Can Tony Pollard Rebound With Cam Ward At The Helm After Disappointing 2024 Campaign?

Tony Pollard saw heavy volume but underwhelming production in 2024; can improved QB play and a lighter workload spark a fantasy football rebound in 2025?

Tennessee Titans running back Tony Pollard (20) makes a catch during minicamp at Nissan Stadium. | Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

After a high-usage yet underwhelming 2024 season with the Tennessee Titans, Tony Pollard enters 2025 looking to rebound from an RB21 fantasy finish. With more efficient quarterback play and a likely reduction in touches, Pollard could deliver sneaky value if he returns to his explosive form.

Tony Pollard, Tennessee Titans

Pollard was frustrating to manage over the first five games in 2022 due to his up-and-down usage by the Cowboys. He had empty production in Week 1 (22 combined yards and two catches) and Week 4 (eight combined yards and one catch) while flashing his explosiveness over his other three contests (289 combined yards with two touchdowns and four catches on 34 touches). 

When given a chance to start in two games midseason, Pollard played at a high level (14/131/3 and 22/115/1) with four combined catches and 29 yards. Dallas gave him an uptick in chances over the next six weeks (83/367/3 with 24 catches for 237 yards and three scores), but ankle and leg injuries led to a missed game and a step back in play over his final three contests (28/118 with five catches for 23 yards). 

Pollard was the ninth-highest-scoring running back (248.80) in PPR formats despite averaging 14.5 touches.

A lead running back opportunity in 2023 led to Pollard touching the ball 307 times. Despite 75 more chances, he gained fewer yards (1,316) than in 2022 (1,378). Pollard has a sharp decline in his yards per rush (4.0 – 5.2 in 2022), yards per catch (5.7 – 9.5 in 2022), and touchdowns (6 – 12 in 2022). 

His only game with more than 100 yards rushing came in Week 3 (23/122). Pollard scored over 20.00 fantasy points in PPR formats only three times (Week 1 – 22.20, Week 12 – 22.30, and Week 19 – 21.50). He finished 14th in running back scoring (223.70).

Tennessee had Pollard on the field for 64.1% of their plays last season. He finished with 301 touches, leading to 1,307 combined yards with five touchdowns and 41 catches. Despite his volume opportunity, Pollard slipped to 21st in running back scoring (203.20). He gained over 100 rushing yards in two matchups (28/120 and 21/102) while scoring between 18.00 and 22.00 fantasy points in five games in PPR formats. 

Tony Pollard Fantasy Football Outlook

Better quarterback plays should lead to improved scoring chances for Pollard, but the Titans will still rotate in Tyjae Spears on many plays. Let’s go with a pullback in touches to the 275 range. Even so, I could see him having an uptick in fantasy value. The high-stakes fantasy market expects regression based on his mid-June running back ranking (26th).