Cowboys Country

WATCH: Tony Pollard Torches Saints Defense; Cowboys Lead 20-10

The Cowboys cooked the Saints on the ground.

Jeremy Brener

The Dallas Cowboys have struggled on the ground all evening long in this Thursday nighter on the road  largely in part to the efforts of the New Orleans Saints' front seven.

The run game kept trucking, and finally found an opening to sprint through.

With just over four minutes in the third quarter, the Cowboys were leading by a field goal facing second down in their own territory.

Dak Prescott pitched the ball to running back Tony Pollard, who nearly found himself tackled several yards behind the line of scrimmage. However, Pollard evaded the tackle and advanced in the lane the offensive line created for him. He broke a tackle just before the 50-yard line and saw absolute daylight between him and the end zone.

Saints safety Marcus Williams ran with him, but played too conservatively to stop Pollard, who ran for the longest run of his career and helped push the Cowboys to a two-score lead.

Only the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Baltimore Ravens allow fewer rushing yards per game than the New Orleans Saints, so pulling this breakthrough is crucial for the Cowboys. Ezekiel Elliott has struggled tonight with seven carries for 14 yards, and Pollard managed just six yards on his first four carries.

With Elliott dealing with a lingering injury, Pollard's depth has only grown in importance, and he continues to deliver in the best season of his career. 

Pollard scored a pair of touchdowns in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Chargers, and added two to his total last week against the Las Vegas Raiders, including a 100-yard kick return. So, if this pattern continues, we could see another one in the fourth quarter from the third-year pro out of Memphis.

The Cowboys lead 20-10 at the start of the fourth quarter.

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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