Dallas Cowboys: Is it time to start Tony Pollard?

The Dallas Cowboys are in a pickle; they are paying Ezekiel Elliott a lot of money, but Tony Pollard is outperforming him. So who should be the starter?

Traditionally the Dallas Cowboys are a downhill, hit-you-in-the-mouth team, having had the likes of legendary running back Emmitt Smith in their backfield. But in recent years, their run game has struggled. Dallas brought in Ezekiel Elliott with a top-five draft pick in 2016 and he tore it up early in his career. However, he has failed to live up to expectations since Jerry Jones gave him a $90 million contract.

In 2019, when Elliott was about to hold out from the team as he awaited Jones’s offer, the Cowboys drafted Tony Pollard from Memphis in the fourth round. Since then, the undisputed backup, Pollard, has put up numbers that then matched Elliott. But now he’s outperforming him.

This year, as of Week 2, Pollard has 183 total yards and one touchdown, averaging 7.7 yards per carry, whereas Elliott has 136 total yards and one score, averaging 3.6 yards per carry. The 24-year-old has a secondary role in this offense but is ahead of Elliott across the statistical board.

It is not just this year that Pollard has had one up on the former Ohio State Buckeye with Pollard having four of the Cowboys’ longest rushes since he came into the league. Elliott only had one in the top six, with the other going to quarterback Dak Prescott.

On the field, it is clear that when the ball is in the current second-string back’s hands, the Cowboys running game gets going and feels a lot fresher than when the hand-off is to Elliott. So is it time to switch roles? Or are there other factors in play?

Elliott is owed a lot of money and around $50 million of it is in guarantees. Plus, on his good days, the player can and has shown out, although this has not happened in a good while. Elliott is also one of the best blocking backs in the league and is integral to their third and short plays.

But, as it stands, Pollard is by far the most explosive of the two. Let’s not suggest getting rid of Elliott, but it might be time to give the player who is putting up the yards the first team reps — or at least more of them.