Getty Ezekiel Elliott enjoys sharing carries with Tony Pollard.
After the team’s win over the Los Angeles Chargers, Ezekiel Elliott lit up when he was asked about fellow Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard. The Cowboys employed nearly a 50-50 split in carries between backs, but Elliott appeared to be far from angry about sharing the load with Pollard in the team’s win over the Chargers.
“Oh man, I mean, T.P., he ran his tail off today,” Elliott said with a smile during his postgame press conference. “He’s a great back, all-around, can catch it, can run it. He’s smaller, but he runs hard. He breaks a lot of tackles. He had a helluva day. I’m proud of him. I’m glad he went out there and did his thing.”
Elliott had 16 carries for 71 yards and a touchdown while adding two receptions for 26 yards. Pollard had the more impressive statistical day with 13 carries for 109 yards and a touchdown. He also had three receptions for 31 yards as one of the Cowboys’ biggest offensive weapons in Week 2.
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Zeke & Pollard Both Nearly Had More Carries Than the Entire Cowboys Team Did in Week 1
Both running backs nearly topped the total number of carries the Cowboys had against the Bucs in the season opener. The Cowboys ran the ball just 14 times as Elliott led the way with 11 carries for 33 yards in Week 1.
The Cowboys more than doubled their Week 1 rushing attempts as the team leaned heavily on the running backs against the Chargers. Elliott admitted this was part of the team’s game plan as a reaction to the Chargers’ defensive scheme.
“It’s the mentality of their defense, just kind of make you slowly move it down the field, make you grind it out,” Elliott explained. “So, that gave us the opportunity to run the football. The o-line did a helluva job. They were moving those guys off the ball all day. They set the tone.”
Pollard: ‘We Just Wanted to Go With Who Was Hot’
While the Cowboys splitting the workload may not please fantasy players, Pollard admitted the team’s plan was to ride the hot hand against the Chargers. Pollard noted that both he and Elliott “feed off each other” during games.
“We just wanted to go with who was hot,” Pollard told reporters. “We both feed off each other, so if he was hot, we would have just went that way. It just turned out that way for this game, and we got the dub.”
As for a running back controversy, Pollard is not buying the idea. The speedy Cowboys running back emphasized that their first goal with the offense is to help the team win.
“Yeah, we’re good, as long as we’re getting Ws, you know winning, everything’s fine,” Pollard noted.
The Cowboys could have another opportunity to lean on their rushing attack in Week 3 as they take on the Eagles. Through the first two games, Philadelphia ranks No. 17 in rushing defense allowing 120.5 yards per game. Heading into Week 3, there is a three-way tie atop the NFC East with the Cowboys, Washington and Eagles all sitting at 1-1.