Possible running back by committee coming to Dallas Cowboys: Is it Rico Dowdle time? – Marca English
The Dallas Cowboys are in the midst of another really strong season. They’re 6-3 and have the third-best point differential (+104) in the NFL. They’ve had some bumps along the road, but they look like a well-balanced team as a whole.
Over the past few weeks, they have found something with their passing offense. Dak Prescott has been on a tear, throwing for 1,082 yards and 11 touchdowns over his last three games. They have force-fed CeeDee Lamb and mixed in other role playing pass-catchers when needed.
Despite the success through the air, it’s been a completely different story on the ground. Over that three-game stretch, in which the Cowboys scored 115 total points, only one touchdown has come by way of their running backs. And it wasn’t even starter Tony Pollard who scored it; instead, it was backup Rico Dowdle in the fourth quarter of last week’s win.
Could Rico Dowdle steal Tony Pollard’s carries?
Dowdle looked spry, although it was mostly in garbage time, and it appears the team may be looking to get him more touches going forward.
NFL Network’s James Palmer says he’s intrigued by a potential “rotation” in Week 11 against the Carolina Panthers. He believes getting Dowdle more involved could actually benefit Pollard.
Pollard has been a bit of a disappointment this season. After fans clamored for more touches for the explosive Pollard at the expense of Ezekiel Elliott for four seasons, Pollard is getting them this year and hasn’t produced. He hasn’t scored a touchdown since Week 1 and is having the least efficient season of his career by far.
Some of it may be due to the offseason leg surgery he underwent. Some could be due to the offensive coordinator change. It could also be that Pollard is simply better suited to be a committee back. Even the Cowboys’ own staff writer, Patrick Walker, believes that could be the case.
The problem is the expectation that comes with being RB1. Pollard now has to do all of the heavy lifting and dirty work and it begins to wear on a lead back as the season rolls along. That’s why Dowdle looks so much fresher on his runs than does Pollard. The best formula here is to try and get them to a 50/50 split or near it or, better still, alternate their starts to keep both fresh for the long run, considering their styles aren’t much different from one another. If you do that, you’ll see more explosiveness from Pollard without sacrificing much, if any, of it from Dowdle.
Head coach Mike McCarthy mentioned earlier in the week that getting Dowdle more carries “would be great“, but that his focus is on Pollard “as the primary ballcarrier“. We’ll see if Pollard can finally get going this Sunday.
