Re: NE receiving corps

MZ wrote:


You don't think he looked hesitant on the first half? I thought he did a poor job of trying to find holes. Not that the OL was opening very many up. But even still, too much dancing and too much time behind the LOS.


I think Maroney looking hesitant behind the LOS is partly due to the OLine switching to zone blocking. This is off the top of my head and I really haven't looked at it closely, but I suspect that when he's hitting the holes without any hesitation, the OLine is in a man scheme. You can sort of tell what the blocking scheme will be by how Maroney takes the hand-off from Brady also. If he's slower in getting the hand-off, then he's first looking at what the line is doing and reading the schemes before getting the ball.

His 11 yarder was a good job of bouncing it out to the left side, which is something he always seems to be looking to do. But that isn't going to work all the time. That 11 yarder, by the way, is what kept him from having a 3.2 ypc average.


Come on Mark, that's a bit unfair. We can say the same about Corey Dillon. It wasn't as if Dillon lose 3 yards, get stuffed at the line then spring a couple 6+ yard runs. Now, I'm not suggesting Maroney is Dillon, but I really can't find many faults with this team's situational running including Maroney's.


In the second half he looked much better, including testing out that battle worn shoulder. But even against that tough defense (which went without Williams for most of the second half), I expected better running from him. I'm also a little disappointed that he hasn't contributed much in the passing game yet either. It would add another dimension to his game, and would help get him out into open spaces where he seems to do well.

Fair enough, but I acutally didn't expect much from Maroney and I think I posted as much before the game. And I also thought Morris would have a better day than Maroney so maybe my praise for Maroney's running last night has something to do with my being pleasantly surprised. Said this, I also don't expect much from Maroney against the Ravens and Pitt. But both of these defenses need to account for the guy when they do play the Pats provided he remains healthy.

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Laurence Maroney, take note
    ... supposedly dancing a lot behind an offensive line that historically has had ... believe they're creating Hutchinson-sized holes. ... But if the Pats are interested in upgrading the running game next year, ... Maroney should certainly get some opportunities against the Jets ...
    (alt.sports.football.pro.ne-patriots)
  • Re: Practice notes - day 2
    ... Dillon or Maroney will have better games depending on the defense, ... but overall I would like to see the Dillon workload much reduced. ... Remember how he was the only one who could muster anything to get into the Colts game last year? ... And Faulk can't do it, and Pass isn't that good at it, so that's where Maroney will come in this year. ...
    (alt.sports.football.pro.ne-patriots)
  • Re: Laurence Maroney, take note
    ... over 100 yeards in 1 game i beliave, and it was a bad team anywho. ... If you look at the three games that they played in common, ... to Maroney himself or something else. ... holes for Dillion and he rushed for over 1600+ yeards. ...
    (alt.sports.football.pro.ne-patriots)
  • Re: Bills/Pats Pre-Game Thoughts
    ... them when the passing game is stalled because of weather or a stifling ... Both valid points about Maroney, but I think the Patriots will be alright. ... Maybe Morris ...
    (alt.sports.football.pro.ne-patriots)
  • Re: Draft gurus...who do you pick now?
    ... Laurence Maroney is an explosive runner with great vision. ... he wasn't a factor in the Minnesota passing game ... University of Minnesota is known for producing productive running ...
    (alt.sports.football.pro.ne-patriots)