Defending Maroney - kind of

[oldskool138]

Your point was that whether or not BB is happy with the play he is getting from a starter depends on what round he was drafted in.
That is just flat out incorrrect.

That's not what I'm saying. If you draft a guy in the 5th round, say, and he ends up being a superstar that's tremendous value...but a first round pick who has trouble staying on the field and whose style of play isn't conducive to the NFL is not good value.

I'm not saying BB fills out the depth chart based on draft position.

 

[emoney_33]

His draft selection vs. overall contributions.

There is absolutely 100% no way BB even thinks about draft selection when evaluating a player after the contract is signed.

 

[JMarr]

There's really no need to defend him anymore, the debate is over IMO. Anybody who still has doubts about Maroney needs to buy glasses. True he may not have lived up to the expectations we have from a 1st round RB, but he's a solid producer for us and has been whenever he's had a chance (pretty much any time aside from last year when he was on IR and banged up in early '07).

Being a team player and stepping up in terms of leadership have made him pretty invaluable to this team.

Being coach-able has also vastly improved his game. After reading BB's comments on Maroney from yesterday, I firmly believe that they have told him to simplify things--just to run hard, play physical, and that they'll take a 3to 4yard run any day of the week--anything more is just gravy.

Maroney should be re-signed. My only worry is his staying healthy, now that he's running more like a Marion Barber-type and taking and inflicting some violent hits on the majority of plays.

 

[emoney_33]

That's not what I'm saying. If you draft a guy in the 5th round, say, and he ends up being a superstar that's tremendous value...but a first round pick who has trouble staying on the field and whose style of play isn't conducive to the NFL is not good value.

I'm not saying BB fills out the depth chart based on draft position.

Draft position is meaningless at this point in time. There is no reason for the Patriots to look back at draft position. The only thing draft position can be used for now is some sort of fan ranking and hindsight evaluation. You've lost all credibility

 

[oldskool138]

You've lost all credibility

I've been accused of many things. Having credibility is not one of them.

 

[mayoclinic]

The story I have been telling this week is a story the media has not begun to address. Laurence Maroney has become a vocal leader on this team. He is picking up the slack left from the absence of Harrison, Bruschi & Vrabel and even Brady himself who is having a rough year with his health.

He's vocal on the field, on the sideline and before the games. We'll soon hear what he means in the locker room and at practices ... this story is developing and will be told soon hopefully because he deserves it to be told. Perhaps his leadership has also helped himself on the field? It's obvious to anyone that goes to the final games - the TV is missing it.

Good point. Maroney's turnaround has been dramatic. After 5 weeks he was down in the dumps, and his running style kind of reflected it. It looked like he had lost all confidence, and everyone was ganging up on him.

Now, he looks like a leader out there. He's got more swagger, he's running with authority, and he's stepping up to fill some of the leadership void. I think that a healthy Maroney with confidence could be a very different animal from what we had come to expect. Look at Cedric Benson's turnaround in Cincinnati. They guy did nothing for 4 years, now he's running with authority and aggression, and the results are dramatic.

That talent is there with Maroney. I'm not sure he's quite put it all together in terms of seeing the holes and timing his runs, but he's certainly made dramatic moves in the right directin, and seeing his confidence grow is very encouraging.

 

[TruthSeeker]

His draft selection vs. overall contributions.

Where he was drafted has been irrelevant as far as the coaching staff goes shortly after the draft.

Place in the draft is only relevant when trying to assess historical value of the draft pick. As far as current value to the team, it is totally irrelevant.

That being said, I think 75% of the Maroney detractors have Maroney's draft position as a main issue (at least in their minds if not their posts).

On the other hand, value vs. the cap is certainly fair game.

 

[Deus Irae]

...With the Pats, their actions speak louder than words.

:confused2:

The Patriots:

Drafted Maroney in 2006
Made Maroney the starter in 2007
Made Maroney the starter in 2008
Made Maroney the starter in 2009
Have only used one draft pick, a compensatory pick at the end of the 6th round, on a running back since taking Maroney.


To date, the actions seem pretty clear.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Maroney is still a bum and a 1st round draft bust but at least he has tried to play hard in the past couple of games,more than I can say for 1/2 the team .

With that said its time to find a Maurice Jones Drew type runner in the latter rounds of the 1st or 2nd in the 2010 draft and show Maroney the door.

 

[emoney_33]

Maroney is still a bum and a 1st round draft bust but at least he has tried to play hard in the past couple of games,more than I can say for 1/2 the team .

With that said its time to find a Maurice Jones Drew type runner in the latter rounds of the 1st or 2nd in the 2010 draft and show Maroney the door.

