Floyd Patterson vs. Rocky Marciano's opponents?

He loses to the Walcott that Marciano beat, and he also loses to the Moore that Marciano beat.

Yes the Moore fight was only 1 year after, but when Marciano fought guys, he took a piece of them.

 

A lot of criticism was leveled at Patterson for taking easy fights when he was champ (Jackson, Rademacher, London, Harris, McNeeley). The criticism was fair. It appeared that Cus D'Amato lacked confidence in his very young fighter and that was why he bypassed Machen, Folley and by 1960, Liston. But it bears mentioning that Floyd won the championship at 21 when he wasn't yet physically mature. He had tremendous speed and reflexes and his pride and passion for boxing were evident. The later years proved he had little to fear from Folley and Machen. Only Liston, then Ali (and maybe Frazier by 1967) were better. I think Patterson may have been ready to beat the 1956 version of Marciano but the ever-cautious D'Amato thought it best to wait a year or two. He may have heard rumors that the Rock was ready to hang up his jock, and then the field would be clear.

Would 1956 Patterson beat 1954 Charles? Would his speed advantage be greater than his experience deficit? I think so. That bout would be a chess match. Would he beat 1952, age 37 Walcott? Maybe. Depends on which Jersey Joe shows up. If I had to bet, I'd put my money on Floyd. Maybe you've heard the sports expression: Speed doesn't have off days. The tricky Walcott is known to have had off-nights. But en route to defeat Jersey Joe will have some surprises for Patterson. Both men were great fighters but Patterson was greater. Of the fighters who defeated him, all were current, former or would-be champions except one (Quarry).