Seattle and Philadelphia, respectively. J.J. Watt, the perennial Defensive Player of the Year candidate, is out for the year, and theres no other transcendent defender sticking out from the pack. Julio Jones deserves consideration, but Elliott is now 75 rushing yards ahead of second-place back DeMarco Murray and 42 yards ahead of David Johnson in the yards from scrimmage race. Hes the most productive player on the leagues winningest team, with the Patriots loss ensuring that Dallas makes it to Week 11 as footballs sole club with eight wins.Elliott is playing his part in the symphony. Among backs with 100 yards or more, Elliott is ninth in the league in average yards before first contact (2.91) and then fourth in the league in yards after first contact (2.16). He has exhibited excellent patience in waiting for his holes to open and elite acceleration when they do clear; many young backs possess the latter, but precious few have the former, especially during their debut season.Hes also being provided with the sorts of running lanes backs dream about getting on a weekly basis, which is why the word untouched comes up a lot after he scores touchdowns. Still images can be misleading, but these are as in-context and fair as I could make them. Lets look at the holes Elliott hit for his two rushing touchdowns against Pittsburgh on Sunday. Heres the first one, which again may have been with the Steelers allowing Elliott to score in an attempt to get the ball back:Theres no safety lurking behind the pile of linemen there, just free room for Elliott to roam. Dak?Prescott checked into this play at the line of scrimmage, killing the pass play called and going instead with a run, and his linemen maul the Steelers. Frederick sustains his block on the nose tackle and pushes him yards to the right, creating the hole for Elliott. Both guards -- Leary and Martin -- get to the second level, with Leary disappearing for a moment before emerging from the void to pancake Ryan Shazier. Theres no hope for the Steelers on this play. There wasnt much of one on the next touchdown, either:Elliotts about to cut behind Smith and burst upfield, where the closest Steelers to him who arent on the ground are 2 yards away and either not moving or moving in the wrong direction. Lawrence Timmons tries to penetrate through the A-gap at the snap, only for Frederick to come out of his stance quickly and push him aside. Smith and Leary cave in the right side of the Steelers front, with Leary driving down nose tackle Javon Hargrave and Smith pancaking Shazier, eliminating the guys with any hope of tackling Elliott at the second level. Tight end Gavin Escobar seals off Jarvis Jones from the edge, and while the Steelers send cornerback Sean Davis on a run blitz out of the slot, he tries to run into the backfield and only turns upfield as Elliott is running by him. Elliotts acceleration comes in handy here -- a lesser back might have been caught from behind -- but the Cowboys basically give him a direct path to the end zone.Ive seen every Elliott run this season, but I went back and specifically watched his touchdowns to see whether this was a frequent pattern. It is. Untouched isnt the right word, and he has had a couple of short-yardage plunges, but the vast majority of the resistance against Elliott on his scores have come within steps of the end zone. Elliott has really had to make only two defenders miss otherwise on his scores, and they were both defensive backs in the Browns game, when Elliott chose to cut outside on running plays.Lets look at some more offensive line magic. Elliott had a 1-yard plunge for a score in the Niners game, but it was set up on the previous play, in which?he ran for 17 yards with a hole big enough to literally fit three Ezekiel Elliotts with room to spare:He scored twice in the Bengals game. Here, on Elliotts first touchdown of the day, the Cowboys fold him a nice little crease for a 13-yard score:The bigger one came later, when Elliott ran untouched for a 60-yard touchdown up the middle. This one is a little more difficult than the still image indicates, as Geno Atkins snuck past the guards and penetrated into the backfield, but Martin does enough to shield Atkins from Elliott, who makes a quick cut immediately after getting the ball to eliminate Atkins from the play. From there, Zeke has a Texas-sized expanse to enjoy:Elliott also shows off his wheels here by accelerating right past George Iloka, who sprints to the spot where he thinks Elliott will be, only to find that Elliott was there a half-second earlier. A replacement-level back -- or even a league-average back -- cant do that. And there are Elliott runs in which he does make people miss, of course. Here he is breaking a tackle in the hole?against the Packers for 29 yards.?For every run like that, though, theres seemingly one like his 23-yarder against the 49ers, in which Elliott patiently waits for Martin to clear out a parking spot before he sprints forward. Elliott deserves credit for setting up the block and selling that he wants to go outside before cutting upfield, of course, but theres a path being plowed for him along