The Cowboys have a productive duo in Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard. But nothing last forever, and the reality is that they may have played their last game together, and the latest mock draft says just that.
NFL Network analytics expert Cynthia Frelund has the Cowboys taking running back Bijan Robinson out of Texas in the first round.
Frelund’s thoughts on the Cowboys taking Robinson:
You might be surprised to see a running back here. But it’s unlikely that veteran Ezekiel Elliott (who is owed no more guaranteed money on his contract) and pending free agent Tony Pollard will both return to Dallas. Robinson is a powerful force who is exceptionally hard to bring down, as evidenced by the 104 forced missed tackles he logged (a single-season high in the PFF era) during the 2022 season at Texas.
This would create quite the buzz in Dallas, but it wouldn’t all be positive.
On the one hand, Robinson is a dynamic player who is coming off of an amazing season at Texas with 1,580 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns and added another 314 yards receiving with two scores. Robinson won the Doak Walker award given to the top running back in the nation and was a Unanimous All-American and first-team All-Big 12 selection, so he would be an amazing addition to the Cowboys’ offense.
The Elliott factor is why this wouldn’t go over well with many. Yes, Elliott has had a productive career for the Cowboys with 8,262 yards and 68 rushing touchdowns in seven seasons. However, after getting his six-year deal for $90 million in 2019, there’s been a significant drop-off in Elliott’s play, and with Pollard surpassing him as the Cowboys’ most explosive and productive runner, the idea of taking a running that high and investing a ton of money scares some, especially when Pollard was a fourth-round pick.
The Cowboys have more pressing needs like wide receiver, cornerback, and fine-tuning the offensive line so they could go several different ways with their first pick in April. If the Cowboys do decide to start over at the running spot and Robinson falls to the 26th pick, it would be hard for Dallas to say no, and boy would that spark some debates.