What's Led to Recent Success of Titans RB Tony Pollard

Tennessee Titans running back Tony Pollard has quite literally been putting the team on his back in the last couple of weeks. 

He scored all three of the Titans' touchdowns in Week 7 against the Cleveland Browns. He finished with a season-high 129 rushing yards. 

The Titans lost 27-24 on a game-winning field goal, but Pollard did his part. He proved on Sunday that last week wasn't just some fluke. 

Pollard got off to a fast start against the Cincinnati Bengals, scoring a 41-yard touchdown in the first quarter to give the Titans a 10-0 lead. He scored another touchdown in the third quarter to set up a two-point conversion that would tie the game at 21. 

The running back now has consecutive games with over 100 rushing yards in the last two weeks. Titans fans have been wondering where this has been with Pollard all season. 

Head coach Robert Saleh weighed in on what's been the driving factor behind these breakout performances. He credited the combined efforts of offensive line coach Carmen Bricillo and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll for Pollard's success. 

While the blocking schemes have been great, Saleh wanted to make sure Pollard got his flowers too. 

"Yeah, no, Carm and Dabes have done a great job with regard to some of the blocking schemes and the combinations that we've been using, especially in our sub package," Saleh said. "But give Tony credit. I mean, he breaks a lot of tackles. He gains, you know, if the O-line is blocking it for two, he's finding four or five. If they block it for six or seven, he's finding an explosive run. So, a lot of credit to Tony, but it's everyone, you know. Schematically, we've changed some things up, but the guys are executing at a very high level." 

Bricillo continues to be a bright spot for the Titans. He has done a good job of helping the offensive line protect Cam Ward, but it looks like he's partially to blame for Pollard's monster games in the last two weeks. 

It's hard not to find good things that Bricillo has been able to have his hand in with the Titans this year. 

He took one of the worst offensive lines in football over the last few years and is slowly turning it into a strength for the Titans, whether that's in pass or run blocking. 

Even with the injuries yesterday to J.C. Latham and Peter Skoronski, the Titans still allowed just two sacks in the Bengals game. 

The Titans understand that if you are going to rebuild a team, fixing the offensive line is a top priority. The Titans were able to put up 36 points on Sunday, which has not been a common occurrence as of late. 

That was due to the pass and run blocking coming together to help the Titans continue to extend drives and create explosive play chances on offense. 

It's no wonder that Bricillo had something to do with the blocking schemes in the running game. It feels like we're going to be talking a lot about him this year.