Tony

Pollard

He added that the team views it as a 1A/1B situation in which both backs get “a ton of carries.” Though it sounds like a nightmare for fantasy purposes, the lack of defined roles makes sense from a strategic perspective. Holz noted that he doesn’t want to tip his hand in play-calling by limiting his backs to subsets of the overall playbook. Given how much Pollard struggled as the Cowboys’ starter in 2023, early fantasy drafters may want to take Spears at a discount if neither back is projected to dominate the work in Tennessee.

KPRC 2 Houston’s Aaron Wilson was first on the scoop with Rapoport later adding the terms of the contract. It’s a good deal for Pollard despite coming off a wildly disappointing season. In his first and only season as the leader of the Dallas backfield, Pollard set career lows in every efficiency measure. He finished the year with 1,005 yards and six scores on 252 carries. The downside of this deal is that it puts Pollard behind a poor offensive line and on an offense that struggled to put up points under Will Levis last year. Pollard will remain a volume-based RB2 with the Titans, though it’s fair to wonder if his most explosive days are behind him at this point.

Hughes specified that both teams are involved at the $10 million per year level in contract discussions. A return to New York is also on the table for Barkley, though the team chose not to give him a long-term deal last offseason and he’s now able to negotiate with the rest of the league. Houston and Philly are both strong landing spots for Barkley. Both teams are high-powered offenses that still trend toward a balanced approach. Barkley could remain at the back of the RB1 ranks if he lands with either team. Hughes added that Tony Pollard could be a potential replacement for Barkley if he leaves in free agency.

Pollard will be 27 at the start of next season and is coming off his first year as a full-time starter. Last season with the Cowboys, Pollard rushed 252 times for 1,005 yards and six touchdowns while adding another 55 catches for 311 yards. Despite totaling more than 1,300 yards from scrimmage, Pollard was far from the explosive back we saw when he was splitting touches with Ezekiel Elliott. He averaged a career-low 4.3 yards per touch and struggled mightily to score near the opponent’s goal line. Pollard’s 17 carries from inside the opponent’s five-yard lines ranked sixth-most in the league, while his three touchdowns were the fewest of any back with 15-plus carries in the same situation. Pollard is a versatile back who can handle lead duties when needed, but he may be better suited in a split similar to what he saw through the first four years of his career.

With Tony Pollard seemingly on his way out of Dallas after a disappointing 2023 campaign, the team could turn to free agent Jacobs as their primary back on a short-term deal. Bowen described Jacobs, 26, as “a volume grinder, with the low pad level to finish runs and the quickness to make defenders miss” — a profile that would fit well in Mike McCarthy’s offense. Jacobs, per Bowen, could also be “utilized as a receiving option” in the pass-heavy Dallas system. Jacobs, who had more than 50 receptions in 2021 and 2022 before his injury-shortened 2023 season, would have quite a bit of fantasy appeal should he land in Dallas this offseason.

An unrestricted free agent, Pollard, entering his age-27 season, is coming off a down season in which he struggled to return to full strength following his January 2023 leg break. Pollard told Rotoworld’s Patrick Daugherty and Denny Carter that he wasn’t 100 percent until December. “The lesson learned in 2023 isn’t that Pollard is not a quality NFL back who can help win games; it’s simply that he can’t be relied upon to be the workhorse,” Yousuf said, suggesting the Cowboys could bring back Pollard in a reduced role similar to the one he had behind Ezekiel Elliott in 2021 and 2022. Yousuf said the Cowboys likely won’t get into a “bidding war over his services.” “It can only go up from here,” Pollard said during an interview with Rotoworld at the Super Bowl. “Me having a healthy offseason is gonna make a world of difference.” Pollard will see some interest this offseason from teams that might be interested in him as a change-of-pace back.

The most disappointing fantasy selection in 2023, Pollard grinded his way to a decent outing in a devastating season-ending loss for the perpetually disappointing Cowboys. Pollard’s efficiency numbers fell off a cliff this season as he struggled in the lead back role for an otherwise high flying Cowboys offense. Pollard was particularly odious inside the ten, turning 30 carries into just five touchdowns. An unrestricted free agent this offseason, Pollard, 26, will likely be used as a specialty back in a timeshare backfield in 2024.

Pollard totaled 19 opportunities in the win and punched in a rare goal-line touchdown early in the second quarter. Pollard’s 70 rushing yards were his most since Thanksgiving Day when he went for 13-79-1 against the Commanders in what was also a blowout win for the Cowboys. Pollard didn’t have the breakout season fantasy managers hoped for, but he still cracked 1,000 rushing yards for the second-straight season and caught a career-high 55 passes. He and the Cowboys will now prepare for a wild card matchup against the Packers this upcoming weekend.

18 of Pollard’s 49 yards came on one carry in the third quarter as the first time lead back failed to find room to run against the swarming Detroit defensive front. His poor Week 17 performance punctuates one of the worst cost-considered fantasy seasons for a running back in 2023 after climbing into the second round of September drafts.

Rico Dowdle being out with an ankle injury means Vaughn, a rookie who has been a healthy scratch for most of the season, will operate as the team’s RB2 behind Tony Pollard on Saturday. He won’t have any fantasy value unless Pollard gets dinged up and Dowdle remains hurt.