Cowboys rookie report: Will any rookie play a key role during playoff push?

The Cowboys have played like anything other than a team that controls its playoff destiny. Since starting the season 3-0 with wins over the Giants, Washington, and Dolphins, Dallas has dropped seven of its last 10.

Yikes. Still, Dallas is in full control of the NFC East with the rest of the division being lackluster as well. Win in Philadelphia in week 16, and the Cowboys will likely be on their way to a third playoff berth of the four Dak Prescott seasons.

There has been a lot of disappointment surrounding this team: the coaching staff, the special teams miscues, the defense failing to tackle, and more. Another big disappointment has been the 2019 Dallas Cowboys draft class.

Dallas traded away its first-round selection for the highly-talented and productive Amari Cooper, so the draft class was already going to lack some star power; still, the class has been mediocre at best and a failure at worst.

The only real production that the Cowboys are getting from its from rookie class has been from backup running back Tony Pollard, who the team grabbed in the fourth-round. Pollard has shown glimpses of being a real factor in this offense, but his role in the game plan varies too much from week-to-week to get a real feel for him. One week, the offense looks to get him touches (Dolphins, Giants) and another week, you forgot that he is on the active roster.

Pollard, who missed the Bears game due to injury, has totaled 354 yards from scrimmage — averaging 4.6 yards per attempt on the ground and 7.5 as a receiver.

Trysten Hill has been a healthy scratch numerous times this season, Connor McGovern’s season ended before it even had the chance to begin because of injury, Joe Jackson has been able to see the field and make some tackles but nothing too noteworthy, and Donovan Wilson has yet to make a real impact in the secondary despite showing flashes during the preseason.

If one rookie is going to step up and have a chance to make some plays for the Cowboys during the late season playoff push and into the postseason, it is clearly Pollard. The Memphis product offers dynamic playmaking ability as a runner, a pass catcher out of the backfield, and out wide as a receiver that is rare on this roster.

Pollard has displayed the ability to be an effective runner in the Cowboys offense as well as line up out wide and be a pass catcher — evidenced by his 21 yard catch-and-run versus Detroit. The rookie is an exciting player and is somebody that can make something electric happen each time that he touches the ball.

While the current draft class has been disappointing to say the least, Tony Pollard has been a fun player that oozes potential when he is on the field. Can the fourth-round rookie be a bright spot for the Cowboys down the last stretch of the season as the team pushes to win the division and clinch a playoff berth?