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Stillers 2001 Final Player Grades

February 12, 2002 by Still Mill

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Stiller Players Grades -- 2001 Season

Foreword: These grades are based on a player's play during the entire season, as I personally watched and re-watched (via videotape), as well as took notes on, each and every play of the season.(Coaches' grades will be issued next week.)�� Bear in mind that a player's grade is based not only on what he did, but also his years of experience in the league, his salary, and any expectations of him (to include the round he was drafted in, if applicable). In other words, more is expected from a seasoned 6-year veteran making $4 million per year, than of an undrafted rookie free agent making the league minimum. Every year, I hear gripes and yelps about various grades, so to reiterate -- the grades are very dependent upon experience and the amount of money the player is consuming relative to his teammates. Those not playing enough get an incomplete grade ("Inc").�� R = regular season; P = playoffs

In last-name alpha order, here are the final grades:

Brent Alexander: Brent was supposed to be too slow for the Stiller coaching staff; hence the signing of Mike Logan.But Brent had no problem winning the starting FS job at camp, and started at FS the entire season.�� Brent gave the Stillers steady, solid play at FS, and rarely ever made the grave free safety blunders that can put 6 points on the board in a hurry.�� Brent was also sure-handed and tough in run support.�� Perhaps Brent's largest boner was jumping on LB Earl Holmes in the playoff game vs. Balt., which injured Earl's good knee and forced him to miss the Pats game.�� R=B+. P=B.

Rodney Bailey: The 6th rounder from Ohio State was given a so-so chance of making the team, but he played tough right from the get-go in preseason.�� Bailey caught my eye in preseason, based on tough play and a good feel for playing in the trenches.�� Bailey chipped in throughout the season, spelling Kimo and Aaron from time to time.�� All in all, Rodney probably had the best rookie campaign for a Stiller DE in a decade.�� R=A-.P=B.

Kendrell Bell: Not a lot needs to be said about this man.He came to camp, he rocked, and then he rocked the entire season.�� In addition, he was the co-winner of the year-end Hard Hat Award.�� In the playoffs, he was the Stillers' best LB.�� R=A+.�� P=A.

Myron Bell: Myron was brought back to the Stillers for insurance and veteran depth.He played ok, but this probably was the last season in Pittsburgh for Boo Bell.R=B.�� P=B-.

Bettis: The Doughboy was having an outstanding season, until he pulled a groin in the Vikings game in early Dec.�� The Tubby Tailback sat out the remaining 5 regular season games, and then had to sit out the Ravens game when a painkiller shot struck a nerve.�� Bettis started against the Pats in the AFC Title game, and was a complete flop.He moved with all the speed of a glacier, and showed little burst or plowing.�� It's a shame that Bettis failed to tell the coaches the truth about his inability to run with gusto, as well as his total inability to maintain his weight and conditioning during the layoff.�� R=A-.�� P=D-.

Blackwell: After spending most of last season on PUP, Worthless Will spent his 5th NFL season on IR.�� Technically, according to the rules of the registrar's office, I could give Jackwell an "Inc" grade, but for a former 2nd round pick who has been wasting a roster spot for over 3 years now while giving virtually nothing in return, I believe I'll issue him a grade nonetheless.D-.

Bowers: The young RB from nearby Grove City College was signed when injuries forced Amos and Bettis to sit out.Bowers got some work in the Cinci game, and then got even more against Cleveland, even scoring a TD.�� Of course, the beleaguered Cleveland defense wasn't the second coming of the '85 Bears, but it was nice to see a local boy do well.�� Unfortunately for RJ, unless he can bulk up and play FB, he probably won't make the '02 squad if Bettis, AZ, and Fu return.�� R=B+.P=Inc.

