Through the looking glass-Roster moves in hindsight

[ndirish1978]

It's likely Marrone had a power play in mind at some point during the season. In light of that, what do you think he would have done differently had he been an actual coach looking to develop young talent for the future? Specifically I'm thinking about:

 

1- Healthy scratches for Goodwin, Koundijo, Bryce Brown and Wiliams

2- Stubbornly refusing to try Koundijo at G

3- Not playing EJ in a meaningless finale to see if he had progressed

 

 

The idea with this thread is not to bash Marrone yet again, it's to see if you guys think the above players actually have more talent than indicated by the coach's lack of confidence in them. What do you think?

[The Frankish Reich]

It's likely Marrone had a power play in mind at some point during the season. In light of that, what do you think he would have done differently had he been an actual coach looking to develop young talent for the future? Specifically I'm thinking about:

 

1- Healthy scratches for Goodwin, Koundijo, Bryce Brown and Wiliams

2- Stubbornly refusing to try Koundijo at G

3- Not playing EJ in a meaningless finale to see if he had progressed

 

 

The idea with this thread is not to bash Marrone yet again, it's to see if you guys think the above players actually have more talent than indicated by the coach's lack of confidence in them. What do you think?

In retrospect, it seems likely that none of the recent acquisitions/draft picks were "Marrone guys." So opt-out clause or not, this was a train wreck waiting to happen. To me the most inexplicable one was Bryce Brown, not Mike Williams. When Spiller went down I fully expected Brown to get lots of work. In fact, Brown looked pretty good, particularly on the catch and run plays. But Marrone continued to use him sparingly.

[DDD]

Hello! You play to win the game. That requires your best players.

 

Marrone and Whaley by virtue of the Watkins trade were all in for the playoffs in 2014. To their credit they were in the race until the last game of the season and Marrone was adamant about playing guys that gave him "the best chance to win." We heard it over and over. I have no doubt about it. The fact that Marrone left (power struggle or not) tells me EJ Manuel has not progressed and the Bills have no viable option at QB. Let's face it, If he was signed as a free agent and not a 1st round pick he's probably have been cut long ago. Nothing really to be learned by playing scrubs against the Patriots back-ups. I for one am glad the losing streak in Gillette Stadium mercifully ended. That place has been a graveyard for the Bills the past decade.

[jahbonas]

Hello! You play to win the game. That requires your best players.

 

.

Is that what not playing Urbik for first 8 games was all about?

[Martifal]

In retrospect it kind of does appear coach Marrone made a point of under using the players Doug Whaley aquired for him in the off season. I could never understand why with our struggles in the red zone Mike Williams a proven red zone target was never given a chance to perform in that capacity. Bryce Brown looked very good in the preseason and seemed to make plays when given the opportunity in the regular season, was also used very sparingly at best. Not to mention there were several games where Sammy Watkins was rarely targeted, he was supposed to be our best offensive player and they did very little to get the ball into his hands some games. Now that it comes out Marrone coached the entire season knowing he could or was going to walk and that he had a problem Doug Whaley it does appear he made a point of not using the play makers Whaley provided in the off season. Bryce Brown and Mike Williams throughout the season couldn't seem to understand why they weren't given much of a chance. Now that it's coming out that Marrone is a little thin skinned and has a bit of an ego it's not entirely out of the question that he purposely refused to use players Whaley traded draft picks to obtain. I sincerely hope that the teams that are in a rush to interview him for a head coaching position are taking a closer look at how he used some of the talent he was provided this past season.

[Nanker]

I hope the League owners make a point of under utilizing Maroon forever going forward.

[PolishDave]

In retrospect it kind of does appear coach Marrone made a point of under using the players Doug Whaley aquired for him in the off season. I could never understand why with our struggles in the red zone Mike Williams a proven red zone target was never given a chance to perform in that capacity. Bryce Brown looked very good in the preseason and seemed to make plays when given the opportunity in the regular season, was also used very sparingly at best. Not to mention there were several games where Sammy Watkins was rarely targeted, he was supposed to be our best offensive player and they did very little to get the ball into his hands some games. Now that it comes out Marrone coached the entire season knowing he could or was going to walk and that he had a problem Doug Whaley it does appear he made a point of not using the play makers Whaley provided in the off season. Bryce Brown and Mike Williams throughout the season couldn't seem to understand why they weren't given much of a chance. Now that it's coming out that Marrone is a little thin skinned and has a bit of an ego it's not entirely out of the question that he purposely refused to use players Whaley traded draft picks to obtain. I sincerely hope that the teams that are in a rush to interview him for a head coaching position are taking a closer look at how he used some of the talent he was provided this past season.