No way man. We should totally have the highest paid and best players at every single position on the field. There is no excuse. Forget GOOD players like Maroney, we need to shoot for Peterson type. For at least all 22 starting positions we need top of the line players! DAMNIT!

Maroney is a "bum"? really, get over your personal expectations please and come back to earth.

 

[Rob0729]

Sure it does. It's all about value. Don't the Pats value value when they draft? Case in point, trading down into the second round this past draft.

Again, Belichick isn't going bench Maroney is he is the best RB he has because he doesn't play like a first round pick. Belichick is not got to let a guy go who contributes and is solid just because he doesn't play up to the level of his draft status.

Maroney's base salary this year is in line to his value. It is next year. You can argue his bonus was too much for his value, but the Pats already ate that cost.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

No way man. We should totally have the highest paid and best players at every single position on the field. There is no excuse. Forget GOOD players like Maroney, we need to shoot for Peterson type. For at least all 22 starting positions we need top of the line players! DAMNIT!

Maroney is a "bum"? really, get over your personal expectations please and come back to earth.

If you want Brady intact and not on the ground getting battered every season until he retires you might want to wish for a RB that opposing teams respect and back off blitz packages which is the blueprint to beat this team.

I seriously doubt opposing teams game plans look at Maroney and say "Boy,we better prepare for this guy"

This team is missing a serious run threat since Dillon left town..teams look at this running game as much of a threat as a race horse would look at a 3 legged dog challenging him in a mile race.

Take away Moss and Welker and you have a 99.9% chance of beating this team without a true RB or RB corps to give hope when that fails.

I fully expect a RB drafted within the first 3 rounds in April

 

[Boots Electric]

Maroney is still a bum and a 1st round draft bust but at least he has tried to play hard in the past couple of games,more than I can say for 1/2 the team .

With that said its time to find a Maurice Jones Drew type runner in the latter rounds of the 1st or 2nd in the 2010 draft and show Maroney the door.

Why don't the Maroney detractors understand that if the Patriots get a Maurice Jones Drew/Ray Rice type of player, it will not work. Think about it. This team is a pass first team. You really think that Jones Drew or Rice will get the yards they get now with the line we have? Those teams have offensive gameplans around their running backs. You want to all of a sudden switch the blocking schemes and create havoc and have no passing game?

If you want proof, look no further then to the Chicago Bears who were in limbo about what they wanted to do last year. In comes Cutler, they change their offensive scheme to be more of a passing based offense, they have no big threat receivers, the line can't protect Cutler, Forte has an awful season, and that's why the Bears are currently 5-8.

 

[oldskool138]

Why don't the Maroney detractors understand that if the Patriots get a Maurice Jones Drew/Ray Rice type of player, it will not work. Think about it. This team is a pass first team.

Have the Pats won anything as a pass-first team? They functioned better and won Super Bowls with a more balanced attack and a dink-and-dunk passing offense.

 

[emoney_33]

If you want Brady intact and not on the ground getting battered every season until he retires you might want to wish for a RB that opposing teams respect and back off blitz packages which is the blueprint to beat this team.

I seriously doubt opposing teams game plans look at Maroney and say "Boy,we better prepare for this guy"

This team is missing a serious run threat since Dillon left town..teams look at this running game as much of a threat as a race horse would look at a 3 legged dog challenging him in a mile race.

Take away Moss and Welker and you have a 99.9% chance of beating this team without a true RB or RB corps to give hope when that fails.

I fully expect a RB drafted within the first 3 rounds in April

Bah, I'm not going through all this crap again. Your post is so incredibly flawed. Maroney is NOT the reason for our problems.

 

[Deus Irae]

Have the Pats won anything as a pass-first team? They functioned better and won Super Bowls with a more balanced attack and a dink-and-dunk passing offense.

They went 16-0, and 18-1 with the "pass-first" team. At this point, you're just trolling.

 

[emoney_33]

Have the Pats won anything as a pass-first team? They functioned better and won Super Bowls with a more balanced attack and a dink-and-dunk passing offense.

Correlation does not imply causation.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Have the Pats won anything as a pass-first team? They functioned better and won Super Bowls with a more balanced attack and a dink-and-dunk passing offense.

Can't just isolate that as the main reason for winning titles. Their D in 03 carried that team when the offense was pedestrian at-best. They ran to keep the D honest so not to sit on certain aspects of the offense/plays.

 

[oldskool138]

They went 16-0, and 18-1 with the "pass-first" team. At this point, you're just trolling.

You buttress my argument and then accuse me of trolling.

Unbelievable.

 

[Deus Irae]

You buttress my argument and then accuse me of trolling.

Unbelievable.

16-0 and 18-1 doesn't buttress your argument.

What's unbelievable is you actually claiming it does.