K. Brown:After going 25-29 and 25-30 in his first two seasons, the bottom fell out for the former Nebraska kicker.�� Brown had the hideous day in the Ravens loss, and then went into a swoon thereafter.��� He ended up leading all kickers in missed FGs.�� To his credit, he made his only attempt in the AFC Title game.�� But Brown's inconsistency -- both on FGs and kickoffs -- has to force the team to bring in someone to compete with Brown for the job.�� R=C-.�� P=B+.

Bruener: Often referred to as the "19-catch per year wonderboy", the bootfooted, brittle-fingered Bruener was on his way to yet another 19-catch season, when he injured his shoulder against Jax and was lost for the last 7 games of the season.��� Yes, he blocked well. La di da. For a man who chews up millions in cap money, his production was woefully unacceptable.And let's not forget the horrific failure to get even a pinkie on Rod Woodson, which caused an immensely-critical FG block in the Raven loss.R=C+, P=Inc.

Plaxico Burress:Plex started off the '01 campaign pretty slowly, but then caught fire in the Monday nite win over the Titans, and rolled on from there to a 1,000 yard season.Burress learned to use his size and athleticism to go up and after balls, and he became more confident as the season wore on.On the minus side, Plex dropped too many balls -- caused by his penchant of allowing balls to thump into his chest -- and he committed far too may false start and pass interference penalties.�� In all, Plex had the kind of season that NFL scouts envisioned he'd have, and his future looks extremely bright.�� R=A-.�� P=B.

Clancy:The 2nd-year NT began the season by sharing the starting chores with rookie 1st-rounder Hampton.Gradually, Hampton wrested the starting job, but Clancy still got a fair amount of work, and was able to provide solid relief and platooning.Clancy showed that he could be a starting DT if the team moves to a 4-3 scheme, and if not he'll be a solid backup at NT behind Hampton.��� R=B+.�� P=B.

Chris Combs: The 2nd year man from Duke (who the hell drafts football players from Duke, except the Stillers, who also drafted QB Spence Fisher from Duke a few years ago??) spent most of the time deactivated or waxing his bean on the sidelines.Hard to imagine that he won't be sent packing before the '02 season begins.�� R=Inc.�� P=Inc.��

Cushing: Cushing served as a third TE, and then was elevated to a lot more work when Bruener was shelved.Cushing blocked tough at the point of attack and was fairly reliable when thrown the ball.R=B.�� P=B.

Duffy: The aged veteran served as an insurance backup for center Jeff Hartings, just in case Hartings struggled at his new position, or was injured.�� Luckily, neither happened, so other than mop up work, Duffy rarely ever got playing time.With youngsters like Okobi, Vincent, and Nkwenti waiting in the wings, this surely was The Duffer's last season in Pittsburgh.�� R=Inc.��� P=Inc

Edwards: Eddie began the season slowly, but came on immensely, most notably on special teams.Troy emerged as one of the best -- if not the best -- cover men on the spec teams, and he also supplanted Poteat in the punt/kickoff return chores, where he gave the team a significant boost.�� Additionally, once Troy became fully assimilated into the spec teams work, the increased involvement and PT caused his pass-catching to improve to near flawless results.�� Troy didn't drop more than 1 or 2 passes the final 8 or 9 games of the season.�� In the playoffs vs. NE, Troy committed the foolish boner of running OOB while on punt coverage, which forced the re-punt that culminated in Troy Brown's TD jaunt.R=B.�� P=C.

Faneca:Big Al finished his 4th season and was rewarded by being named to the all-pro team.�� Faneca's pass blocking was spotty on a few occasions, but overall was decent, and his run blocking -- long his forte' -- was solid and tough.�� R=A.�� P=B.

Fiala: The former Huskie had an adequate, but hardly spectacular season -- as the team's special teams captain.In fact, the special teams that Fiala captained were easily the worst in the entire NFL.�� Fiala didn't play much at ILB.He was forced to play some on opening day in Jax, due to Bell's injury and Jones being deactivated, but Fiala did little.�� Fiala was also the first man who whiffed on Troy Brown on the TD-punt return vs. NE.��� R=B-.�� P=D.

