National Sports Advisors
Rotational Player and Threatening Starter's Job
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CLICK HERE to Register for a free account and login for a smoother ad-free experience. It's easy, and only takes a few moments.1) It is not at all clear that Maroney is at least an average NFL running back. Please list all the starting running backs and see whether Maroney is better than 16 of them. I don't think the answer is clear at all. That being said I am fine with the pick. He was headed to ROY consideration before he was injured. The situation now is what it is. I expect Maroney to contribute as one of our running backs for several years. I do NOT expect him be a 3rd down back. He doesn't have the blocking skills.
2) I've followed this team since 1979. It has never been a run-first team.
3) The team is NOT chasing passing records. It is maximizing its chances for winning the SB. Records and revenge are for fans.
4) I expect the team to run more than 29 times this game. I expect that many of the runs will be by Eckel and Evans, disappointing those who want bb to run up the score.
5) The OL blocking scheme has been changed for Maroney. I expect that we may see results in the playoffs or next year.
6) I would like to see a starting 2008 squad of FIVE running backs, so that when one is hurt, we have better than Eckel. We had a fine starting four, but all plans changed when Morris was injured. We need to do better.
Agreeing with DaBruinz, not including the Pittsburgh gtame (stats aren't updated yet), Maroney is rated by Football Outsiders as the 13th best RB in the game whereas Morris is 16th. Maroney also had a better Success Rate, 3rd in the league.Why would it against junk run defenses like Cincy and Cleveland?
What was Morris doing against Dallas before his injury? 10 rushes for 14 yards..
Let me take this one at a time, in reverse order:
6.) I'm not worried about that, because this team will have fewer receivers on the roster next year. Now, as to where they will make up the difference, I'll trust BB to know what he needs.
5.) I haven't spoken much about the O-line, because it would have look like I was copping out on the Maroney issue. However, that line is not a good run blocking line right now, and I'm not sure the problems can be solved during the course of this season because of how much attention is focused on making sure the line can adapt to blitz pressure and pass blocking. This is, in fact, one of the reasons I'd love to see this team go OT with that first round pick.
4.) With BB, you just never know. I expect him to try for 100 points if he can, and I expect Mangina to try everything he can to limit Patriots possessions, including going on 4th, fake punts, etc... However, BB could fool us all and run all 4 running backs into the ground just to throw off the Jets.
3.) This team is definitely chasing those records. There's not a doubt in my mind. First and goal on the 1 and they ran a passing play with an empty backfield. It's all about the passing game.
2.) It was a run first team a lot during the 80's, depending upon personnel more than coaches.
1.) Average doesn't mean he's definitively better than 1/2 the runners and definitively worse than 1/2 the runners. It means he's in the great sea of mediocre runners. If you don't think he's at least that, I'm not going to try convincing you because it would be a waste of time. However, in my opinion, Maroney would either be the #1 back or in a dogfight to be the #1 back on the following teams at a minimum, if you were basing everything on this season and not buying into a player's past:
Chicago
Detroit
Green Bay
Panthers
Falcons
Raiders
Jets
Bills
Texans
Titans
Browns
Bengals
Chiefs
Redskins
Seahawks
Saints (to be fair, McAllister was injured so early that this is by default because we don't know how he would have panned out once the team got it together)
Others could have been added, but I did say at a minimum. Nonetheless, that's half the teams in the league, and it doesn't include some slightly more questionable choices like the Cardinals and Buccaneers, for example.
And, for cris sakes, when are people going to stop skirting the issue? I don't think anyone here is even arguing that we should run more or be more balanced. I think 99% of us are in full agreement that we SHOULD keep passing this year because that is our best option. What we disagree on is WHY that is the best option. The kool-aid gang seems to think our o-line can't run block, the coaches choose to pass over run, and that Maroney is more than capable of being a #1 back. The anti-maroney guys or at least MYSELF feel that we pass because the coaching staff has NO CONFIDENCE in Maroney being a big part of the gameplan and because Maroney is just a MEDIOCRE player that is not worthy of more action. I don't even want Maroney to get 10 carries a game. I feel he sucks. Flat out. He is an average player AT BEST that is a liability in the passing game because he CANNOT BLOCK consistently.
Means nothing. This isn't a serious thread. Since when someone is poor performance defined as 4 yards per carry?Agreeing with DaBruinz, not including the Pittsburgh gtame (stats aren't updated yet), Maroney is rated by Football Outsiders as the 13th best RB in the game whereas Morris is 16th. Maroney also had a better Success Rate, 3rd in the league.
The O-line play didn't seem to affect Sammy Morris.
Maroney
Maroney has done nothing special since the bengals game last year.
Maroney has already had major offseason surgery.
Maroney was "banged up" all year last year.
Maroney has not only been poor when running the ball , he has also been sub par with his blocking this year.
Maroney has yet to break into the secondary and take one to the house.
Maroney has sub par recieving numbers
Maroney and a 100 yard game? Haha!
Maroney continues to dance and show poor field vision.
Maroney was highly ineffective in the playoffs, and down the stretch last year.
Maroney cannot get the tough yards.
Maroney missed several games this year with injury , came out of several games early with injury , and also has been benched for poor play on several occasions.
Maroney told the media the pats knew his running style when they drafted him and asked why he should change.
The coaching staff but baby diapers in his locker
Maroney has done little to nothing playing in the best o in history
Rumors have been swirling about how unhappy the pats staff is with SloMo.
Maroney has done nothing that any avg NFL running back has done this year
Maroney has poor vision.
Maroney has not lived up to the hype everyone on here was screaming about when we drafted him.
Maroney goes down easy.
Maroney has yet to make something out of nothing
75 percent of those polled on this site where either unsure or against drafting Maroney almost 2 full years into his pats career. Avg shelf life for a NFL back? 4 years.
We praise Maroney when he does something good. A high first round draft choice playing in his 31st NFL game draws all kinds of excitment when he actually does what is expected of him? Oh boy!