Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard is getting set to hit free agency in the coming weeks, but if linebacker Micah Parsons has his way, Pollard wouldn’t be going very far.
During an appearance on The Stephen A. Smith show this week, Parsons lobbied for the Cowboys to re-sign Pollard, who struggled this past season.
“I would say toward the end of the season Tony Pollard was catching his rhythm again,” Parsons said.” “I do think he’s an every-down guy. You’ve got to think, he broke his fibula … that’s a catastrophic injury.”
Pollard suffered that injury during the playoffs last season and was unable to participate in many of Dallas’ offseason activities as a result. Parsons cites that as a reason for Pollard’s rather pedestrian 2023.
“You’re talking about a guy that’s really been off from that January, came back Week 1 but he didn’t really do a lot,” Parsons said. “It takes a while to get back into football. He didn’t do OTAs. He didn’t do minicamp. He kind of did camp a little bit like working through it, getting back into it. You saw him increase, like he even said, ‘I’m just now getting back to myself.’ I would give Tony Pollard another shot.”
Pollard played in all 17 games this past year, rushing for 1,005 yards and six touchdowns while averaging four yards per carry. He also caught 55 passes for 311 yards.
While those numbers certainly don’t look bad, Pollard’s lack of efficiency was an issue, especially considering he logged a robust 5.2 yards per attempt the year prior.
So, did Pollard come on at the end of 2023 like Parsons claims?
Well, not really.
As a matter of fact, Pollard’s lone 100-yard effort of the season came all the way back in Week 3, and in four of his last six games, he registered under four yards per tote.
We will see what the Cowboys decide to do with Tony Pollard next month, but if Micah Parsons does want him back, he may end up disappointed.
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