Dallas Cowboys 53-man roster prediction ahead of 2021 training camp

Jun 3, 2021; Frisco, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys quarterback Cooper Rush (10) and quarterback Garrett Gilbert (3) and quarterback Dak Prescott (4) on the field during voluntary Organized Team Activities at the Star Training Facility in Frisco, Texas. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 3, 2021; Frisco, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys quarterback Cooper Rush (10) and quarterback Garrett Gilbert (3) and quarterback Dak Prescott (4) on the field during voluntary Organized Team Activities at the Star Training Facility in Frisco, Texas. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
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Dallas Cowboys
Jun 8, 2021; Frisco, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott (21) and running back Tony Pollard (20) on the field during voluntary Organized Team Activities at the Ford Center at the Star Training Facility in Frisco, Texas. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

Dallas Cowboys roster predictions: Running Back (4)

Ezekiel Elliott
Tony Pollard
Rico Dowdle
Sewo Olonilua

The Dallas Cowboys running game wasn’t anywhere close to where it needed to be. When Dak Prescott went down with his injury, the team really needed star running back Ezekiel Elliott to step up — and considering he was given a massive extension before Prescott (who had a contract that expired before Zeke’s did) the Cowboys should have been able to lean on him.

That wasn’t the case though as Elliott had a career-low 979 yards which were less than he had in 2017 when he was suspended for six games. It can be argued that Dallas made a mistake in paying a running back but Elliott can still perform at a high level now that Dak is on the field again.

Behind him is Tony Pollard, who remains criminally under-utilized. For some reason, this staff thinks you can’t mix up running backs very often and that means Pollard hardly sees the field despite being the perfect change of pace complement to Zeke.

Third is Rico Dowdle who saw some action as a rookie but will probably still be on the bench barring any injuries.

At fullback, we go with Sewo Olonilua, an undrafted free agent from TCU. The Cowboys don’t use a fullback often but they still normally keep one and this season, it could be the 240-pound rookie.