Pollard was one of the larger fantasy letdowns in 2023.
He ended the season as the RB23 in PPR points per game (13.1) and the RB14 in overall scoring after he closed 2022 as the RB9 in points per game (15.6) and RB8 in total scoring output.
Despite amassing a career-high 307 touches, Pollard’s new role as a workhorse back produced a career-low 4.3 yards per touch and six touchdowns.
His previous career-low in yards per touch was 4.9 yards in 2020.
Among 49 running backs to run the football 100 or more times last season, Pollard ranked:
- 23rd in success rate (37.3%)
- 25th in rate of runs to result in a first down or touchdown (22.2%)
- 34th in rate of runs to gain 10 or more yards (8.3%)
Pollard had tightrope surgery for a fractured leg and high ankle injury in the offseason, something that he said limited him from feeling right until Week 11.
If we are taking his word, there was an improvement to close the season.
From Week 11 on, Pollard ranked in those same categories:
- 12th in success rate (41.0%)
- 12th in rate of runs to result in a first down or touchdown (24.8%)
- 25th in rate of runs to gain 10 or more yards (9.4%)
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Tony Pollard 2024 Fantasy Football Outlook
The real notes here for Pollard in terms of future fantasy outlook is that he is trading in a workhorse opportunity in one of the best offensive environments in the NFL for a potential timeshare (at least to a larger degree than he had in 2023) in a situation littered with question marks.
Dallas averaged a league-high 30.1 points per game in 2023.
Tennessee averaged 17.9, which was 27th.
The Cowboys averaged 5.6 yards per on offense, which was sixth in the league.
The Titans averaged 4.8 yards per play with Will Levis on the field in 2023, which was 28th in the league.
This Titans offense is going to be much different moving forward with the departure of Derrick Henry paired with the addition of Brian Callahan as Head Coach, but there is zero doubt that what Dallas has currently built on offense compared to Tennessee is far more attractive in producing points in 2024.
With Henry, Tennessee ran the football out of 11 personnel just 34.5% of the time (28th in the NFL).
As a byproduct, the Titans ran the football against eight or more defenders in the box on 42.3% of their running back runs, the third-highest rate in the league.
With Callahan calling plays in Cincinnati, the Bengals ran the ball out of 11 personnel 64.8% during his tenure, which was second in the NFL only to the Rams (where Zac Taylor’s philosophy comes from).
Over his span with the Bengals, Callahan’s run game ran against loaded boxes for just 33.9% of their running runs (23rd in the league).
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