Stephen Jones Says Cowboys Prepared to Start Season With Tony Pollard

With the contract status of Ezekiel Elliott currently up in the air, it could be the Tony Pollard show when the Dallas Cowboys take on the New York Giants to kick off the 2019 season on Sept. 8. And if that’s the case, the Cowboys won’t sweat it as they have been preparing the rookie running back to step in and become the No. 1 guy.

“Yeah, I mean, we’ve been preparing for that,” Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said of Elliott’s holdout continuing into the season via Pro Football Talk. “That’s why we brought Alfred [Morris] in. As we’ve said, we’ve been so pleasantly surprised, Pollard has been even better than we expected. We’re very comfortable with what we have there. We’re comfortable with that group if that’s what it is. Obviously, we’re still going to be doing everything we can to do something with Zeke.”

Earlier this week, Pollard was asked about starting in Week One. Right now, Pollard’s only concern is to be at his best when his number is called this season.

“That’s not for me to worry about,” he said when talking about starting in place of Elliott. “I’m just coming in being the best back I can be, doing whatever the team needs me to do.”

Pollard has been the team’s top running back during the preseason, rushing for 84 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries in three games. Pollard, who was drafted by the Cowboys in the fourth round this year from Memphis, didn’t expect to see this much action right away.

“It’s not what I expected coming into this situation, but I always prepare to be ready for whatever,” he said. “Since this situation did happen, the way I that I prepare, I guess I was just ready for it and want to continue to make the most of it.”

The good news for Pollard is he has the support of his teammates, especially offensive lineman Zack Martin who has nothing but good things to say about the rookie running back.

“We’re preparing for the season,” Martin said. “We’re going to play with what we got, and what we’ve got is a damn good back in Tony Pollard. Obviously you want him out here, but we’re preparing to get ready for Week 1.”