Flowers:Lee had a solid season, although, unlike last season, when he finished third in tackles on the team, he dropped down to 6th, even getting out-tackled by FS Brent Alex.�� Lee did lay the wood into many a ballcarrier and receiver, and helped stuff the run.But Lee was also repetitively victimized for TDs and big gainers by opposing TEs and other receivers he was assigned to cover.�� R=B.��� P=B-.

Fuamatu-Ma'afala:Chris finally had a fairly injury-free season, and he contributed immensely when Bettis and Amoz were shelved.�� He ran the ball with good toughness and authority, although at times he was a bit hasty and a bit "off" in his reading of the play.�� His pass catching and blocking were solid.��� R=A.�� Because Fu was only allowed to play a few meager plays in the AFC Title game, his P grade is an "Inc".

Gandy: Wayne responded with yet another solid, strong season.�� He held down Stew's blind side and also provided decent run blocking.�� Well done.R=A.�� P=B.

Geason: Corey was initially cut, but then brought back when Bruener was shelved, and played in 7 games.He didn't get the PT that Tuman and Cushing did, but he did chip in on some multiple TE sets.��� R=Inc��� P=Inc

Gildon:Regular readers should have a very good feel for Gildon's grade, what with the weekly and year-end Gildong Reports that inherently serve as input for his final grade. Get past the Dong Sacks that Big Jason accumulated (9 of his 12 sacks were Dong Sacks), and you have a player who was pitifully soft against the run all year.There were also numerous games where Jason all but disappeared (Jax #1, Cinci #1, KC, Jax #2).�� As shown in the GilDong Report, no team EVER "shifted their blocking" to block The Dong; rather, the man simply disappeared and did nothing.��� Of course, Jason's biggest games were against cream puffs like Detroit and Cleveland.Jason's was so soft and feeble at tackling ballcarriers, in fact, that he finished 46th among the 48 starting LBS in the AFC in tackles.�� Jason didn't do squat against Balt. in the playoff game, but did have a couple adequate plays vs. NE.But those plays were overshadowed by the multitude of soft, feeble plays, including no less than 5 plays in which Jason had a ballcarrier dead to rights, only to flop, flail, and whiff; as well as Jason's outright and shameful quitting on the TD pass to David Patten.For the cap money Jason ate, and for the Pittsburgh legacy of tough, hard-hitting linebacking, it was an outright travesty.�� R= C-.�� P=D+.

Clark Haggans:The 2nd-year LB from CSU went through the same fate as Amoz Zereoue did in his sophmore season -- a lot of splinters stuck in his pants from being forced to rot on the bench.��� Haggans ended up being the team's leading special teams tackler (on combined solos and assists), and given the chance to play the whole 2nd half vs. Cleveland in the finale, he clearly outplayed Jason GilDong.���� As I stated ihn last year's grades, Haggans isn't nearly as explosive or speedy as Porter, but he does seem to have a good nose for the ball and good football instincts.�� OLB:�� R=Inc.�� P=Inc���� Spec teams:�� R=B.�� P=C.��

Hampton:�� The rookie 1st rounder from Texas had a solid rookie campaign.He gave the Stillers some good run stuffing and clogging, and also gave an occasional pocket push and burst through the seams of the opposing line.�� Hampton also showed good hustle.�� If he can keep the weight off -- he easily had bloated to a good 330 by season's end -- he can be a fixture for a number of years.�� R=B+.P=B+.��

Hartings: The Savior was signed in free agency, and after over-coming his snapping problems early in camp, settled into the center chores and had a fine season.�� There were several bobbled snaps in the AFC Title game vs. NE, but it is unknown whether it was Harting's or Stew's fault.�� R=B+.�� P=B-.

Holmes: The Hit Man had yet another studly season, once again leading the team in tackles for the third season in a row, despite being nagged by a sore knee for most of the latter half of the season.�� Hit Man forced a critical fumble in the playoff game vs. Balt, but ironically injured his "good" knee after the play when teammate Brent Alex jumped on him in celebration.�� Holmes had to sit out the Patriot game, which turned out to be a major loss.�� R=A.�� P=B+.

