Ezekiel Elliott vs. Tony Pollard: Cowboys RB Starting Job on the Line?
Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott had been dealing with a nagging knee injury for nearly all of the 2021 season.
Now that the Cowboys are on the couch, Elliott can give the knee proper care and rest for the issue that - as CowboysSI.com has reported for a month is about a ligament issue in the back of his knee (PCL) ... and is unlikely to require any surgical procedure.
As he enters his seventh season with the Cowboys next year, Elliott is beginning to take on a lot of miles as the team's primary running back every year.
In 2021, backup running back Tony Pollard was given more of a role and finished with a career-best 719 yards on 130 carries. With Pollard entering a contract year next season, it could be time to give him more carries and preserve Zeke for a potential playoff run.
Given where the Cowboys stand, they will be the favorites to win the NFC East next season, which means another trip to the playoffs. However, the Cowboys cannot afford to waste another year of Prescott and Elliott's primes and get knocked out early.
Is this about "benching Zeke''? It could be about the two runners trading roles, yes. (By the way: This is not about "cutting Zeke.'' We'll have more on that reality in the coming days.)
Drastic times call for drastic measures, and giving Zeke fewer carries might be the drastic measure that need to be taken in order for the Cowboys to push forward.
In this episode of the "Locked On Cowboys" Podcast, hosts Marcus Mosher and Landon McCool discuss what kind of deal will it take to sign Randy Gregory, who should be the lead running back in 2022 and what happened to CeeDee Lamb at the end of the year.
Marcus and Landon deal with all that more on this episode of "Locked On Cowboys." Join us here!
