Loose Slag from The Still Mill (Oct 6th, 2003)

 

�some loose slag from the hideous loss to the Browns�.

 

- Going into this game, Billy Cowher trumpeted this ludicrous fallacy that the Stillers' 2 losses were the result of "a total of 5 bad plays".� It was bullshit then and bullshit now.� It was far more than 5 bad plays that led to those losses.� The plethora of penalties, horrible spec team plays, turnovers, and secondary gaffes alone added up to at least 65 bad plays, not 5.� Denial of a known problem is the fault of the denier, and aside from Richard Nixon and Billy Clinton, no one has made a career based on denial more than Billy Cowher.��

 

- Having scrubbed the tape (unlike 99.9% of the Pittsburgh media), I can vouch that the O-line play was, once again, absolutely horrendous.� Pure vomit.� Some examples:

 

����������� - Maddox sacked, 3d & 7, 2:06 1Q.� Simmons whiffed miserably.� Absolutely pitiful.

����������� - On a play-action pass in the 2Q that was designed to go deep, Fordham was abused so badly that Maddox had to tuck the ball and then dump it off to Amoz.

����������� - On the McCutcheon INT/TD, Fat Oliver got tooled and allowed pressure.� On the other side, Fordham got tooled with a weak-assed lookout block.�

����������� - 1st & 10, 9:26 3Q - Ross got "swammed".� His man swam to the inside and blasted Maddox just after he threw.��

����������� - And for the biggest laugh, check out the running play on 1st & 10 at the Pit 7, at 5:41 1Q.� As you can see, below, Fordham lunges at the DE (Lang) on this basic dive play, and whiffs miserably�and then ends up FACE FIRST in the dirt.�

 

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As I said last week, with Ross in the starting lineup, the Stillers have 3 sub-par starters on the O-line; a marginal starter at center, and a standout at LG.� Not good.� But, hey -- there's absolutely no sense in allowing Vincent or Nkwenti some work.� No Siree.� When you have an O-line as dominant and as great as this one, by golly, the last thing ya wanna do is make changes.�

 

- I said it last week, and it's worth repeating: never have I seen a lineman regress the way Simmons has.� After a very solid rookie campaign, he stunk opening day and hasn't been worth a tinker's damn since.� If he's still recovering his strength and stamina from diabetes, then this coaching staff absolutely must give serious consideration to sitting him out and allowing Vincent to play.� Staunchly insisting on starting a guard who is continually getting overmatched and overwhelmed is just stone stupid.�

 

- Marvel Smith is probably a good couple of weeks from returning to action.� He played one series and had to call it a day.� On the 3rd play of that series, in which C. Brown stripped Maddox, Smith was bullrushed and wheeled back to the QB by backup DE Mark Word.� Smitty looked flaccid and meek.� As poor as Fat Oliver is, ya gotta let Smitty recover, lest the injury fester all season long, a la KenBell in 2002.�

 

- On Andre Davis' 6-yard TD on the game's first drive, Burnt Alex went from the middle of the field and chased after Jamel White near the sidelines like a heroin addict chasing after a $20 bill blowing in the wind.� Problem was, James Farrior was already covering White as well.� This left the middle of the field WIDE OPEN, and Davis graciously mosied into the open acreage and caught the gimme TD pass.� Remember this boneheaded play the next time you hear Little Billy and Tiny Tim blather on and on about what a mental genius of a football player Burnt Alexander is at safety.�

 

- Sunday's Post Gazette "pregame matchup" actually gave the edge, in the matchup of Clev's WRs vs. our DBs, to the Steelers.� What a joke!� That's precisely why we started this here web site back in 1999 -- to give you, the fans, some actual intelligence and analysis in coverage of the Stillers.�

 

- Deshea replaced Logie in the nickel.� Wow, what a change!� What an adjustment!!� Let's remove our best cover safety and keep our SLOWEST DB, Burnt Alex, on the field.� No wonder the nation's economy is struggling.� With such genius at head coach, we are tying up intellectual capital that, because of its sheer brilliance, could be spent working the intricate nuances of a trillion-dollar economy.�

 

- Randle El's shiftiness and quickness is a great asset as a returner�.a PUNT returner, that is.� Unfortunately, his style is not conducive at all to KO returns.� You saw Ike Taylor make 2 excellent KO returns in this game, while El did squat on KO returns.� Ike has what you need in a KO returner -- reckless, north-south speed.� Spare me any Dante Hall comparisons.� Although Hall likes to dance on PRs, on KO returns Hall sees a hole and then runs like a demon, with no juking or stuttering.� If Billy Cowshit is going to rot Freddie Millions all season by not even allowing the guy to dress, then he should at least have enough brains to make Ike the man on kickoff returns.

 

- Larry Foote had a weak flail on the 67-yard KO return by Davis in the 2Q.� Someday, perhaps someone can explain to me why this man is even on the roster.

 

- Conversely, Clint Kreiwalt continues to impress on spec teams.� He had 2 nice stops on KO returns, and recovered a fumble that 2 teammates were totally unable to gather.�

 

- Couch missed the playoff game when Holcomb torched us for 429 yards; Couch then returned the favor by carving up the Softee Defense in this latest debacle.� You can bet that when the Browns meet the Stillers again on Nov. 23rd, both Holcome and Couch will be fighting with every means possible to do the QB chores in that game.� Even if both are injured, each man will go out of his way to take pain-killing injections, voodoo therapy, herbal weed ingestion, acupuncture, and even a fifth of Jim Beam if that's what it takes to stumble onto the field in a half-coherent, half-able state.� After all, even if injured, why on earth would a QB want to sit when he can play pitch n' catch in a totally unfettered manner, completing 90% of his passes and looking like the next Danny Marino??�� If Couch, who could very well be a sal-cap cut come March, can get another start against the Softee Defense, his agent -- armed with video tapes of some hilarious carvings -- will have an easier time getting him a new contract than selling ice water in the Saharan desert.

 

- Speaking of Couch and his possible sal-cap cut, it wouldn't be a shabby idea to give Couch a look see should that cut occur.� It could be argued that Couch is a better QB than either Maddox or Batch.� Sure, he wouldn't have The Softee Defense to carve up if he joined the Stillers, but he might be an adequate acquisition.

 

- For all the heralded blather about "the pocket push of Casey Hampton", the fat boy didn't push the pocket back even once the entire evening.� Not once.� Hampton's run-stuffing is certainly admirable, but a short, fat, squatty nose tackle adds NOTHING in terms of harassment and pressure on passing plays. Billy Cowher just loves ONE dimensional players, and no amount of fact or proof will ever change his mind.�

 

- Five games into the season, the Stillers finally threw a real flare pass to Amoz.� But only 1.� It gained an easy 7 yards, and, well, ya don't wanna go to the well once too often.

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- It is universally recognized that the first step in the problem solving process is to DEFINE the problem.� Only then can one then go about solving the problem.� Allow me to help: Billy Cowher.�

 

- The Rooneys have made 3 major mistakes since the spring of 1998, a span of 5 years.�� They are:

 

����������� 1.� Not calling Cowshit's bluff in March 1998 when he threatened to jump ship to Cleveland, which, at the time, had no NFL team anyway.

����������� 2.� Firing Donahoe and retaining Cowher.

����������� 3.� Following the Donahoe dismissal, instead of hiring personnel guru Tom Modrak to be the GM, they hired Colbert to be a puppet GM, and Modrak left the franchise.�

 

In isolation, these mishaps could be mitigated, but because all three of these boners occurred, the effect has been crippling.� Three brutal, inter-related blunders�.the results of which you saw on national TV Sunday night.

 

- When Amoz was drafted, we played in the concrete bowl on Astroturf.� Amoz starred at WVU while playing on Astroturf.� Although he has skill and utility, I fully believe that Amoz will never reach whatever his full potential is while playing on a grass home field and in a division full of grass fields.�

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- Want to see what desire, heart, and pride look like?� Go watch the scrum after El fumbled that punt in the 3Q.� You'll see Brown players diving around and "cleaning off the pile" by blasting away Stillers who are nearby the scrum.� On the other hand, you'll see a stand-around from men in black jerseys.�

 

- I'd stated in the offseason -- in writing -- that I hated to see Terrance Mathis not being re-signed.� Our 4WR set hasn't been jack shit all season long.� Instead of the trusty, dependable, clever, quick Mathis as our #4 WR, we have to make do with Chris Doering or Lee Mays.�

 

- Alonzo Jackson was a no-dress for the 3rd week in a row.� The guy makes a blunder on spec teams coverage -- as if no one else on a Cowher-coached team ever does -- and now he's in Cowshit's doghouse, banished to wearing street clothes for the rest of the season.� Gee, it sure is nice for a 2nd-round draft pick to ROT, while 2nd rounders all over the league are ON THE FIELD, making an impact.� When it comes to player development, no one does less than Lil' Billy Cowher.�

 

(Still Mill and Stillers.com -- the only nationally read coverage on the Pittsburgh Stillers that has accurately predicted the how's and the why's of the past 3 Stiller playoff losses�.)