Chris Hoke: The rookie hokie from BYU waxed his carrot the entire season, and was actually moved from the active roster to the practice squad.�� In light of recent failures by the likes of Chris Sullivan and Chris Combs, it might be wise for the team to avoid acquiring DEs who have the first name of "Chris".R=Inc.�� P=Inc

Lenzie Jackson: This young WR was signed late in the summer to fill the role of 5th WR, plus help out on spec teams.�� He did an above-average job on spec teams coverage, and chipped in some in the return game.��� R=B.�� P=B-.

Mike Jones: Jonesy was signed to basically start in place of the departed Fat Levon Kirkland, and keep the spot warm for KenBell.But Bell played well right from the opening of camp, while Jonesy was mediocre.�� On opening day, Jones was deactivated in favor of Justin Kurpeikis, a move that backfired miserably when Bell was injured on the opening KO.�� Jones dressed the rest of the season, and contributed decently as a LB in the nickel and dime packages, as well as being one of the top tacklers on spec teams.�� Jones isn't particularly tough at the point of attack, but is a savvy player and a crisp tackler.���R=B.�� P=B.���

Kreider: Big Dan won the team's rookie of the year award last season, but then got hobbled at camp, first with a freak injury to his calf muscle, and then to a busted hand.�� In the meantime, longtime Cowher favorite Jon Witman was basically handed the starting job on a silver platter, relegating Kreider to meager work in the early part of the season.�� Fortunately for the team, Kreider was eased into more and more work, usually playing over half the game after Witman would start.�� Kreider received national notoriety after the playoff game vs. Balt, when ESPN showed his pancake block on Ravens' LB Ray Lewis.��� R=B+.�� P=B.��

J. Kurpeikis: The rookie LB from PSU got to dress in the opener vs. Jax, and was thrust into PT when KenBell was injured.Justin was about as effective as a Ford Escort on the NASCAR circuit and thereafter dressed sparingly.����� R=Inc.�� P=Inc.

Mike Logan: The former Jaguar was signed to take over the starting FS job from Brent Alex, but was unable to wrest the job from Alex.�� But to his credit, Logan did not mope.�� He gave the team stellar play in the nickel/dime packages, as well as a cover-man on spec teams.�� What impressed me about Logan was his hitting and tackling skills, which were far better than I'd previously been aware.�� Logan might very well be the team's next SS, if Flowers is released for sal cap purposes.��� R=A.P=B.

Tommy Maddox: The ex-Bruin played only sparingly in mop-up, because Stew stayed healthy all year and the team didn't have many blowout wins.�� R=Inc.P=Inc.

Tee Martin:For the 2nd year in a row, Jerome Bettis threw 2 more passes (one) than Tee did all season. I don't have really high hopes for this guy, and at some point in time the team has got to see if he can QB at this level.Fortunately, the team finally got the idea to send Tee to NFL Europe this spring.�� R=Inc.�� P=Inc.

Josh Miller: Josh was rewarded with an extremely gratuitous contract in the offseason.�� While he had a solid season, it was far from spectacular, especially given his fat-laden contract.�� In the AFC title game, Josh sent the re-punt directly down the exact middle of the field, with less hang time than it takes to toss a cigarette butt into a trash can.��� The result was Troy Brown having an acre of room to shake and bake, which he did en route to a huge TD.�� R=B.�� P=C-.

Matthias Nkwenti: This young o-lineman has vast potential, but played only sparingly.�� R=Inc.�� P=Inc.

Chukky Okobi:This young o-lineman has vast potential, but played only sparingly.�� R=Inc.�� P=Inc.

