The rushing yardage and prop odds for the four running backs who signed offseason deals with new teams were made available by FanDuel Sportsbook. Tony Pollard, Josh Jacobs, Derrick Henry, and Saquon Barkley are some of those running backs. The fact that Pollard’s season rushing yard total was only 775.5 yards after two consecutive seasons of 1,000 yards was what really struck out.
Tony Pollard and the Tennessee Titans reached a three-year, $24 million agreement on March 11, 2024. With this signing, the Derrick Henry era in Tennessee was all but ended, which resulted in a significant change in the backfield.
Tony Pollard has been a consistent playmaker and rising star out of the backfield throughout his previous two years in Dallas. After finishing 2022 with the fourth-highest running back grade on PFF, Pollard led the Dallas Cowboys in 2023, accumulating 1,005 yards and six touchdowns. Pollard is one of the NFL’s most explosive runners because of his quickness and ability to go both north and south in a split second.
The Titans made a wonderful move in signing 26-year-old running back Pollard to a team-friendly contract, but what can we expect from Pollard? The Titans kick off the Brian Callahan era with a new season. Callahan is from Cincinnati, where a few years ago he guided the explosive Bengals offense to the Super Bowl. He will, however, be without Joe Burrow in Tennessee and will instead focus on nurturing fresh potential. Expecting roughly 775 yards and five touchdowns is what the sportsbooks tell us to expect, which would be a regression for the Pro Bowl running back.
In an attempt to provide Derrick Henry with a change of pace back to alternate in the backfield, the Tennessee Titans selected running back Tyjae Spears from Tulane in the 2023 draft. Spears was never more than a change of pace back, but even in that capacity, he was highly productive and shown moments that the Titans coaching staff should find exciting.
With a strong 76.8 PFF grade and an average of 5.5 yards per touch in 2023, Spears made the most of his opportunities. In 2024, Spears ought to have a heavier workload, forming a potent backfield duo with Pollard. Though it’s too soon to say how this break will play out, Spears will undoubtedly have his chance.
Will Levis, who was selected by the Titans in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft, is most likely to start at quarterback for the team. Establishing a reliable rushing attack is crucial when beginning a young quarterback, and the Titans intend to do this in 2024.
I don’t feel comfortable going above either of Pollard’s running projections for the 2024 season because of the uncertainty surrounding the Titans’ offense and the arrival of Tyjae Spears.