Yeah, Bryce looked great fumbling away that touchdown when the Bills were dominating the Chiefs.

 

I get your point and it is a valid one, but don't use Bryce Brown as an excuse against Marrone. Bryce should be gone because of his proven history of fumbling, not just with the Bills but with his last team too.

[bigbill]

One thing I liked.

 

The team picked up useful players through the season.

 

November was especially productive.

 

Gray, Thigpen and Rambo to name a few.

 

Who do you think is responsible for there pick ups??

[PaattMaann]

One thing I liked.

 

The team picked up useful players through the season.

 

November was especially productive.

 

Gray, Thigpen and Rambo to name a few.

 

Who do you think is responsible for there pick ups??

Shhhhhhh the Whaley haters will burn you at the stake you heretic!!! Live in the shadows!

[Johnny Hammersticks]

Bryce should be gone because of his proven history of fumbling, not just with the Bills but with his last team too.

Dude, he fumbled the ball once this season on what was a really great play by the KC defender, really. So he should be condemned for his history of fumbling?

 

I thought Brown looked pretty darn good this season. Especially in the receiving game.

[eball]

Hello! You play to win the game. That requires your best players.

 

Marrone and Whaley by virtue of the Watkins trade were all in for the playoffs in 2014. To their credit they were in the race until the last game of the season and Marrone was adamant about playing guys that gave him "the best chance to win." We heard it over and over. I have no doubt about it. The fact that Marrone left (power struggle or not) tells me EJ Manuel has not progressed and the Bills have no viable option at QB. Let's face it, If he was signed as a free agent and not a 1st round pick he's probably have been cut long ago. Nothing really to be learned by playing scrubs against the Patriots back-ups. I for one am glad the losing streak in Gillette Stadium mercifully ended. That place has been a graveyard for the Bills the past decade.

 

Thank you for signing in and contributing to the board, Mrs. Marrone! Best of luck to you and your husband on your next stop.

[Mr. WEO]

Yeah, Bryce looked great fumbling away that touchdown when the Bills were dominating the Chiefs.

 

I get your point and it is a valid one, but don't use Bryce Brown as an excuse against Marrone. Bryce should be gone because of his proven history of fumbling, not just with the Bills but with his last team too.

 

 

Brown has had only 1 fumble in the past 2 seasons (111 carries). He had 5 the season before that (2012) on 115 carries. Therefore Brown's fumble rate has decreased significantly.

 

Spiller had 7 fumbles the past 2 seasons (only 280 carries). Spiller has had 17 carreer fumbles. His rate went up significantly this year.

Edited January 6, 2015 by Mr. WEO

[PaattMaann]

Brown a player and will most likely be the "feature back" (with Fred and boobie obviously getting work - depending on what offense we are running) next season....and was also a major factor in Whaley trading for him....knowing Fred is old and always dinged up, CJ walking....made total sense

 

brown has great size and speed combo to be the lead dog, until fumbles continue to be a problem in the offseason/preseason/season next year...I don't see how he's not the bills feature back (unless we use an early pick on a RB which I don't believe we will)

[BillnutinHouston]

I was confused by Mike Williams, concerned at Urbik, but became convinced when Orton was selected to start the final game. That's when I knew for sure that Marrone was putting his agenda ahead of the franchise's.

Edited January 6, 2015 by BillnutinHouston

[RuntheDamnBall]

The fact that Marrone left (power struggle or not) tells me EJ Manuel has not progressed and the Bills have no viable option at QB.

Marrone and his staff have some culpability in this. It was their job to help Manuel (and Orton) progress. They got worse as they played in this "system." And so did many other players with a history of better production. Coaches have to be there to help players adjust. Not to coddle them, not to curse them out. When you coach all of the instinct and feel for the game out of your players and then put them in front of a line that you're endlessly tinkering with, what do you expect?

 

St. Doug had a foot out the door.

[Coach55]

Brown didn't play because Brown can't block. CJ Spiller has the same problem. RB's need to be able to block in the NFL to get on the field (unless they truly are a feature back). As for Marrone, he played to win and put his best people out there. I do not appreciate how he unceremoniously left, but I do believe he put the best players on the field to win the game. The reality is that if he wanted to make this power play and thought it was going to work (even if only a small percentage), he wouldn't sabotage his own future.