Porter: Joey picked up from his stellar play of last season, contributing a strong season.�� Most fans forget that it was Porter who spearheaded many of the early-season strong defensive efforts, to include the monster game vs. Tampa in which Tampa clearly was not over shifting to block the team's other OLB.�� Because Porter rarely ever came into the opponents backfield untouched, and because every week he was facing the opponent's best tackle, and because -- as the team's best coverage outside LB -- he dropped into coverage far more than he rushed, some fans think that Porter "went quiet" down the stretch.�� That's preposterous, and typical of the average fan's ability to evaluate defensive football, where stats don't begin to tell the story of effectiveness and contributions.R=A.�� P=B.

Poteat: After a sterling segment late in his rookie season, when Hank gave the Stillers some strong punt return work, Hank went downhill in '02.�� Part of the problem may have been the overall rotten nature of the spec teams early in the season, which caused Poteat to take a heavy pummeling. After that, Hank seemed to be a bit gun-shy, and the result was a host of tip-toe returns that gained a lot of yards -- but laterally, not forward.�� Hank was eventually supplanted by Troy Edwards, and soon became vulnerable for deactivation on game day.�� Hank didn't play DB at all the entire season.�� It's hard to recall the last time a Stiller fell so far from grace after a solid rookie season.�� R=C-.P=Inc.��

O. Ross: The Big O served as the team's #1 backup offensive lineman, filling in at both RT and RG.�� He played fairly well at tackle, but struggled immensely at guard, due to his lack of quickness and poor footwork.�� Ross doesn't appear to be a starting caliber lineman, but it serviceable as a backup.�� R=B.�� P=Inc.

Schneck: The trusty long-snapper had another solid, error-free season.�� He was probably the MVP on an otherwise terrible special teams unit.��� R=A.�� P=A.

C. Scott:Chad started out the season in tremendous form, playing at a pro-bowl caliber level, to include the huge INT and return for a TD in the tight win over KC.�� But Chad's play slipped down the stretch, as teams began taking their shots at him, both deep and on underneath stuff against some of his softee cushions.�� IN all, though, Chad had a solid season and a decent playoff.��� R=B.�� P=B.

Shaw: Clay Shaw had another strong season as the team's slot/number-3 receiver.Hi finished 3rd with 24 grabs, and had a very impressive 17 yards per catch -- tops on the team.�� Shaw will long be remembered for the 90-yard TD versus Balt. in the late-season win on ESPN.R=A.�� P=B.

Simmons: The diminutive CB had a spotty season, marred by hamstring problems that forced him to miss some games.Logan and Townsend got the lion's share of the work in the dime defense, leaving Simmons the odd man out.�� R=B-.�� P=B-.

A. Smith: Smitty rotted as a rookie, but emerged last season when Piss Sullivan was nagged by the bad back.This season, Smitter had the finest season for a Stiller DE since perhaps Ray Seals in 1994.�� Smith was stout against the run, and provided good heat and pocket push on pass plays.�� R=A+.�� P=A.

Marvel Smith:Marvel struggled at camp, so much so that line coach Russ Grimm had him practice without a helmet in order to eradicate the problem of awkwardly leading with the head.�� It worked for a short while, but then Smith went into a long lull of sub par mediocrity mixed in with some overt shit and bile.�� In both playoff games, Smith stumbled about and continually was whipped and beaten.�� And to top it all off, Smith was literally bulldozed back 3 yards and knocked on his ass while protecting a FG attempt in the Pats game, which was then blocked and returned for a TD.��� I expected much more from this 2nd-year, 2nd round draft pick.��� R=C-.�� P=F.��

Stewart: The Western Union Man started out slowly, but then snapped out of his 3-year funk with a superb all-around season.�� Stew's passing accuracy and touch improved immensely, aided no less by finally having a QB coach after having none for his first 6 seasons.�� His running was as fluid and tough as ever.Most impressively was his leadership and maturity, which had previously been a huge question mark but was really elevated in '01.Stew did have perhaps his worst game of the season in the playoff loss to New England, in which his throws were chock full of lollipop and/or hideous inaccuracy.�� It's a shame that Stew had such an off performance vs. NE, because his '01 season was otherwise sterling.�� R=A.�� P=C.��

Townsend: The smallish CB from 'Bama had another solid season, contributing a good bit to the nickel/dime defense. Deshea again showed that he has pretty good one-on-one coverage skills.�� He'll be a UFA in March, and will probably get offered a starting job somewhere.�� R=B+.�� P=B.

J. Tuman:Jerame (not "Jermane") began the season spending most of his time resting on a seat cushion, getting a little bit of work on spec teams and multiple TE sets.�� But he came out of the woodwork with his first NFL catch in 2-plus seasons, snaring a 24-yarder against the Chefs in mid-October.�� A week later, amidst a moderate amount of fanfare, Tuman threw his first NFL block.From there, things seemed to take off a bit for Tuman, and when Bruener was shelved for the season in November, Tuman assumed the starting chores the last 7 games of the season.�� Tuman improved his blocking as the season wore on, and chipped in with 7 grabs, which was good for a very respectable 13.7 YPC.�� R=B+.P=B.

Tylski: The former Jaguar wallowed around in the midst of injury and mediocrity in '01.Without question, Tylski was the weakest of the starting offensive linemen, and in the AFC Title game he was marginally more useful than a bag of concrete on the space shuttle.�� R=C.�� P=C-.��

Keydrick Vincent: This young o-lineman has vast potential, but played only sparingly.�� R=Inc.�� P=Inc.

Von Oelhoffen: Kimo moved from NT to DE, and did a solid job, starting all 16 games and ably helping give the defense its best starting D-line in the past 7 seasons.Kimo caused a fair amount of disruption to other teams' schemes with his savvy play and ability to knife in quickly off the snap.�� R=A-.�� P=B.

Ward: Hines started out a bit slow in terms of receiving production, but starting in the 9th game of the season, Ward caught fire and finished with a simply outstanding season.�� Hines finished with a Stiller record of 94 grabs, and also scored 4 TDs.�� His YPC average of 10.7 was fairly puny by NFL standards, but many of his catches were in tough areas of the field where he took a boatload of beatings.�� Ward also established himself as the premier blocking WR in all of football, throwing numerous bone-jarring blocks, a few of which put defenders out of the ballgame.�� Hines was also a co-recipient of the '01 Hard Hat Award.�� Back in the previous offseason, I'd written that Ward was not a starting-caliber WR.�� 2001 proved me wrong.R=A.�� P=B.

Washington: DeWayne had fairly solid season.He got burned for a big TD on opening day, but put that behind himself and went for a long stretch with good, sound play.�� He took some beatings toward seasons end against Cinci and Minnesota, but all in all gave the team good coverage and reliable run support.�� R=B+.P=B.

Witman:The Cowher-loving Witman was able to nudge out the injured Kreider for the starting job, and despite a host of slop and shoddy blocking, Witless got a fair amount of PT all season.�� On opening day, serving on the punt team, Witman -- a 5-year NFL veteran -- absentmindedly allowed Donavan Darius to burst right up the gut of the punt team, and Darius finished this play by crashing into punter Josh Miller and knocking him from the ballgame.�� Hopefully 2001 will be the last season Witman is ever allowed to wear a Stiller uniform.�� R=C.�� P=C-.

Zereoue: After two seasons of rotting on Bill Cowher's bench, Amos was finally allowed to play on fairly regular basis, and he responded with outstanding contributions.�� He toted the ball 85 times; gaining an impressive 5.2 yards per rush, and also snagged 13 passes.�� Amoz added the element of speed that was sorely lacking out of the Stiller backfield, and gave teams like the Ravens fits with his quickness and shiftiness.AZ also had two big TDs in the playoff win over Balt.�� Amos should serve as a model of what can happen when a player is finally allowed to participate during regular-season games.�� R=A.�� P=A-.

 

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