Tony Pollard Fantasy Overview

2025 Role & Results

Production & Fantasy Finishes

Pollard ran for 1,082 yards and 5 TDs in 17 games last year, adding 206 yards on 33 catches. He finished 28th among RBs in PPR points per game and 30th in half-PPR.

Pollard did his best work late in the season, averaging 15.5 PPR points (RB14) over his final five games. He finished as a top-24 PPR RB in four of those five games, after doing so in just three of his first 12.

Usage & Role

Pollard operated as Tennessee’s lead back throughout the season. Here’s where he ranked among all RBs in key usage metrics:

• 15th in snap rate
• 28th in route rate
• 13th in carries
• fifth in carry share
• 22nd in targets
• 37th in target share
• 28th in expected PPR points per game

Pollard’s usage took a hit when RB Tyjae Spears returned from injury in Week 5. Here are the splits:

Pollard’s 10.9 expected PPR points per game from Week 5 on ranked 33rd among RBs.

Efficiency & Regression

Pollard registered mediocre rushing efficiency metrics last year. Among 51 RBs with 90+ carries, he ranked:

• 20th in yards per carry
• 25th in rush yards over expected per attempt
• 13th in yards after contact per attempt
• 38th in missed tackles forced per attempt
• 42nd in Pro Football Focus rushing grade

Pollard beat Spears in yards per carry, yards after contact per attempt, and PFF grade. Spears beat Pollard in missed tackles forced per attempt.

Spears also beat Pollard in yards per route and PFF receiving grade. Pollard struggled in those departments, finishing 38th and 35th, respectively, among 40 qualifying RBs.

Offensive Context

Pollard played on a bad Titans team last year that finished 3-14 and trailed for 67.1% of their offensive snaps.

The offense ranked:

• 26th in plays
• 31st in total yards
• 30th in yards per play
• 30th in points

Pollard didn’t get much help from his offensive line, either. Tennessee finished 23rd in PFF run-blocking grade and 26th in ESPN run-block win rate.

Historical Production & Trends

After spending his first three seasons playing behind Ezekiel Elliott in Dallas, Pollard has produced four straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons. He’s also averaged 42 catches and 282 receiving yards per year over that span.

Pollard’s finishes among RBs in PPR points per game:

• 2022: 10th
• 2023: 23rd
• 2024: 22nd
• 2025: 28th

His efficiency has waned, though. After averaging 5.1 yards per carry across his first four seasons, including 5.2 in 2022, he has averaged 4.2 over the last three. He has posted career lows in PFF rushing grade in two straight seasons and has recorded two of his three lowest yards after contact averages over the last two years.

Pollard has also failed to reach 0.8 yards per route in three straight seasons. He averaged 1.46 across his first four seasons.

Volume can still carry Pollard to usable weeks. Betting on his old per-touch juice is the tougher sell.

Injury History & Durability

Pollard has not missed a game with injury in any of the last three seasons. But he did suffer a fractured fibula and high-ankle sprain on his left side in a playoff loss on January 22, 2023. He had surgery a couple of days later and was ready by training camp the following year.

Pollard wasn’t the same player that next season, though, setting career lows in yards per carry (4.0) and yards after contact per carry (2.92).

2026 Opportunity & Projection

Projected Role & Competition

Pollard returns to Tennessee for the final year of his contract. Spears is also back in a contract year.

The Titans added Nicholas Singleton to the backfield in Round 5 of the draft. He boasts an enticing combination of size and speed but was out-produced by Kaytron Allen at Penn State. The rookie is worth tracking this summer, but HC Robert Saleh made it clear in June that Singleton is the clear No. 3 RB for now.

“He’s learning it all, he’s got a long way to go, from that regard, like all rookies do,” Saleh said of Singleton. “But to be clear, Tony and Tyjae are the bellcows of this football team, and Nick’s got to compete his way in to find his way into that group.”

It’s also interesting, of course, that Saleh called both Pollard and Spears the bellcows. He added this:

“But those two complement each other very, very well. They’re both really, really good third-down backs. I remember last year that you’re not beating Tony 1-on-1 in a protection system. The guy is an elite blocker, and he’s also really good out of the backfield. And then Tyjae is really good from a route-running ability. They do a really nice job complementing one another.”

Pollard remains the favorite to lead this backfield, but a new coaching staff makes the workload more fluid.

Supporting Cast

The Titans are hoping to get a better Year 2 from QB Cam Ward. He struggled as a rookie, ranking 36th or worse among 42 qualifying QBs in:

• Completion rate
• Adjusted completion rate
• Yards per attempt
• TD rate
• Pro Football Focus pass grade

Adding WRs Carnell Tate and Wan’Dale Robinson should help.

On the offensive line, the Titans return three starters from last year in LT Dan Moore, RT J.C. Latham, and G Peter Skoronski. There will be competition at the other two spots, with none of the potential winners inspiring.

This projects to again be a subpar-to-bad offensive line.

Coaching & Offensive Scheme

The Titans will be operating a new offense this season under OC Brian Daboll. He flamed out as Giants HC but had a nice run as Bills OC from 2018-2021.

Daboll has shown a willingness to tailor his play-calling to his personnel. His later Bills teams leaned pass with Josh Allen, but the Giants shifted toward the run with much worse QB play. Expect Tennessee's offense to land somewhere between balanced and run-leaning, depending on Ward’s development.

Paths to Ceiling

Pollard is the favorite to lead Tennessee in carries. If he can maintain a decent-sized role in the passing game alongside Spears, and this offense improves significantly in Cam Ward’s second season, Pollard could score as a fantasy RB2.

Risk Factors

Pollard is a 29-year-old back with waning efficiency. He projects to lose passing-down work to Spears, and could lose more carries to Spears and/or Singleton this year.

Plus, this Titans offense will struggle again if Ward doesn’t play better.

Pollard’s floor sinks below RB3 territory.