[bmur66]

It's likely Marrone had a power play in mind at some point during the season. In light of that, what do you think he would have done differently had he been an actual coach looking to develop young talent for the future? Specifically I'm thinking about:

 

1- Healthy scratches for Goodwin, Koundijo, Bryce Brown and Wiliams

2- Stubbornly refusing to try Koundijo at G

3- Not playing EJ in a meaningless finale to see if he had progressed

 

 

The idea with this thread is not to bash Marrone yet again, it's to see if you guys think the above players actually have more talent than indicated by the coach's lack of confidence in them. What do you think?

 

1. They weren't needed. They are all backups

2. How do we know he didn't practice there?

3. Marrone made it clear they wanted to win and Orton was there best chance. This isn't a "tryout" league. You do play to win I hope.

 

I see no conspiracy here.

[eball]

I don't see a conspiracy...just a guy who has a certain type of player he likes and an overly conservative mindset. If he doesn't like a guy he doesn't play him -- period. It's very old school, and works to a certain extent, but it's not innovative or aggressive.

 

Marrone is clearly not the brightest bulb in the shed for the way in which he has submarined his own coaching opportunities, but I do believe HE thought he was playing the best players at the time.

[DDD]

 

Thank you for signing in and contributing to the board, Mrs. Marrone! Best of luck to you and your husband on your next stop.

Thank you Jerry Sullivan.

[dave mcbride]

Brown has had only 1 fumble in the past 2 seasons (111 carries). He had 5 the season before that (2012) on 115 carries. Therefore Brown's fumble rate has decreased significantly.

 

Spiller had 7 fumbles the past 2 seasons (only 280 carries). Spiller has had 17 carreer fumbles. His rate went up significantly this year.

Facts! Thanks for this.

[JackKemp]

Yeah, Bryce looked great fumbling away that touchdown when the Bills were dominating the Chiefs.

 

I get your point and it is a valid one, but don't use Bryce Brown as an excuse against Marrone. Bryce should be gone because of his proven history of fumbling, not just with the Bills but with his last team too.

Yes this is why Bryce Brown was not used as much as we would have expected. He has a fundamental flaw of swing the ball openly while running. He is an easy fumble target.

[Mr. WEO]

Yes this is why Bryce Brown was not used as much as we would have expected. He has a fundamental flaw of swing the ball openly while running. He is an easy fumble target.

 

This is just not true.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

In retrospect, it seems likely that none of the recent acquisitions/draft picks were "Marrone guys." So opt-out clause or not, this was a train wreck waiting to happen. To me the most inexplicable one was Bryce Brown, not Mike Williams. When Spiller went down I fully expected Brown to get lots of work. In fact, Brown looked pretty good, particularly on the catch and run plays. But Marrone continued to use him sparingly.

 

Why do you say that?

 

I think they are all Marrone guys, in the sense that Marrone turned in a "needs list" (need upgrade at deep threat over TJ Graham. need tall, strong possession receiver as red zone target. Need run-between-the-tackles power back. Need OG, want big strong tackle-size guard). These were also all draft or off-season acquisitions, so he should have had the opportunity to watch film and give input on the grading of different possibilities. Why would Whaley and the FO have traded for/acquired different physical types of guards (for example) than under Gailey if they weren't trying to accomodate Marrone?

 

What is coming out is that Marrone may have used non-football factors more than most coaches would have to adjust opportunities. I think all coaches do this to some extent - if you're playing for Belicheck and you break team rules and say controversial stuff in the press etc you will be playing L Bench in the next game - but maybe Marrone was more extreme about it - punative rather than instructional. Or maybe he just inexplicably didn't game plan for these guys.

Hello! You play to win the game. That requires your best players.

 

Marrone and Whaley by virtue of the Watkins trade were all in for the playoffs in 2014. To their credit they were in the race until the last game of the season and Marrone was adamant about playing guys that gave him "the best chance to win." We heard it over and over. I have no doubt about it. The fact that Marrone left (power struggle or not) tells me EJ Manuel has not progressed and the Bills have no viable option at QB. Let's face it, If he was signed as a free agent and not a 1st round pick he's probably have been cut long ago. Nothing really to be learned by playing scrubs against the Patriots back-ups. I for one am glad the losing streak in Gillette Stadium mercifully ended. That place has been a graveyard for the Bills the past decade.

