Despite this, Bragg was reluctant to move farther south, say to the arguably more defensible Duck River Valley, or farther north, to Stewart's Creek, where Rosecrans thought Bragg would defend.
Alligevel var Bragg tøvende overfor at rykke længere mod syd, f.eks. til den lettere forsvarede Duck River Valley, eller længere mod nord til Stewart's Creek, hvor Rosecrans regnede med at Bragg ville forsvare sig.