Cowboys RB Tony Pollard powers in for first TD since Week 1 vs Panthers
Despite the Cowboys‘ recent offensive success, it was starting to feel like running back Tony Pollard was never going to score again. In last week’s win over the Giants, he had 15 carries for 55 yards but, once again, no touchdowns. Finally, on Sunday against the Panthers, Pollard punched in a 22-yard run off of a toss from Dak Prescott to give Dallas a multi-score lead over Carolina in the fourth quarter. It was his first rushing touchdown since Week 1.
The former Memphis star has 12 carries for 61 yards and a score as the Cowboys head towards a Week 11 win. A win takes Dallas to 7-3 on the season with a Thanksgiving Day matchup coming up against the Commanders.
Running back Rico Dowdle‘s emergence last week made it even more questionable whether or not Pollard would score on Sunday. Dowdle posted a career-high 79 yards on 12 carries in the win against the Giants. The former South Carolina star also scored the first rushing touchdown of his career.
Cowboys team owner Jerry Jones expressed his delight in Dowdle’s breakout game, even calling the duo a 1-2 punch. Against the Panthers, the former Gamecock has had 23 yards on eight carries.
DaRon Bland reaches NFL single-season record
Dallas Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland tied the NFL’s record for single-season pick-sixes on Sunday in the Week 11 matchup against the Carolina Panthers. After notching his third against the Rams three weeks ago, the second-year star picked off rookie quarterback Bryce Young and ran it back for his fourth pick-six of the 2023 season.
No other Cowboys defender, even the cornerback Bland is filling in for – Trevon Diggs – has ever grabbed three pick-sixes in a single season, let alone four.
Only three other NFL players have grabbed four interceptions and returned those for a score in one season – Eric Allen (1993), Ken Houston (1971) and Jim Kearney (1972). Bland still has seven games left to break the NFL’s single-season record and set his own with five. He reached four faster than any of his predecessors.
Over the last two seasons, Bland has recorded 11 interceptions.
The Cowboys drafted DaRon Bland with the No. 24 pick in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL Draft. After the injury to Anthony Brown last year, he proved to be a critical piece for Dallas. He notched a team-leading five interceptions last season. Diggs, an All-Pro, had 14 in his first two seasons, including a league-leading 11 in his second season with Dallas.