Cleveland Browns running back Terrance West put up over 700 total yards and five touchdowns in a platoon with fellow rookie Isaiah Crowell last season. The assumption here was that West and Crowell would share primary ball-carrier duties in 2015 with rookie third-round pick Duke Johnson taking a back seat.
And that has been the case through the early part of camp. Crowell has taken most of the first-team reps with West running on the second team and Johnson on the third team.
However, a recent report from Tony Grossi of ESPN indicates that the coaching staff in Cleveland isn't exactly excited about how West is progressing:
"West looks chunky in his second season and I keep hearing he is on thin ice because of maturity issues," Grossi reported.
The ESPN insider is well known for being a bit overly-dramatic, but this would explain why West hasn't received more run with the first team. While there is no real indication of what these maturity issues might be, West consistently found himself in less-than-favorable standing with the coaching staff last year due to ball security issues and poor practice habits.
Does this mean the second-year running back could find himself out of a job if he doesn't improve his maturity off the field and his consistency on the field? It's hard to imagine the team cutting ties with him completely, but in no way would it be a surprise to see Johnson receive second-team reps behind Crowell moving forward in training camp and into the preseason. If that ends up becoming a reality, Crowell's fantasy stock could jump through the roof. It will be something to monitor over the next few weeks.