the way.Its not just what theyre doing with Elliott, either. The offensive line has done an incredible job in creating a comfortable space for its rookie fourth-round pick, Prescott, to operate. The track record of midround picks as rookies is abysmal, often because theyre forced to make decisions under pressure and usually choose poorly. Prescott hasnt had those problems. The Cowboys have allowed him to spend an average of 2.47 seconds in the pocket before making his throws, which is second in the league behind Tyrod Taylor in Buffalo. Prescotts average throw has come after 2.73 seconds, which is the fourth-longest rate. And while passers around him in those rankings such as Taylor, Aaron Rodgers, Andrew Luck?and Cody Kessler all have sack rates at or well above the league average of 5.6 percent, Prescott is going down on just 4.3 percent of his dropbacks.Dallas previously unheralded rookie signal-caller has been great without having Dez Bryant, his best wide receiver, for a good chunk of the season. Again, as is the case with Elliott, Prescott deserves some of the credit. The Cowboys had mostly the same offensive line last year and werent able to throw the ball with Matt Cassel and Brandon Weeden under center for most of the year, even given how well they pass-protected. At the same time, though, this unit made Darren McFadden look like a great back in 2015, as the former Raider averaged 4.6 yards per carry after mustering just 3.3 yards per attempt in his three previous seasons in Oakland. And they were the focal point of Murrays breakout season in 2014, helping pave the way for him and Tony Romo to enjoy a 12-4 campaign.Murray has been resurgent this year, which actually adds to the aura of what Dallas did in 2014. Murray looked like a monster in Texas and promptly fell to replacement level last year in Philadelphia, as a change in scheme and a far inferior offensive line took their toll during his lone season with the Eagles. Traded to Tennessee, Murray has refound his form behind another great offensive line built around first-round picks. Chance Warmack hasnt really panned out and is on injured reserve, but the Titans found a pair of stars at tackle with top-11 picks Taylor Lewan and Jack Conklin before making an underrated addition in free agency with Houston center Ben Jones. Lewan was ejected from Sundays blowout win over the Packers, but this unit has done an incredible job all year of creating holes for Murray and protecting Marcus Mariota, who is looking like a franchise quarterback again.And theyre not the only ones being defined by the guys up front. Look at the most surprising team in the NFL outside of these Cowboys: The 7-2 Raiders focused their rebuild around the offensive line, choosing to spend gobs of money in free agency in lieu of draft picks. Detroit, now in first place in the NFC North, has three first-rounders and four third-rounders, all on rookie deals, in their offensive line rotation.There are also clear examples of how line play has had a negative impact: The Vikings have gone from 5-0 to 5-4 once their defense stopped forcing takeaways and their offensive line collapsed under injuries and subpar play. Minnesota has been unable to run the ball all year, and over the past four games, Sam Bradford?has been sacked on a league-high 9.2 percent of his dropbacks, including two of the final three offensive snaps in Sundays loss to Washington. If there was ever one, this would be the Year of the Offensive Line.Its tough to talk about this topic in relation to Elliott (and to a lesser extent, Prescott) because its perceived as a slight. Its too easy to make this a binary argument, in which Elliott is either a fraud who is entirely a product of his offensive line or a running genius who would excel behind a blocking sled. Neither argument is fair to any of the parties involved.Its more nuanced. Elliott is not Walt Weiss or Nick Hundley during their days with the Colorado Rockies, taking advantage of the thin air to look like a professional hitter. Hes Larry Walker or Nolan Arenado, a genuine talent placed in the best possible situation for a player to look great.Elliott would be good -- and potentially great -- in other places, although the Murray example in Philadelphia gives us reason to wonder whether any back at all is situation- or line-proof. That alone is an argument against picking a running back to win league MVP. As good as a back like Murray or Elliott can look, we know that theyre too dependent upon scheme and surrounding talent to be the most valuable player in the league. In Dallas, were quickly seeing that the offensive line can do wonders regardless of who takes the football behind it.Frederick and the Dallas O-line arent scheme-dependent. They are the scheme. Fake Nike NFL Jerseys . 