Alfred Morris has been phenomenal, already accumulating more than 1,200 yards this season at about 5 yards per carry. But he's almost fumbled in each of the last two games, and 4 times on the season, which raises the question. Is Alfred Morris fumble-prone?
I know we all want the answer to be 'no', especially given the many wonderfully positive story lines this season. But let's be adults and take an objective look at the data, focusing on his college football career.
In college, Morris had a tendency to fumble.
In 760 touches at Florida Atlantic, Alfred Morris fumbled 16 times. This breaks down to about once every 48 carries.
Let's compare this to the three RBs taken in the 1st round of the 2012 draft.
- Trent Richardson: 586 touches, 7 fumbles (once every 84 carries)
- Doug Martin: 650 touches, 8 fumbles (once every 81 carries)
- David Wilson: 474 touches, 9 fumbles (once every 53 carries)
In short, Alfred Morris fumbled in college more often than other top rookie running backs. He currently has 4 fumbles in 259 touches, which is slightly better than his rate in college. Because past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior, it's important that the Skins continue to work with Morris to improve and maintain good ball security skills. Fortunately, Mike Shanahan has plans to address this by having Skins players attempt to strip the ball from Morris in practice.
Ball security is something that can be learned and improved (case-in-point, Tiki Barber), and Morris seems like the type who is eager to learn and improve. So let's hope his ball security becomes as impressive as his ability to anticipate and slash through holes in the defense.
No comments:
Post a Comment