Maroney had a Broken Bone in Shoulder...

[PATSNUTme]

You guys are really something. Maroney's most vocal critics probably couldn't play checkers with a hangnail...and he knows it.

That's not being fair. I broke my shoulder last Nov and I was right back posting in two weeks.

 

[BTTA]

There have been NUMEROUS threads ridiculing Maroney and calling him a bust over the past 2 years.

Yes, I know. But that's not relevant to my question, which was in reference to a post about criticisms in this thread, not previous ones.

 

[VJCPatriot]

Makes one wonder if he reads Pats Fans Fan Forum, anyways it gives a good reason why he did not play well last year.. also some good stuff on Kevin Faulks Softball Fundraiser..

Maroney's shoulder injury was broken bone - The Boston Globe

Well, I hope he'll stop shying away from contact this season then. That dance out of bounds play instead of going forward for the 1st down was unacceptable. Sometimes these problems persist from the physical and become a mental block. I'm really hoping that problem will go away this year or he's going to be semi-useless as a yardstick mover.

 

[JackBauer]

Just a couple of comments....

I would love to see Maroney live up to his potential but I am not going to be holding my breath. There has always been excuses made for this guy....the shoulder is a solid one though and no problems with the results from that. However, I know what I have seen from him throughout his time here except for a very short period of time when he did live up to his potential. I am not impressed. There are some here who will always give him the benefit of the doubt and drool over his 1 or 2 big games each year. I am not of that group. Give me Sammy Morris over Maroney every single Sunday when the Pats need a decisive, North/South runner.

We changed our OL blocking scheme to make things easier for this guy....still waiting for the results of that exercise to help Maroney show his skills.

As for Fred Taylor leading him to the promised land, I wouldn't count on that but would hope so. Taylor has always been hurt a lot in his career, but Fred always ran hard when healthy.

As for Maroney.....regardless of anything I read on this board.....I will let my own eyes tell me how "great" he is running the ball. IMHO his calling is following JT onto "Dancing with the Stars" until Maroney shows me otherwise...not anybody in here telling me otherwise.

Good luck with the injury LM....I sincerely hope its all better and you play great this year since the Pats did invest a first rounder and a lot of cash in you. I also am anxious to see what excuses are going to be made for you if it doesn't work out this year. As sure as night follows day.........

In other words, you don't give two hoots about statistical evidence. All you need is your own subjective opinion, no matter how hard it flies in the face of reality.

 

[VJCPatriot]

He had a bad shoulder in the past, so the only thing that really worries me is if this is going to be a recurring thing, or if it's the same injury that never fully healed, or what? Either way, we need him healthy this year, and I think he's going to put up some great #s for us.

Actually we don't. That's the beauty of the Fred Taylor signing. BB knew that Maroney had health issues, so he got insurance. Maroney doesn't have to be anything more than a #3 back this season. If he plays only 12 games again this season, the Pats runningback cupboard is already stocked with Taylor, Morris, Faulk, and BJGE.

As for great numbers, sure if you think 4.4 ypc is the only stat that makes a runningback good, I suppose you could call it great. But 4.4 ypc over 10-12 games in a 100 or so carries isn't that hard to come up with. I won't be holding my breath for Maroney to turn himself into the next Adrian Peterson overnight. But he doesn't need to for the Pats offense to be quite successful in 2009. Let's not expect a HOF showing from a guy who might be out of the league in a year. Instead let's just hope he plays well enough this year to merit another contract from the Pats.

 

[APatrioticVirginian]

It seems to me hes getting a little out of pocket by running his mouth. Dont expect much playing time for Moron-ey if hes not traded.

 

[spacecrime]

In other words, you don't give two hoots about statistical evidence. All you need is your own subjective opinion, no matter how hard it flies in the face of reality.

Well, is that so different than the majority of posters? Negative subjective opinion trumps evidence, facts and common sense.

THe only time statistical evidence is worth a damn is if it is negative or can be twisted into a negative.

 

[APatrioticVirginian]

lies........damn lies............statistics

 

[BradyFTW!]

Actually we don't. That's the beauty of the Fred Taylor signing. BB knew that Maroney had health issues, so he got insurance. Maroney doesn't have to be anything more than a #3 back this season. If he plays only 12 games again this season, the Pats runningback cupboard is already stocked with Taylor, Morris, Faulk, and BJGE.

