3 Cowboys players who earned more playing time in Week 6

2. Tony Pollard, RB

At this point, there might be a call from a dead horse asking me to stop beating him already, but Tony Pollard continues to prove that he’s not just the most versatile running back on the Dallas roster, but he’s a spark plug who might be their biggest game-changer.

Pollard proved this once again when playing the Rams in Week 5 as he answered the one touchdown L.A. managed to score in a major way. Trevon Diggs was beaten by a single arm as Cooper Kupp one-handed a pass and since the safeties weren’t playing deep, he was off to the races for a 75-yard touchdown.

In years past, this would be the play that sent the Cowboys into a tailspin. They lost their early lead and the defense just gave up a massive play. This team, however, has shown more mental toughness as they responded with a huge play of their own, thanks to Pollard. He took a handoff and exploded through the hole for a 57-yard touchdown, to take the lead back.

He finished with 14 fewer carries than his counterpart, Ezekiel Elliott, but had eight more yards. On the season, Elliott continues to get the touches as he has 81 rushes for 305 yards and one touchdown. He also has a career-worst 3.8 yards per carry.

Compare that to Pollard, who has 44 rushes for 248 yards (5.6 yards per attempt) and two touchdowns, and it’s hard to justify the snap-sharing that’s going on. This doesn’t mean there’s not a place for Elliott and his hard-nosed style, but it could make more sense to let Pollard wear the defenses down with his mix of speed and power, then turn it over to Elliott to close games out.