Is Maroney In Belichick's Equation?

Laurence Maroney scored a career high 9 touchdowns last season, but
he also reached a career high with 4 total fumbles lost.

For Patriots fans around the country, the common request is for Laurence Maroney to finally have a breakout season. For a kid that came in with the hype he did, Maroney has been quite a disappointment in his four seasons with the New England Patriots. Last season, he reached a career high with 9 rushing touchdowns. However, his 4 fumbles -- including a few goal line drops -- and his dull 3.9 yards-per-carry average are what attract most of the criticism. With many analysts saying that Maroney might be due for a breakout year, this preseason has me wondering if Maroney is even in Bill Belichick's formula for success at all.

In the first two preseason games, a different man has gotten the starting job and the most prominent role out of the Patriots backfield. In their opener against New Orleans, Ben-Jarvis Green-Ellis got the bulk of the carries and suited up with the first team. In their next game against Atlanta, it was Fred Taylor who was the horse of the backfield -- and he looked mighty impressive. Tonight, we just might get a look down the road of the Patriots' immediate future in regards to their running game. It should be Maroney's turn to get the bulk of the carries. It might make sense to have Maroney's game be the third, since the starters will play most of that game. But what if it isn't? What if Maroney doesn't touch the ball more than 5 times tonight? To me, that would be a very telling sign. The way Taylor and Green-Ellis have run the ball, there's no reason to believe that Maroney has that #1 spot on lockdown. I know, Green-Ellis always runs well in preseason. But we rarely see Maroney getting the shortage of carries that he has this year. Belichick was never shy about pulling the plug on Maroney when things went wrong. After some of his fumbles last season, he would find himself riding the bench until the following Sunday. If he's not getting the job done, everybody knows that Belichick will waste no time filling in a replacement. Names and jersey numbers mean nothing to New England's mastermind. It's all about whether you're versatile and whether you can help the team win.

Usually, I'm a big optimist when it comes to Boston sports and all of their athletes. And I wouldn't say I'm being pessimistic here, because I still think the Patriots running attack will be formidable. They have a good offensive line and three guys in the backfield who are capable. But if we don't see Maroney get a heavy workload tonight, I'd be hardcore selling his chances of having a breakout season. This game will either make or break the theory that we're looking at a straight up platoon in the backfield, as opposed to a backfield headed by Laurence Maroney. Only time will tell.

Regardless, tonight's game is one that you don't want to miss. Of all the preseason games, this is the one you'll want to watch. The starters generally play most of the 3rd game and almost none of the 4th game. This is Tom Brady and the first unit's final significant tune-up before their opener against the Cincinnati Bengals on September 12th. Hey, maybe we'll go undefeated again?