 

Why does it tell you that? Marrone was moderately successful with an average QB (Orton). The probability is good there will be a similarly capable QB available in FA. An upgraded OL and perhaps a different RB and the team should progress.

 

I think Marrone left because he felt he saw a better opportunity for himself (Jets HC, nowhere to go but up, larger stage, maybe get input into the GM)

 

Regarding EJ, if you look objectively he is at about the same place or ahead of a number of young QB in the league. If he had been signed as a FA backup, chances are good he would be just where he is now - on the bench, with the team, as a backup and able to win the starter spot if he competes successfully in TC and PS with whomever is brought in. Foles, Glennon etc are NOT miles ahead of EJ.

Edited January 6, 2015 by Hopeful

[chris heff]

Marrone and his staff have some culpability in this. It was their job to help Manuel (and Orton) progress. They got worse as they played in this "system." And so did many other players with a history of better production. Coaches have to be there to help players adjust. Not to coddle them, not to curse them out. When you coach all of the instinct and feel for the game out of your players and then put them in front of a line that you're endlessly tinkering with, what do you expect?

St. Doug had a foot out the door.

I've been saying basically the same thing for months. Manuel, Orton and Lewis all regressed. All had the same issues. Some on this board will say it is because they all suck, but the unwillingness to go down field and ineptitude in the red zone can't be a coincidence. Offensive line man that had been serviceable became bad, Urbick being a case in point. Spiller was on his way to being a Pro Bowl running back became a bum. A successful offense has to be able to throw over the middle, was there no one on the roster that could do it? What is the common denominator? The Marrone apologists will say Whaley didn't provide the personel. But Gaily, while not a good HC, but a pretty good OC did much more with less.

[FireChan]

The use of Bryce Brown can easily be explained by the conditions of the draft pick we sent to Philly for him.

[UCLight5]

Chandler should also be gone for not recovering the fumble in the end zone too, right???

Yeah, Bryce looked great fumbling away that touchdown when the Bills were dominating the Chiefs.

 

I get your point and it is a valid one, but don't use Bryce Brown as an excuse against Marrone. Bryce should be gone because of his proven history of fumbling, not just with the Bills but with his last team too.

[The Jokeman]

The use of Bryce Brown can easily be explained by the conditions of the draft pick we sent to Philly for him.

That might be part of it but let's not forget Marrone's comments in the preseason is that he's always been a two RB type guy and it seems like Brown has always been the last RB in the pecking order of Jackson, Spiller, Dixon and Brown. I expect Brown to replace Spiller in 2015 as the second man behind Jackson. That said even as a Brown proponent I am all for seeking a looking for a Jackson replacement for 2016 and not sure if Brown fits that role and would welcome drafting a RB in the 3rd Round. Tops on my list (if he come out) would be Javorius Allen and also like Jay Ayaji and David Johnson.

[FireChan]

That might be part of it but let's not forget Marrone's comments in the preseason is that he's always been a two RB type guy and it seems like Brown has always been the last RB in the pecking order of Jackson, Spiller, Dixon and Brown. I expect Brown to replace Spiller in 2015 as the second man behind Jackson. That said even as a Brown proponent I am all for seeking a looking for a Jackson replacement for 2016 and not sure if Brown fits that role and would welcome drafting a RB in the 3rd Round. Tops on my list (if he come out) would be Javorius Allen and also like Jay Ayaji and David Johnson.

Dixon played a lot of special teams, and I don't think Brown did. The biggest fault of this coaching staff at RB was believing in CJ Spiller.

[Cash]

I don't see a conspiracy...just a guy who has a certain type of player he likes and an overly conservative mindset. If he doesn't like a guy he doesn't play him -- period. It's very old school, and works to a certain extent, but it's not innovative or aggressive.

 

Marrone is clearly not the brightest bulb in the shed for the way in which he has submarined his own coaching opportunities, but I do believe HE thought he was playing the best players at the time.

 

Agreed. Marrone was clearly stubborn and seemed to have a large doghouse. Kraig Urbik is probably the best example. He's been a decent but unremarkable RG for us for a few years. Marrone benched him, and allegedly wanted him off the team. (The Bills reportedly offered him around the league in trade, and were allegedly considering releasing him if he couldn't be dealt. Obviously the latter didn't happen, but I tend to think in hindsight that Marrone wanted him cut, but was overruled by Whaley.) We all understood why newly-signed Chris Williams was starting at LG, even if most of us (correctly) thought that he stunk and it was a terrible signing, but things got confusing once Williams got hurt. Cyril Richardson started for 4 straight games, and was abysmal in each one. Not only was he awful, but he wasn't getting better from game to game. And yet it took 4 horrible starts before Marrone finally put Urbik in. Once he did, Urbik was... not great, but not horrible. Kind of what we were used to when he played RG.

