Cowboys RB Update: How To Use Zeke With Pollard

Today we take a look at where the 2020 Dallas Cowboys stand as we enter offseason workouts at running back.

Today we take a look at where the 2020 Dallas Cowboys stand as we enter offseason workouts at running back.

PLAYERS AT POSITION ENTERING FREE AGENCY (BASED ON DALLASCOWBOYS.COM): Ezekiel Elliott (starter), Tony Pollard, Jordan Chunn, Jamize Olawale (fullback).

2020 COWBOYS FREE AGENTS: None.

COWBOYS LOST: None.

COWBOYS RETAINED: All players on the roster were under contract entering free agency.

COWBOYS GAINED: Chunn (signed to a reserve/futures contract), RB Darius Anderson (undrafted free-agent), FB Selo Olonilua (undrafted free-agent).

COWBOYS DRAFTED: None

WHERE WE STAND: Right about where we did before the draft. By extension of not taking a running back in the draft, the Cowboys have shown they feel as if they’re set at this position, with Elliott as the starter and Pollard as the backup.

But how to use them - both?

In four seasons Elliott has rushed for more than 5,000 yards and led the league in rushing twice. There is no question, assuming he’s healthy, that he will touch the ball at least 300 times. Pollard is a back that can do a lot of different things for the Cowboys — rush, receive and return. Olawale is there to block and Chunn is there to take reps in camp.

Click here for Mike Fisher’s 55-man roster projections on offense

WHERE WE GO FROM HERE: The Cowboys’ heavy reliance on Elliott means they do need to make sure they have adequate backup in case he gets hurt (and, to be fair, Elliott hasn’t missed a game due to injury in four seasons). 

Or maybe there is another way to do this.

Pollard touched the ball just under 100 times on offense last season. Pollard could be in line to give the Cowboys more offensive help. That would be good for Elliott, as the Cowboys try to preserve his body as much as possible for a long season, and hopefully longer career. 

Maybe what coach Mike McCarthy did in Green Bay is helpful here. He was rarely over-reliant on a single back - though he never had a Zeke-level guy there. He did, however, have Pollard-like players ... and he found ways to utilize them.

As for Olawale and Chunn, the key to the pair making the roster will be their special teams acumen, where Olawale has an edge. The Cowboys snagged a pair of TCU backs during undrafted free agency (Darius Anderson and Sewo Olonilua) and a back from South Carolina (Rico Dowdle). Of the trio, Anderson probably has the best shot to make either the roster or make the Cowboys’ practice squad. 

But, barring injury, the Cowboys will take Elliott and Pollard into the regular season, with some backup help ... but mostly, with the challenge to figure out how to get the most of the first two guys.