Getty Tony Pollard, Cowboys RB
If this was supposed to be the Tony Pollard breakout year for the Dallas Cowboys, we’re still waiting for the breakout to come to fruition. After the Cowboys let Ezekiel Elliott walk in free agency in March, the expectation was the Pollard would rack up mega-numbers as the sole focus of the Dallas running attack. And while there have been some bright moments, Pollard has not been the star back it seemed he would be entering the year.
And he concedes that point. An NFL Pro Bowler last year when playing off Elliott, Pollard has been an average back as a solo act. He expected that there would be more—but is careful to not come across as complaining.
“Probably I thought I would have a better year than I am now. But where we are as far as playoffs and rankings, I couldn’t complain. Everything is in front of us,” Pollard said after practice this week.
Cowboys Running Game Has Been Middle-of-the-Pack
It is not all on Tony Pollard, of course. The Cowboys have had struggles with the running game that probably would have affected even the best backs in the NFL. There have been injuries and inconsistency along the offensive line, and if Pollard’s numbers are flagging, it is in part because running games all over the NFL are flagging.
It might feel like the Cowboys struggle with the run, but in fact, they have totaled 1,789 yards rushing, 14th in the NFL. They’re middle of the pack.
Pollard is at 935 yards, which gives him a shot at cracking 1,000 yards in Week 18. He had 1,007 yards last season. But his yards per attempt dropped from 5.1 to 4.0, and his yards per reception have gone from 8.3 down to 5.6.
“That’s an OK year for me. But I just hold myself to a higher standard,” Pollard said. “I try to be my hardest critique and hardest judge before anyone else can. So I’m always hard on myself.”
The Cowboys have gone for 4,088 yards in the passing game, which is fourth in the NFL, and lead the league with 32 passing touchdowns. The more the passing game is rolling, the fewer reps Pollard gets.
“I would say just going with what we were hot at, at those moments,” he said. “Obviously, the past few weeks, the passing game has been back clicking on all cylinders so just taking advantages of the defenses when they leave guys open, in one-on-ones with mismtaches.”
Emmitt Smith: Tony Pollard ‘Can Be a Great Back’
Part of the issue is, also, the way coach Mike McCarthy uses Pollard, who has speed and operates well in space. He can’t be used the same way as a punisher like Elliott. Cowboys Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith called out McCarthy earlier in the year for how he used Pollard.
McCarthy did not seem to take the advice.
For all the Tony Pollard naysayers: “Have you ever sat in the #1 seat?”
@EmmittSmith22 gave A TON of love to Tony Pollard, and emphasized how Mike McCarthy is not creating opportunities for him
“Tony Pollard, given the right opportunities can be a great back,” Smith told Kay Adams of the “Up and Adams” podcast. “Right now, defenses are gearing up to stop one person, Tony Pollard, in the run game. Therefore, they focus in on him week in and week out like they did with Ezekiel Elliott, and that’s slowing down his running game, and McCarthy is only enhancing [the problem] by not creating opportunities for Pollard to get the ball in certain spaces. That’s McCarthy.”
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Cowboys’ Tony Pollard Makes Stark Confession on 2023 Season