The final "Has Maroney changed his running style?" thread

[RayClay]

“He’s just been talking about one cut and go, and run off what you see, and basically getting downhill and running physical,’’ Maroney said.

“Fundamentally,’’ Belichick explained, “that’s always what a runner wants to do - especially if it’s a powerful runner like Laurence - to try to drop your pads on contact. It protects the ball, it gives the defender less surface to hit on the tackle, and it gives you an opportunity to create more yards after contact. Those are fundamental things.’’

But Belichick has stressed more than just fundamentals with Maroney. He has given him tools on how to attack a defense.

“How to read individual plays or, by the way a defense is playing, their technique, their linemen or linebackers, and how to best read those,’’ Belichick said. “Those defensive players are pretty smart, too. They just don’t go out there and stand there like a bunch of statues. They’re not just a bunch of morons.

“They try to show you one thing and give you something else or they’re here to get you to go somewhere else, but somebody else is there - things like that. The more you can understand offensively what the defense is trying to do . . . the better you can attack it. Those are some of the things we talk about.’’

When the Patriots face the Bills in frigid Buffalo tomorrow, Maroney knows the conditions may dictate a greater emphasis on the running game. And if that’s the case, then he says he’s committed to taking the physical approach to his job. No more stutter steps. No more cha-cha slides. Just get it and go.

“That’s one thing I’ve been doing the last six, seven games,’’ said Maroney, who has rushed for 654 yards on 166 carries this season and scored eight touchdowns. “

I’ve just been focused on running hard, just running physical. No matter if it’s a 2-yard gain, just make it a physical 2-yard run

....

“Then those 2- and 4-yard plays, when it comes to the third and fourth quarter, are eventually going to come out to 6-, 10-, 12-, 20-yard plays. That’s my whole mind-set: to come out and deliver the punch early and be physical early, so somebody’s going to get tired of getting hit early and it ain’t going to be me.’’...

“Now I know what he’s looking for,’’ Maroney said. “And now he understands me as a runner and what I’ve seen out there and this is why I made this cut and this is why I didn’t take this cut.

Maroney reads a lot into chats with coach - The Boston Globe

Guess that's a wrap.