Can Dallas Cowboys' Tony Pollard Win NFL Rushing Title?
This season marks the first time in Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard's career that he's not splitting carries. Could more touches vault him to the very top of the NFL - all the way up to winning a rushing title?
In each of his first three years, the Cowboys 2019 fourth-round pick waited behind former star back Ezekiel Elliott. Over that stretch, Pollard posted 317 carries and 1,609 rushing yards, while Elliott doubled both of those categories (782 carries for 3,338 yards) as the lead back.
However, last season Pollard began taking the reins in Dallas, posting career-bests in rushing yards (1,007) and rushing touchdowns (nine), while still carrying the ball 38 less times than his counterpart.
But now with the three-time Pro Bowler off the roster, Pollard has the opportunity to take it up a notch further in this year.
"Pollard's 5.9 yards per touch led the NFL among players with at least 200 in 2022, but he still had 16 fewer than the declining Elliott, whose 3.9 yards per touch was dead last in the league among players with at least 200 last season," CBS Sports writes. "If Pollard can maintain a similar yards-per-touch average on a higher workload, he could play like one of the best running backs in the entire league in 2023."
We will go a bit beyond that: If Pollard truly combines the aforementioned numbers? That's not just Pro Bowl stuff' that's rushing-champ stuff. ... and of course, the Cowboys know their way around that hallowed ground, as Emmitt Smith won four such titles, Zeke two of them, and DeMarco Murray one.
"One of the league's best running backs''? "Rushing champ''? That all may seem like a tall task, but doesn't seem out of the question if you consider these variables. Pollard currently plays behind one of the NFL's best offensive lines in Zack Martin, a hopefully healthy Tyron Smith, Tyler Smith, Terence Steele, and Tyler Biadasz. ... Along with quarterback Dak Prescott with an improved receiver corps after acquiring Brandin Cooks.
We think Tony Pollard appears destined to repeat his Pro Bowl nod from a season ago. And Cowboys Nation has earned the right to dream even a little bigger than that.
You can find Riley Sheppard on Twitter @RileyDSheppard
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