Tony Pollard keeps making the Cowboys look that much worse

The Dallas Cowboys have a running back problem and Tony Pollard is quickly reminding them of what they had. 

Pollard had 88 rushing yards in the Tennessee Titans 31-12 win over the Miami Dolphins on Monday night. It was his second game this season with over 80 rushing yards.

After his latest performance, Dallas is certainly wishing they had Pollard’s rushing attack this season. He’s already approaching more total rushing yards than the Dallas Cowboys have as a team this season. 

His 246 rushing yards is good for 17th most this year. The Cowboys have 301 rushing yards as a team. They also have the worst rushing offense in the NFL this season.

The Dallas Cowboys running game wishes it had Tony Pollard

Dallas opted to have a quiet 2024 offseason. And from an offensive standpoint, it looks to be holding them back. After letting Pollard depart for the Titans, who needed a replacement for Derrick Henry, the Cowboys opted to bring back Ezekiel Elliott. 

The reunion has been lackluster to say the least.

Through the first four games, Elliott has just 81 total rushing yards and one rushing touchdown. That’s an average of 20 yards per game and on pace for 340 for the season.

His last season with Dallas before signing with New England in 2023, Elliott had 876 yards. In the same four-game stretch, he had 227 rushing yards. In his first four games in New England, he had 138 total yards. He finished with 642 yards last season, the lowest of his career.

Elliott certainly isn’t expected to have the feature back role he had his first time around the Cowboys, but not even having 100 rushing yards yet on the season is why Dallas struggles on offense. 

And Rico Dowdle, as good of a backup as he was last season for Pollard, doesn’t quite look ready to be the bell cow for the Cowboys. He’s the team’s leading rusher with 134 rushing yards.

Did Dallas' quiet offseason thwart its success in 2024?

Having a quiet offseason wasn’t the smartest move. The running back depth is thin and even if Elliott shows glimpses of his old self, you can’t count on that to happen every week. 

Dallas let Elliott leave because they felt Pollard was ready to take over. And after one season, they let him walk too.

If only Dallas could have afforded everyone, maybe it would be a different story. But they can’t and now they have to figure out what to do with the running game to keep it in playoff contention. 

After all, this is your year, right?