As for great numbers, sure if you think 4.4 ypc is the only stat that makes a runningback good, I suppose you could call it great. But 4.4 ypc over 10-12 games in a 100 or so carries isn't that hard to come up with. I won't be holding my breath for Maroney to turn himself into the next Adrian Peterson overnight. But he doesn't need to for the Pats offense to be quite successful in 2009. Let's not expect a HOF showing from a guy who might be out of the league in a year. Instead let's just hope he plays well enough this year to merit another contract from the Pats.

Statements like "Let's not expect a HOF showing from a guy who might be out of the league in a year" are exactly why it's impossible to take you seriously. For one, nobody's expecting a HOF showing from the guy--as usual, you're exaggerating the opposing stance, since that's the only way that you can discredit it. More importantly, I'll bet you money right now that Maroney absolutely will not be out of the league in a year. You pick the terms, I'm good to go. Maroney's talented as hell and has shown that, when healthy, he's a good RB. Barring catastrophic injury, there is no way that he's out of the league this time next year.

If we're relying on BJGE for significant carries against even a decent defense, we're in trouble. I'd be surprised if he makes the final 53, honestly. A healthy Maroney takes the offense to a whole different level, which was one of the many things we saw in 2007. We need him.

I'm also not going to get into the stat argument again. We broke down his success rating and DVOA- anyone who continues to ignore them is either ignorant or afraid of numbers (which I guess is just a form of ignorance in its own right). Argue their validity, if you want, but to continue to pretend that the statistical argument begins and ends at 4.4 YPC is just dumb. Just because you can't figure out what they mean doesn't mean that they're invalid- that says more about you than the stats, actually.

 

[VJCPatriot]

More importantly, I'll bet you money right now that Maroney absolutely will not be out of the league in a year. You pick the terms, I'm good to go. Maroney's talented as hell and has shown that, when healthy, he's a good RB. Barring catastrophic injury, there is no way that he's out of the league this time next year.

And you can guarantee he will be healthy how? Maroney is another injury plagued season from being out of the league. That's not really a fact that can be disputed. Now if he can stay healthy this year and prove that he's worth a new contract, he'll be with the Pats for a few more years. But considering his injury riddled past, I'm not betting on it, and neither should you if you consider the odds rationally.

 

[BradyFTW!]

We changed our OL blocking scheme to make things easier for this guy....still waiting for the results of that exercise to help Maroney show his skills.

We tried to, but the OL wasn't able to effectively zone block, so it's been largely scaled back, and the blocking scheme is now far closer to the old style than what Belichick was trying to incorporate. So that's Maroney's fault too now?

Don't get me wrong, I don't think Maroney is awesome or anything, but it's just strange how so many people around here feel the need to zero in on a couple of guys (Maroney, Woods, Watson) and absolutely kill them for any random perceived thing that may or may not even be based in reality.

Take him for what he is: a good RB with durability issues who, when healthy, has been very effective in this offense, even though it's not an ideal stylistic fit for him.

 

[BradyFTW!]

And you can guarantee he will be healthy how? Maroney is another injury plagued season from being out of the league. That's not really a fact that can be disputed. Now if he can stay healthy this year and prove that he's worth a new contract, he'll be with the Pats for a few more years. But considering his injury riddled past, I'm not betting on it, and neither should you if you consider the odds rationally.

I can't guarantee that he'll be healthy, and I don't have to. Even if he gets hurt again this year, he'll still be in the league next year. It would take a catastrophic, career-ending injury to change that, and that's highly unlikely (definitely unlikely enough that I'd be willing to bet on it). Someone will sign him. Way to epic fail at reading comprehension, though.

Maroney is another injury plagued season from being out of the league. That's not really a fact that can be disputed.

Actually, that's not a fact and I am disputing it. Do you want me to make a list of injury-plagued RBs who are still in the league, on account of the fact that everyone with half a brain realizes that RBs getting hurt is pretty much a fact of life in the NFL? For starters, Sammy Morris has missed as many games as Maroney has over the last couple of years, you realize... (actually, you probably don't realize that, since it would require you to analyze the actual facts, and not make them up as you go along)

 

[blackglass3]

And you can guarantee he will be healthy how? Maroney is another injury plagued season from being out of the league. That's not really a fact that can be disputed. Now if he can stay healthy this year and prove that he's worth a new contract, he'll be with the Pats for a few more years. But considering his injury riddled past, I'm not betting on it, and neither should you if you consider the odds rationally.