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The Tennessee Titans are making believers out of lots of folks.The idea that they could win the AFC South is very much alive after their victory over Denver.Should the Titans come out of Kansas City with another win on Sunday, the question might become are they good enough to not only make the playoffs, but do damage there?With Marcus Mariota showing franchise-quarterback temperament and skills, DeMarco Murray leading a powerful running game behind an improving line, and a stingy run defense, Tennessee seems to be arriving a year early as a contender.Well continue to grow, Mariota says. Theres always areas to improve, but I think its fun to be around a group thats growing and learning at the same time. You can see the confidence throughout the locker room.That confidence has led to a 7-6 record -- Tennessee has won three of four -- and a meaningful final month of the year.Its a fun atmosphere to be a part of. This is what you work all year for is to have an opportunity in December to make a run at the playoffs, Mariota adds.Not only are the Chiefs (10-3) a factor in the AFC West, they could secure a playoff berth with a win and both Miami and Denver either losing or tying, or Denver and Baltimore or Pittsburgh losing.Coach Andy Reids eyes are focused only on the Titans, who knocked off defending Super Bowl champion Denver last week.Theyre hotter than a firecracker right now, Reid says. They play hard, they know what theyre doing. Their defense, Dick LeBeau is a Hall of Famer as a coach and a player. Hes very good at what he does, and the guys look like they believe in what theyre doing.Reid can tie Bill Parcells (183) for 10th on the NFL wins list.The action began Thursday night with Russell Wilson throwing three touchdown passes and Seattle beating Los Angeles 24-3 to win the NFC West title.Wilson was 19 of 26 for 229 yards, and Tyler Lockett had 130 yards receiving with a 57-yard scoring catch. Seattle (9-4-1) claimed its third NFC West title in four seasons, assuring itself of at least one home game in the playoffs.A tumultuous few days for the Rams (4-10) after the firing of Jeff Fisher as head coach culminated in their fifth straight loss and first under interim coach John Fassel.Miami (8-5) at New York Jets (4-9), Saturday nightThe Dolphins have won seven of eight and look to clinch their first winning season since 2008, when they went 11-5 and won the AFC East. Theyll try to stay in the wild-card hunt with veteran backup quarterback Matt Moore after Ryan Tannehill damaged his knee. Center Mike Pouncey also is out, so Miamis defense could be in the spotlight.New York also is using a backup QB, second-year man Bryce Petty in his third start trying out for the position next season. He led the Jets to a nice comeback OT win at San Francisco to break a four-game slide.Tampa Bay (8-5) at Dallas (11-2)This game was flexed to prime time and with good reason. Yes, the Cowboys had their 11-game win streak snapped by the Giants, the only team to beat them in 2016, but they still have the NFC East and the overall top seed in the conference in sight.The division belongs to Dallas if it wins and the Giants dont, or it ties and the Giants lose. Home-field advantage comes if the Cowboys win and the Giants tie the Lions.Tampa has won five straight; the previous time that happened, the Bucs won the NFL title in 2002. They have an NFL-high 10 interceptions in those five games. On offense, Jameis Winston to Mike Evans has been a top combination, and Doug Martin is averaging 102 yards from scrimmage in his past 13 road games.Yes, the Bucs might have the players to match up with Dallas star rookies, RB Ezekiel Elliott, the NFLs leading rusher, and QB Zak Prescott .Detroit (9-4) at New York Giants (9-4)Two more teams in the heart of the NFC chase, though the Lions are in a stronger spot. They lead the North and can secure a position if they win and the Packers dont, or if they tie and both the Packers and Vikings lose.A playoff berth is within a lengthy reach for the Giants. They must win and have Washington lose, Minnesota and Green Bay both lose or tie. They still can grab the NFC East if they stay hot and Dallas slumps.If this one is close, as it figures to be -- both teams rarely have lopsided contests, with Detroit winning eight times despite trailing in the fourth period -- watch out for Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr. His game-breaking skills were on display in the 10-7 victory over Dallas last Sunday night.Oakland (10-3) at San Diego (5-8)OK, Raiders fans, here are some words youve been waiting to hear since Rich Gannon took you to the Super Bowl in 2002: Oakland makes the playoffs with a win.Tied for the lead in the AFC West (Kansas City holds the tiebreaker), the Raiders also can get in without a win, but that requires lots of help.San Diego is playing out the string, perhaps on the field for the penultimate time in Qualcomm Stadium. The Chargers soon must exercise their option to move to Los Angeles, and any stadium deals to remain in San Diego appear to be a long shot.New England (11-2) at Denver (8-5)As usual, the Patriots are pushing for the AFCs best record. With a win they would become the first team in NFL history with eight consecutive division titles.While they cant clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs this weekend, they could grab the East simply by MMiami not beating the Jets.dddddddddddd A first-round bye comes with a