Q.Elephant Ear Care
One can generally foresee with a little experience that, when a drooping EE leaf is too far gone to recover with care. Once I see a leaf at that point, should I just go ahead and cut the stalk back, or should I allow a certain amount of wilting before I actually make the cut?

It depends on how many leaves are on the plant. If you have lots of leaves, sure go ahead and remove the leaf. If the plant only has a few leaves, I would leave the leaf in place.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/bulbs/elephant-ear/elephant-ear-brown-edges.htm