Ezekiel Elliott Has Offered To Pay For The Funeral Of Slain Middle School Football Phenomenon Jaylon McKenzie

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If you ever played competitive sports in your younger days, there’s little doubt you at one point found yourself facing an opponent who was almost unfairly talented—the kind of kid you see play and immediately know he’s going to go places that you probably never will.

By most accounts, Jaylon McKenzie was one of those kids. Last year, the 14-year-old, three-position football player from Illinois was dubbed one of the best young prospects in the country by Sports Illustrated and was at the receiving end of scholarship offers from both the University of Missouri and the University of Illinois despite still being in middle school.

McKenzie had dreams of one day playing professional football in Los Angeles but things heartbreakingly came crashing down over the weekend when the phenom was struck and killed by a stray bullet while attending a party after a fight broke out.

There was an outpouring of grief and support for McKenzie and his family following his death from people in his community and beyond—including Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott, who has offered to pay for the funeral of the fallen prospect (he was raised in the same area McKenzie was from).

https://twitter.com/BenRogers/status/1125930587787866113

Elliott has plenty of critics out there for a variety of reasons, but regardless of how you feel about him, you have to admit he seems like a pretty damn good guy (he also helped comfort a fan who got hit by a hockey puck at a recent Stars game).

I can’t imagine what McKenzie’s family is going through but I’m glad to know Elliott is doing what he can to make their toughest time a bit easier.