I imagine Jaguar fans were saying this about Fred Taylor back in 2001.

 

[jays52]

We tried to, but the OL wasn't able to effectively zone block, so it's been largely scaled back, and the blocking scheme is now far closer to the old style than what Belichick was trying to incorporate. So that's Maroney's fault too now?

Don't get me wrong, I don't think Maroney is awesome or anything, but it's just strange how so many people around here feel the need to zero in on a couple of guys (Maroney, Woods, Watson) and absolutely kill them for any random perceived thing that may or may not even be based in reality.

Take him for what he is: a good RB with durability issues who, when healthy, has been very effective in this offense, even though it's not an ideal stylistic fit for him.

While I think that the doomsday detractors are often wrong, I think that there is some validity in criticizing Maroney. When we see Maroney, we see an absurdly tallented player. We see exceptional speed, the ability to make players miss, and a Heisman stiff arm. However, what I think Maroney lacks is the nuances in his game required to make him an exceptional professional. His reads aren't great, he hurries to the hole, is impatient, and could do a better job at accelerating through the hole.

Playing runningback is a timing thing. The player needs to understand the development of the play and how he plays into it. Players are taught to accelerate through the hole, not to it. This is why when a linebacker meets a tailback in the hole, the linebacker often levels the runner. His momentum is much higher than that of the ballcarrier.

It is also a cutting thing. Most assigned tailback reads are fairly basic. They are instructed to read the hips of their lead blocker, and explode towards the open hip of the blocker. In order to execute this, the player needs to allow the play to develop. Once he makes this read, he needs to make a quick cut to the running lane and accelerate through daylight. The other assignments usually in the play are to make a guy miss/break a tackle and finish the run. I think that Maroney is capable of executing the making a guy miss/finishing the run component at a very high level. However, he struggles to let his plays develop and doesn't accelerate through his cuts very well. I think what makes Morris so good despite his limited athleticism is his skill as a tailback. He reads the hole very well, allows the play to develop, and cuts decisively. If Maroney could add this skill set to his game, he would be an All Pro.

 

[nashvillepatsfan]

There have been NUMEROUS threads ridiculing Maroney and calling him a bust over the past 2 years.

really?


So does this mean we can stop saying he's made of glass, and go back to b*tching about him dancing behind the line?

 

[DaBruinz]

Well, I hope he'll stop shying away from contact this season then. That dance out of bounds play instead of going forward for the 1st down was unacceptable. Sometimes these problems persist from the physical and become a mental block. I'm really hoping that problem will go away this year or he's going to be semi-useless as a yardstick mover.

Yes, its unacceptable that he shied away from contact that could have damaged his shoulder even more than it was..

 

[DaBruinz]

It seems to me hes getting a little out of pocket by running his mouth. Dont expect much playing time for Moron-ey if hes not traded.

I wish you'd take your own advice about Maroney. And I'd be willing to be he gets more playing time than you think. Oh, and why would the Pats trade him? He's the best running back that they have.

 

[DaBruinz]

And you can guarantee he will be healthy how? Maroney is another injury plagued season from being out of the league. That's not really a fact that can be disputed. Now if he can stay healthy this year and prove that he's worth a new contract, he'll be with the Pats for a few more years. But considering his injury riddled past, I'm not betting on it, and neither should you if you consider the odds rationally.

Its not a fact at all. Its pure speculation on your part.

Maroney has had 2 injuries. Both to the same shoulder and they could have been related for all we know. Why do people like yourself insist on making sh!t up about players?

 

[livinginthe past]

Its not a fact at all. Its pure speculation on your part.

Maroney has had 2 injuries. Both to the same shoulder and they could have been related for all we know. Why do people like yourself insist on making sh!t up about players?

I can't be bothered to look it up but I bet alot of the biggest Maroney detractors are guys that were originally very high on him.

Its like they perceive some bizarre form of betrayal on his behalf.

"How could you go and get injured when we had such high hopes?"

Hell hath no fury like a dissatisfied football fan.

 

[efin98]

I'm no fan of Maroney(already lost an argument about getting rid of him) but anyone going to argue the point of him stealing the spotlight from Faulk's charity event by revealing the extent of his injury? He could have waited a day or two after the event or done it anytime after the season, but he chose the day of his colleague's charity game...WTF is up with that???