Alfred Morris (American football)
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Morris with the Washington Redskins in 2015 | |||||||||||||||
| No. 46 Dallas Cowboys | |||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Running back | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth: | December 12, 1988 | ||||||||||||||
| Place of birth: | Pensacola, Florida | ||||||||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 228 lb (103 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school: | Pensacola (FL) Pine Forest | ||||||||||||||
| College: | Florida Atlantic | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2012 / Round: 6 / Pick: 173 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2015 | |||||||||||||||
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Alfred Bruce Morris[1] (born December 12, 1988) is an American football running back for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida Atlantic, and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft.
Early life
Morris attended Pine Forest High School in Pensacola, Florida, where he was a letterman in football, basketball and track.[2] In football, he saw action on both sides of the ball. As a senior, he rushed for 1,049 yards with 17 touchdowns, and added 147 tackles and five interceptions on defense. He was named North West Florida MVP, first-team All-State and was a game MVP. He also participated in the PSA All-Star Game. Academically, he was named the student-athlete of the month for Pine Forest. While he was in sixth grade, he played youth football against future Pensacola football stars, wide receiver Doug Baldwin and running back Trent Richardson. Alfred and Trent would meet again in their rookie seasons as the Redskins would travel to Cleveland to take on the Browns.[3]
In track, Morris was one of the state's top performers in the jumping events. At the 2007 FHSAA 1A-2A Outdoor State Finals, he earned a tenth-place finish in the triple jump event, after clearing a career-best mark of 13.40 meters.[4] He also got a PR of 6.48 meters in the long jump, and ran the 200 meters in 23.46 seconds.[5]
College career
In Morris’ 2009 season at Florida Atlantic University, he ran the ball 236 times for 1392 yards. He also scored 11 touchdowns with a career long run of 48 yards. In his 2010 season, Morris rushed the ball 227 times while gaining 928 yards averaging 4.1 yards-per-carry. He also scored a rushing touchdown seven times that season.
College Stats
| Year | GMS | Att | Yds | Avg | TDs | Long | Avg/G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 11 | 7 | 23 | 3.3 | 0 | 9 | 2.1 |
| 2009 | 12 | 236 | 1392 | 5.3 | 11 | 48 | 116.0 |
| 2010 | 12 | 227 | 928 | 4.1 | 7 | 38 | 77.3 |
| Total | 35 | 497 | 2343 | 4.7 | 18 | 48 | 66.9 |
| Rush Attempts | 29 | UNT (10/17/09) |
|---|---|---|
| Rush Yards | 183 | ULL (10/24/09) |
| Rush TDs | 2 | 5X |
| Rush Long | 48 | Troy (11/21/09) |
| Receptions | 3 | MTSU (10/31/09) |
| Receiving TDs | 1 | ASU (11/14/09), FIU (11/28/09) |
| Receiving Long | 38 | ULL (10/24/09) |
| Dates | Yards | Game Vs. |
|---|---|---|
| 10/24/09 | 183 | ULL |
| 11/28/09 | 158 | FIU |
| 10/17/09 | 147 | UNT |
| 11/21/09 | 137 | Troy |
Professional career
2012 NFL Combine
| Ht | Wt | Arm length | Hand size | 40-yd dash | 10-yd split | 20-yd split | 20-ss | 3-cone | Vert | Broad | BP | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 9⅞ in | 219 lb | 31⅜ in | 10¼ in | 4.63 s | 1.60 s | 2.55 s | 4.19 s | 7.01 s | 35½ in | 9 ft 9 in | 16 reps | ||||||||
| All values from NFL Combine[6][7] | |||||||||||||||||||
Washington Redskins
2012 season
Morris was selected in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins.[8] The sixth round draft pick that Washington selected him with was from a trade on July 27, 2011 from the Vikings for Donovan McNabb. He was officially signed by the Redskins to a four-year, $2.22 million contract with a $154,000 signing bonus on May 6, 2012.[9][10] After having impressive preseason performances, where he started two out of four of the Redskins' preseason games, he emerged as a dark horse in the running back competition with Roy Helu, Evan Royster, and Tim Hightower.[11][12][13][14] He was guaranteed a spot on the final 53-man roster for the start of the 2012 season after Morris sat out of the last preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the rest of the Redskins' starters.
The day before the season opener, coach Mike Shanahan announced that Morris would be the starting running back. In his NFL debut and first career start, he rushed for 96 yards on 28 carries and scored two touchdowns against the New Orleans Saints.[15] Despite the Redskins losing to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 3, Morris put on a great display, recording 78 rushing yards on 17 carries and scoring a touchdown, and was even nominated for NFL Rookie of the Week.[16] The next week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he had his first 100-yard game; recording 113 yards on 21 carries and one touchdown.[17] On October 7, versus the Atlanta Falcons, Morris rushed for his second career 100 yard game. He was named Rookie of the Week after his performance in Week 7 against the New York Giants, where he rushed for 120 yards on 22 carries.[18] He would later have three consecutive 100-yard performances starting in the Week 12 game against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. Morris would be named Rookie of the Week for the second time after his performance against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 14.[19]
In the final game of the regular season, Morris ran 33 times for 200 yards and 3 touchdowns, setting two new Redskins franchise records. His effort helped lead the Redskins to a 28-18 victory over their division rivals, the Dallas Cowboys, to win the NFC East for the first time since 1999 and earn a playoff spot for the first time since 2007. Finishing the season with a total of 1,613 rushing yards and thirteen touchdowns, he broke Clinton Portis’ rushing record for a single-season of 1,516 yards and Charley Taylor's record of most touchdowns scored in rookie season of ten touchdowns.[20][21][22] Morris also became the fourth player in NFL history to ever record over 1,600 rushing yards in his rookie year; ultimately ranking third behind Eric Dickerson and George Rogers, respectively.
With Morris' 1,613 rushing yards combined with 815 rushing yards attained by Robert Griffin III, the two rookies accounted for 90% of the Redskins' total rushing yards for the 2012 regular season, which led the Redskins to finish first in the league in rushing.[23] In the regular season, he also finished second in the league in total rushing yards, only behind Adrian Peterson, and second in league in rushing touchdowns behind Arian Foster.[24]
2013 season
Prior to the 2013 season, Morris was named to the NFL Network's Top 100 Players of 2013 at #64.[25] Although not as productive as the previous season, Morris finished 4th in the league in rushing yardage with 1,275. On January 17, it was announced that Morris would play in the 2014 Pro Bowl, after originally being selected as an alternate.
2014 season
Morris achieved his third consecutive season of 1,000+ rushing yards by the end of the 2014 season. With this achievement, he became the fourth running back in the Redskins' franchise history to have at least three 1,000-yard seasons along with John Riggins, Clinton Portis, and Stephen Davis.[26] He went to the 2015 Pro Bowl as an alternate for LeSean McCoy.[27]
2015 season
Morris remained the starter for the Redskins, splitting carries with rookie Matt Jones, and Chris Thompson. The Redskins' rushing scheme in their offense was noticeably poor causing Morris' statistics to be particularly lower compared to his past seasons.[28]
Dallas Cowboys
2016 season
On March 22, 2016, Morris signed a two-year, $3.5 million contract with the Dallas Cowboys, with the potential to earn up to $5.5 million.[29]
Statistics
| Rushing | Receiving | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | GP | Att | Yds | Avg | Yds/G | Long | TD | Rec | Yds | Long | TD | Fum | Lost |
| 2012 | WAS | 16 | 335 | 1,613 | 4.8 | 100.8 | 39T | 13 | 11 | 77 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
| 2013 | WAS | 16 | 276 | 1,275 | 4.6 | 79.7 | 45T | 7 | 9 | 78 | 17 | 0 | 5 | 4 |
| 2014 | WAS | 16 | 265 | 1,074 | 4.1 | 67.1 | 30 | 8 | 17 | 155 | 26 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 2015 | WAS | 16 | 202 | 751 | 3.7 | 46.9 | 48 | 1 | 10 | 55 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 64 | 1078 | 4,713 | 4.4 | 73.6 | 48 | 29 | 47 | 365 | 26 | 0 | 11 | 8 | |
Personal
Morris is the son of Ronald and Yvonne Morris. He has six brothers.[30] Morris is a Christian.[31]
Despite being able to afford a new car, he still drives his 1991 Mazda 626, which he nicknamed "Bentley".[32] He drove this car from Boca Raton, Florida to his new D.C. home. Due to the positive publicity, Mazda refurbished the car free of charge. As part of the refurbishment, the car received a new radio featuring a CD player and a navigation system, but otherwise was restored to factory floor condition.[33]
Morris had swapped jerseys with his idol Earl Campbell after Campbell became impressed with his performance in his rookie season.[34]
References
- ↑ "ESPN Profile". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
- ↑ Alfred Morris. "Alfred Morris Bio - Florida Atlantic Official Athletic Site Florida Atlantic Official Athletic Site - Football". Fausports.com. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on December 17, 2012. Retrieved December 23, 2012.
- ↑ "FHSAA 1A-2A Outdoor State Finals - 2A Complete Results (Raw)". Fl.milesplit.com. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
- ↑ "Alfred Morris | Florida Atlantic | Redskins RB". Trackingfootball.com. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
- ↑ "NFL Events: Combine Player Profiles - Alfred Morris". Nfl.com. 2013-02-13. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
- ↑ "Alfred Morris - 2012 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile", NFLDraftScout.com
- ↑ Campbell, Rich. "Redskins draft RB Alfred Morris, OT Tom Compton in 6th round". The Washington Times.
- ↑ Chase, Chris (September 20, 2012). "Alfred Morris Drives a $1,300 car to Redskins Park". usatoday.com. Retrieved 2012-09-20.
- ↑ Jones, Mike (May 6, 2012). "Redskins sign two more draft picks". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved 2012-05-06.
- ↑ Tinsman, Brian (August 25, 2012). "Morris Shines, Stays Healthy Vs. Colts". Redskins.com. Retrieved 2012-08-31.
- ↑ Breen, Matthew (August 12, 2012). "Redskins training camp: Alfred Morris is a typical rookie only after practice". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved 2012-08-31.
- ↑ El-Bashir, Tarik (August 12, 2012). "Workhorse Morris a dark horse possibility at RB". CSNWashington.com. Retrieved 2012-08-31.
- ↑ Klemko, Robert (August 27, 2012). "Redskins running back Alfred Morris has a believer in RGIII". USAToday.com. Retrieved 2012-08-31.
- ↑ Jones, Mike (September 9, 2012). "Washington Redskins running back Alfred Morris gets 96 yards in first NFL start". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved 2012-09-10.
- ↑ Bolin, Ross (September 28, 2012). "Andrew Luck named Pepsi Max NFL Rookie of the Week". WLFI.com. Retrieved 2012-10-05.
- ↑ Campbell, Rich (October 2, 2012). "Redskins - Buccaneers Film Review: OFFENSE". WashingtonTimes.com. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- ↑ Tinsman, Brian (October 26, 2012). "Morris Named NFL Week 7 Rookie Of Week". Redskins.com. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
- ↑ Tinsman, Brian (December 14, 2012). "Morris, Cousins Comeback Win NFL Awards". Redskins.com. Retrieved 2012-12-15.
- ↑ Associated Press (December 30, 2012). "Redskins rookie RB Alfred Morris breaks Clinton Portis’ franchise rushing record for season". Washington Post. Retrieved 2012-12-30.
- ↑ Whitmore, Will (December 30, 2012). "Morris Thunders Into The Record Books". Redskins.com. Retrieved 2013-01-01.
- ↑ Tinsman, Brian (December 31, 2012). "Victory Monday Stats Pack: Week 17". Redskins.com. Retrieved 2013-01-01.
- ↑ "2012 Regular Season Statistics". NFL.com. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- ↑ "NFL Player Rushing Statistics - 2012". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
- ↑ "Top 100 Players of 2013". NFL.com. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
- ↑ Jones, Mike (December 21, 2014). "Alfred Morris eclipses 1,000 yards for third time in three seasons". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
- ↑ Jones, Mike (January 19, 2015). "Alfred Morris to replace LeSean McCoy on Pro Bowl roster". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
- ↑ Gulizia, Anthony (October 26, 2015). "Jay Gruden says Redskins need to get running back Alfred Morris going". WashingtonTimes.com. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
- ↑ Patra, Kevin (March 22, 2016). "Cowboys sign Alfred Morris on two-year, $3.5M deal". NFL.com. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
- ↑ Jones, Mike (September 4, 2012). "Redskins RB Alfred Morris: Parents’ example is key to his success". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved 2012-09-04.
- ↑ "Alfred Morris". Retrieved 4 August 2015.
- ↑ Walker, Andrew (September 19, 2012). "Alfred Morris Won’t Give Up His ‘Bentley’". Redskins.com. Retrieved 2012-09-30.
- ↑ Brinson, Will. "Mazda is refurbishing Alfred Morris' infamous 1991 'Bentley'". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
- ↑ Brian Tinsman. "The Redskins Blog | Morris Swaps Jerseys With Earl Campbell". Blog.redskins.com. Retrieved 2016-04-01.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alfred Morris (American football). |
- Dallas Cowboys bio Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
- Washington Redskins bio Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
- Florida Atlantic Owls bio Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
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