The Dallas Cowboys and Tony Pollard: A Look at the Future
The Dallas Cowboys have a big decision to make this offseason when it comes to running back Tony Pollard. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent, coming off the best season of his career and a Pro Bowl selection, and the Cowboys are eager to keep him on the roster in 2023.
The team has two options for Pollard: the franchise tag and a multi-year contract extension. The franchise tag guarantees him $10.1 million in 2023, but the Cowboys will also consider signing him to a longer contract. They will meet with Pollard’s agent Kennard McGuire this week at the NFL Scouting Combine to discuss both options.
The Cowboys do not currently have plans to meet with Rocky Arceneaux, the agent for running back Ezekiel Elliott, about Elliott’s future. Pollard, who made $965,000 in the final year of his rookie deal in 2022, is due for a huge raise and is the proud owner of the starting running back spot in 2023.
Elliott, who is due $10.9 million in base salary and has a $16 cap hit in 2023, is facing the option of getting cut or taking a huge pay cut to stay with the team — with the latter may not even being an option when the Cowboys make their final decisions for next season.
The Cowboys also plan to target a running back in the 2023 NFL Draft, possibly as high as the 26th overall pick in the first round. While Ezekiel Elliott is at the center of the situation, the declining value of the running back makes it hard to justify a second contract for him, especially one similar to the six-year, $90 million extension the Cowboys gave to him in 2019.
At 25, Pollard is younger than Elliott and doesn’t have the wear and tear on his body with the load of carries in college and the NFL. He is definitely due for a raise, and the Cowboys must decide if the franchise tag or a multi-year contract extension is the best way to retain his services.
In the draft, the Cowboys will target Texas running back Bijan Robinson and Alabama running back Jahmyr Gibbs late in the first round or the second round. The 26th pick is on the table for a running back, per Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, because it’s usually not a player with a first-round grade.
The Cowboys have a difficult decision to make when it comes to Tony Pollard, and it’s one that will shape the future of the team’s running back position for years to come.