 

I don't see how anyone can argue that Marrone 100% "played the best players" when he very clearly didn't in the case of Urbik. To Marrone's credit, he did eventually get Urbik on the field, although it was seemed to be out of desperation more than anything else. Now, the FO can't be blameless either - for example, Chris Williams was a horrible signing, as was Doug Legursky before him. But I feel like, given what we know about Williams/Richardson/Urbik, there was probably at least a couple other guys who SHOULD'VE been playing, but never got a real chance, because Marrone was as desperate at that position as he was at LG. Maybe Kouandjio was one of those guys? Or maybe he's just a bust or a slow-developer, I don't know. I just find it hard to believe that Urbik was the only guy who found himself in the doghouse, sitting behind an inferior player.

[Luxy312]

It's likely Marrone had a power play in mind at some point during the season. In light of that, what do you think he would have done differently had he been an actual coach looking to develop young talent for the future? Specifically I'm thinking about:

 

1- Healthy scratches for Goodwin, Koundijo, Bryce Brown and Wiliams

2- Stubbornly refusing to try Koundijo at G

3- Not playing EJ in a meaningless finale to see if he had progressed

 

 

The idea with this thread is not to bash Marrone yet again, it's to see if you guys think the above players actually have more talent than indicated by the coach's lack of confidence in them. What do you think?

I don't have a problem with scratches for Goodwin, Kouandjio, Brown and Williams. None of them are or appear like they will ever be players that make or break a Bills season. In terms of Kouandjio and refusing to start him at Guard, I am not sure why anyone would have an issue here. What he's shown me so far is that he's slow, clumsy, and inadequate reacting to pass rushers. He hasn't been able to do anything even in practice to suggest that he should be on the field. I think it has less to do with being stubborn and more to do with trying to make sure that their quarterback doesn't get killed. In terms of not playing EJ versus the Patriots, that's where I have a problem with Marrone. Let's be honest at this point in the fact that he played Orton because he did think that was his best option to get a win. Let's also be honest though that getting the win pretty much wrapped into his plan to bail on the team. For all the other guys you reference, they are pretty much a tangent. They are not the future of the team and there's pretty much no chance that they supplant any of the starters. IMO, EJ is the only one that is different. Is he the future or not? If the team came out and said tomorrow that they're trading for Jay Cutler or another veteran QB, I wouldn't have a problem benching EJ as well. The problem is that they haven't.

[Tintonfallsbillsfan]

My problem would be why Brown didn't see the field and urbik not starting ,

[The Jokeman]

My problem would be why Brown didn't see the field and urbik not starting ,

Urbik should never had been benched for the sake of making Pears an OG. I still wonder what we were thinking doing that. Of course I wonder if it was a cap thing as maybe we had plans on cutting Urbik but nobody stepped up to play better so we were forced to keep him around.

Edited January 6, 2015 by The Jokeman

[The Frankish Reich]

Brown didn't play because Brown can't block. CJ Spiller has the same problem. RB's need to be able to block in the NFL to get on the field (unless they truly are a feature back). As for Marrone, he played to win and put his best people out there. I do not appreciate how he unceremoniously left, but I do believe he put the best players on the field to win the game. The reality is that if he wanted to make this power play and thought it was going to work (even if only a small percentage), he wouldn't sabotage his own future.

And that's what was so awful about that opt out and still get paid" clause. As soon as the Pegulas deal was finalized, Marrone's entire incentive structure changed. He knew it was more about trying to improve his marketability in the coaching market than it was about doing the best thing for the Bills franchise in 2014 AND in future years. Other than starting Orton in Game 16, I can't point to any single decision that demonstrates, in retrospect, a conflict of interest. But that's not the point. The point is this: with that clause in place, every action he took after Ralph died -- that's the entire 2014 season, from training camp to bringing in Orton straight thru the end -- must now be viewed thru the lens of "was this for the good of the Bills, or for the good of Doug." Thankfully those interests align most of the time. But not all of the time. For this I blame Brandon for negotiating a clause that created the potential (and expectation, given Ralph's age) of a real conflict, and Marrone, for apparently thinking of himself first and the club second. The only good news is that lack of loyalty is now evident thru his actions and the open sniping of his former associates.

