Cowboys' Tony Pollard vs. Giants' Saquon Barkley: Top 2 Free Agents in Entire NFL Class?
FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys have their work cut out for themselves with this year's free-agent class. Setting priorities for players, both internally and externally, will shape the near future of the franchise.
One of the biggest free agent names in all of football is one of Dallas' own, Tony Pollard. CBS Sports recently released their top free-agent running backs for this offseason, and Pollard is near the top.
3. Tony Pollard, 25, (Dallas Cowboys)
193 Attempts, 1,007 Yards, 9 Touchdowns
Pollard is another running back who had a career year when it mattered most. The Cowboy picked up Pro Bowl honors this season after racking up a career-high 1,378 scrimmage yards and 12 touchdowns, and flashed his versatility as an offensive weapon. In 2022, the Cowboys averaged 5.7 yards per play with Pollard on the field. As for Ezekiel Elliott? 5.0 yards per play. Pollard also led all running backs this year in yard per touch (5.9).
One of the bold predictions I made for the offseason was Pollard being the most popular back in free agency if he doesn't get franchise-tagged.
Projected AAV: $9 million, 9th among RBs (via Spotrac)
After playing second fiddle to Ezekiel Elliott since coming into the league in 2019, Pollard showed in 2022 that he can be not just a serviceable RB1 in the NFL, but a top-tier RB1.
And now? Maybe he shouldn't play second fiddle to the other two guys above him.
His ability to make defenders miss plus his knack for catching passes out of the backfield makes him difficult to defend.
In addition to his 1,009 yards and nine touchdowns on 193 carries last season, Pollard also caught 39 balls for 371 yards and three additional touchdowns on his way to his first Pro Bowl.
Pollard - who might be retained by Dallas via the $10 million franchise tag - appears behind the Giants' Saquon Barkley and the Raiders' Josh Jacobs. Both Barkley and Jacobs were their teams' No. 1 option at running back while Pollard shared time with Elliott. Barkley is gifted but injury-prone, and the Giants seem to be having a tough time getting together with him on a deal. Jacobs had a sort of breakout season and critics might wonder if there is another peak to be reached.
Dallas has decisions to make at a lot of positions this offseason, but they may want to prioritize Pollard. Elliott's status is also up in the air due to his contract, and it's unlikely the Cowboys will keep both. The question that lingers here isn't whether Pollard is a "top-three'' free agent; we'll buy that.
The question is, how affordable is the cost to "buy'' the services of Tony Pollard?
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