FRISCO, Texas -- Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott knows defenses are going to do everything they can to rip the ball away from him.
In four games, Elliott has fumbled three times, losing two of them that were turned into touchdowns by the Atlanta Falcons and Cleveland Browns.
"That's definitely something that they saw on film, so I know that the defense, they're going to be looking at it more and more," Elliott said. "That's why I have to myself, just focus on it more. I think even if it means being a little bit more conservative while you're running, just protecting the ball. That ball is everything. The fate of the team is that ball. I just got to lock in."
Last week, Elliott's fumble against Cleveland came on his longest run of the season -- a 24-yarder -- on the series after the Browns turned a Dak Prescott fumble into a touchdown. A 14-14 tie turned into a 28-14 deficit.
"It hurts," Elliott said. "I look at myself as a leader of this team and look at myself as a guy that kind of is supposed to help lift the team up when we get down, not be the cause of getting behind. So I just got to get rid of that issue. That can't continue to be something that I do for the rest of the season. I can't give up the ball anymore."
Since coming into the league in 2016, Elliott has the most fumbles lost on runs and catches (18) -- excluding quarterbacks -- losing seven of them. Among the 41 players with at least 500 touches since 2016, he has the seventh-worst rate of touches per fumble, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Elliott loses a fumble every 207.3 times he touches the ball. Baltimore's Mark Ingram loses a fumble every 120.4 touches (eight out of 963).
"No matter what you're doing in a drill or in a team period, making sure the ball does get loose from my body," Elliott said. "Making sure when I go through populated areas, I'm getting two hands on the ball. Just really have to focus in."