Running back Tony Pollard fractured his left fibula in the first half of the Dallas Cowboys’ season-ending loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, ESPN reported.
Surgery will be required to repair the break. The normal recovery timeline is 3-4 months.
Pollard left after catching an 8-yard pass from Dak Prescott with less than two minutes remaining before halftime. The injury occurred when 49ers safety Jimmie Ward rolled onto Pollard’s ankle while making the tackle.
The Cowboys’ offense seemed to have the life sucked out of it after losing its Pro Bowl running back.
“As soon as Tony Pollard went out, you kind of felt a little bit of energy leave their offense,” said former NFL cornerback Ronde Barber and analyst for The 33rd Team. “Not that Dak and his receiving corps … can’t get the job done, but I felt this entire year that when Tony Pollard was really good, the entire Dallas offense was always in stride. It was definitely not like that after he got hurt at the end of the first half. Zeke Elliott was largely ineffective … and was really kind of an afterthought.”
Pollard, who had his most successful season as a pro, will be a free agent in March.
Ronde Barber thinks the Cowboys have a lot of pieces to replace in the 2023 offseason if they are going to run this back and try to win a Super Bowl next year.
The Dallas Cowboys boast Dak Prescott at quarterback and pass-catchers led by CeeDee Lamb, Michael Gallup, and Dalton Schultz. But if they are going to advance past the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Monday night’s wild-card contest, they aren’t the ones who will lead them to victory. It has to be the Cowboys’ run game of Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard that carries Dallas past Tom Brady and the Bucs.
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