[Mickey]

I don't think we would have learned anything about EJ's progress by playing him in such a meaningless game. As for Brown, he has ball security issues and is awful in pass protection which is why Dixon, also acquired by Whaley, was given so much playing time. Given the problems on our line, it was critical to have someone in the backfield who could handle themselves in pass pro. Marrone clearly gave up on Goodwin which I think was unfair but at the same time, Orton's inability to throw an accurate deep ball lessened the need for deep threats like Goodwin who, to be fair, is a one trick pony. I don't get why he handled Williams the way he did. Woods was really playing well so I can see why Williams wasn't going to get many reps but still, being inactive was a bit much. As for Koundijo, there hasn't been a single positive report about his performance going all the way back to training camp. Other than sheer desperation, I don't know of any reason to try him at G. If there was some shred of evidence that his awful play from camp forward had improved dramatically, than maybe I'd agree that it wouldn't hurt to give him a shot but that is simply not the case. In fact, the same WGR guys who ripped him apart during camp are the same guys complaining that Marrone didn't gamble on putting him in at guard in the middle of our fight for a playoff spot.

 

Marrone played plenty of guys that were acquired by Whaley such as Corey Graham and Dixon. He even started a rookie 7th rounder at right tackle. Not only that, he benched EJ and started Orton, a FA signed by Whaley. I think that maybe people are so angry with Marrone that they are now looking back at every thing he did or didn't do and finding some sinister motive lurking behind every shadow.

[eball]

I don't think we would have learned anything about EJ's progress by playing him in such a meaningless game.

 

I'm sorry, you can't just make a statement like that and not explain. The Pats* had their first string defense in for the entire game, if I recall.

[dave mcbride]

 

I'm sorry, you can't just make a statement like that and not explain. The Pats* had their first string defense in for the entire game, if I recall.

Not in the second half. Revis and Collins were on the bench.

[BillsVet]

Not in the second half. Revis and Collins were on the bench.

And Wilfork sat down after achieving a performance incentive in his contract. Which one I'm not sure.

[mountainwampus]

My biggest issue with roster moves was taking all the experience out of the WR corps. I think this could've been a playoff year if all our WRs weren't so inexperienced. I didn't see any of them run any hot routes when Orton was under fire, (except Chandler). One of the biggest complaints on Watkins' scout report was that he didn't run a lot of routes in college, catching most of his passes near the LOS. Seemed that not having Stevie or Williams out there is what killed us. The route running was amateurish. I don't think Hogan is nearly as good as Doug did. Also, everyone knows Bryce Brown had a fumble problem.

[PolishDave]

 

 

Brown has had only 1 fumble in the past 2 seasons (111 carries). He had 5 the season before that (2012) on 115 carries. Therefore Brown's fumble rate has decreased significantly.

 

Spiller had 7 fumbles the past 2 seasons (only 280 carries). Spiller has had 17 carreer fumbles. His rate went up significantly this year.

Why didn't you compare Bryce against all the Bills running backs? Seems convenient to pick and choose your own stats to make a point.

 

Here are the career stats for each running back on the Bills roster this year:

 

Career Rushing Stats from NFL.com:

Bryce Brown 226 carries 5 fumbles = 1 fumble every 45 plays so far

CJ Spiller 668 carries 13 fumbles = 1 fumble every 52 plays so far

Fred Jackson 1279 carries 15 fumbles = 1 fumble every 85 plays so far

Anthony Dixon 253 carries 1 fumble = 1 fumble every 253 plays so far

Clearly Bryce Brown has the highest fumbling percentage of any running back on this team over his career.

 

If he was the number one back on a team and got over 20 carries per game you could expect one fumble out of him every other game on average.

 

How will he play in the future? Maybe the guy never fumbles again. Who knows? But history shows he has a proven track record of fumbling compared to any of the other backs on this team right now. Maybe that is why they didn't play him as much? He is a risk and as we all know Marrone wanted to avoid turnovers at all costs.

Edited January 6, 2015 by PolishDave

[Pirate Angel]

My problem would be why Brown didn't see the field and urbik not starting ,

My guess it was because urbic can back up 3 interior online positions and we should be able to replace his value as a starter due to the fact that he isn't very good. I don't think it was ever a doghouse issue but a roster decision. Williams is better than him and Richardson was horrendous, I believe they believed Richardson could play at urbics below average play.