Patriots win, too.Denver has not been one of Tom Bradys favorite places. The Broncos are the only team Brady has a losing record against: 6-9, 2-7 in Denver, including two losses last season, the second for the AFC championship. And the Broncos still have that strong defense.But Denvers offense has sputtered badly and cant afford a shootout with New England.For the Broncos to have a chance to repeat as champs, they must negotiate the toughest closing trio of opponents: New England, Kansas City and Oakland.Green Bay (7-6) at Chicago (3-10)Pro footballs longest rivalry could be deadlocked if Green Bay wins and keeps its playoff hopes breathing. Chicago leads 94-93-6, but the Packers have won six in a row at Soldier Field. Their defense has come alive in a three-game win streak that revitalized Cheeseheads everywhere.Aaron Rodgers is 14-4 against the Bears, including postseason. He leads the NFL with 32 TD passes, but hurt his right calf last week and missed some practice time.The Bears get back WR Alshon Jeffery from a four-game suspension for violating the leagues policy against performance enhancers.Indianapolis (6-7) at Minnesota (7-6)After falling at home to Houston in a first-place matchup, the Colts stagger into Minnesota, where the Vikings are barely in contention as well.Colts RB Frank Gore needs 77 yards from scrimmage to pass Tony Dorsett for 10th on the career list.Adrian Peterson told Dash Radio on Friday that he plans to return to the Minnesota Vikings backfield after missing 11 games with a torn meniscus in his right knee. Peterson had targeted next week against Green Bay for his return.Jacksonville (2-11) at Houston (7-6)Houston is tied with Tennessee for the AFC South lead. Its defense has made the difference recently, which is impressive considering its star player, J.J. Watt, has been sidelined for months.The Jaguars have lost eight straight, while Houston has won nine in a row in the division. Mismatch?San Francisco (1-12) at Atlanta (8-5)Doesnt look as if we need the question mark after mismatch for this one.The 49ers blew a big lead to the Jets, of all opponents, and havent won since their opener. Their defense is a sieve and now they take on Atlantas high-powered offense.Sure, the 49ers have won the past three games in this series, but those were different teams, different times.Falcons QB Matt Ryan is having his best season and Atlanta hopes to have back top receivers Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu.Falcons linebacker Vic Beasley is tied for the NFL lead with 13+ sacks and leads with six forced fumbles.Pittsburgh (8-5) at Cincinnati (5-7-1)The Bengals advertised tickets available for this one, so look for thousands of Terrible Towels to wave at Paul Brown Stadium. The Steelers feel comfortable there anyway, having taken the past three and six of seven, including that 18-16 wild-card playoff last January when penalties on Bengals LB Vontaze Burfict and CB Adam Pacman Jones set up Pittsburghs winning field goal in the final seconds.Pittsburghs offense is in gear behind RB LeVeon Bell, who set a club record with 236 yards rushing last week at Buffalo. WR Antonio Brown needs seven catches for a fourth straight season with 100, while Ben Roethlisberger and Brown have combined for 49 TDs, tied with Terry Bradshaw and Lynn Swann for the most in team history.Philadelphia (5-8) at Baltimore (7-6)Baltimore cant afford to stumble here and have a reasonable shot at the postseason. The Eagles are 1-6 on the road, with six losses in a row. Baltimore has the NFLs best defense in home games, allowing an average of 250.6 yards and 13.1 points.Perfection didnt suit Ravens placekicker Justin Tucker, who had a field goal blocked in the loss to New England, his first miss of any kind this season.Carolina (5-8) at Washington (7-5-1), Monday nightCornerback Josh Normans chance to meet up with the team that franchise-tagged him, then removed it and allowed him to head to the nations capital.Carolina has won four straight in the series. Washington struggles against tight ends, so watch for Panthers standout Greg Olsen.Redskins LB Ryan Kerrigan has 11 sacks and presents a major threat to Cam Newton.Cleveland (0-13) at Buffalo (6-7)Ah yes, the winless Browns. Only three teams have gone 0-14. Cleveland hasnt tasted victory in a calendar year.Not to be outdone in the grand scheme of failure the Bills have lost two straight and are in jeopardy of extending the NFLs longest active playoff drought to 17 seasons -- the worst since New Orleans ended a 20-year streak in 1987.New Orleans (5-8) at Arizona (5-7-1)Few teams have been more disappointing this season than the Cardinals, who played for the NFC title in January. They play out the string now, with only RB David Johnsons accomplishments worth noting. He joined Edgerrin James as the only players to have at least 100 yards from scrimmage in the first 13 games of a season. No one has done it for the first 14.New Orleans and Jacksonville are the only teams not to have a winning record at any point in the past three seasons. Not the company you want to keep.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '