Ouch. Brandon Marshall did not have much faith in his teammate Eric Decker last year when he first signed on with the New York Jets.
This is Decker’s recollection of a conversation between he and Marshall after Marshall was traded to his team.
“Today he told me, ‘I honestly thought you were a product of Peyton [Manning]. Like I didn’t believe you were good,’” Decker said, per Kimberley A. Martin of NewsDay.
Marshall didn’t deny Decker’s remark.
“I did,” Marshall said. “[I used to think] ‘Man, it’s not fair, they have Peyton.”
Decker was quite successful during his last two seasons playing with Manning when he tallied a total of 2,352 yards and 24 touchdowns during the 2013-14 seasons. And, his production notably dropped off during his first year as a Jet with Geno Smith and Michael Vick under center.
That said, Decker undeniably returned to his “Peyton” form last year when working alongside Marshall catching passes from Ryan Fitzpatrick. In fact, the pair broke a previous record held by Cris Carter and Randy Moss when they both scored in nine games in 2015. Overall, the duo put 26 touchdowns on the scoreboard last year.
Marshall now heaps his praises on Decker.
“He’s probably one of the better route runners in our league. And I don’t think people really understand it — I didn’t even really . . . And then, probably during the Indy game [in Week Two], I was like, ‘Wow, this dude is pretty good.”
Obviously, both receivers thrived when working with Fitzpatrick. With the Jets and Fitz currently sitting in a contentious stalemate concerning a new deal for the free agent (more on that here), it is looking more like Decker and Marshall will have to work with Smith.
Marshall and Decker combined for whopping 189 total catches and 2,529 yards in 2015. Whether their success is directly tied to Fitz will be seen soon enough.
However the story plays out, fans can be assured both receivers will be diligently practicing and prepared to play with either quarterback this fall.