Stillers
36, Browns 33���. Jan. 5th, 2003 ����First Round Playoff
Stillers-Browns
Postgame Analysis and Grades
The Stillers and Browns
decided that the 3rd time's the charm, and tussled for the third time this
season.� The results were basically the same:� a Cleveland lead; a Stiller comeback; a nail
biting 4th quarter; and a thrilling 3-point Stiller victory (just as I'd
called for in my pre-game
analysis).� And, just as I'd stated
in my pre-game
analysis, "It's all but certain that this game will come down to nail
biting time in the 4th quarter.� I have
grave concerns about the Stillers' softee pass defense, but this is the
Cleveland Browns, and if any team can find a way to fritter away a playoff
game, it's the playoff-inept Brownies." ��Sure enough, the Stillers
showed why they are, after all, the Pittsburgh Stillers, while the Browns
showed why they are, of course, the playoff gaggers extraordinaire, the
Cleveland Browns.�
Grades:
QB: Maddox was shoddy and shabby early
on, but aided by the spread offense -- along with the Butch Davis/Foge Fazio
overt stupidity of rushing only 3 men -- Maddox was on fire in leading the 2nd
half comeback.� He had numerous poor
overthrows, as well as 2 INTs (one of a pass tipped at the LOS) and several
scattershot passes that could have been INT'd.�
On the other hand, he was pinpoint down the stretch, and cool under
pressure in leading the offense to this heroic comeback.� Overall, despite a rocky start, Maddox
showed great poise and leadership.� Beware
that he'll need to be much better against what will be a far more rabid Titan
pass rush.� A-.�
RB:�
Fortunately, Amos Z. got the start, and gave the Stillers some very
solid rushing production, gaining 73 yards on only 13 carries.� He also ripped off a nice run late in the
1Q.� Chris Fu made some big plays in the
passing game, grabbing 2 passes for 20 yards, and scored the winning TD on a
shotgun draw plunge.� Fortunately, The
Tubby Tailback, Jerome Bettis, touched the ball only once.� He was given the ball on a key 3d & 1,
and was easily cut down for a 2-yard loss.�
Amoz and Fu:� A.� Doughboy Bettis: C.
FB: Kreider, who'd become somewhat
popular in the passing and running game lately, had to sit quite a bit due to
the large deficit.� But, when he was in,
he bulldozed many a Cleveland defender in helping to spring Amoz.� B+.�
WR:�
Ward led the way with 11 grabs for 104 yards & a TD.� Of course, as is usually the case with Ward,
numbers simply don't do justice in describing his contributions.� He made numerous catches in traffic and took
a boatload of punishment.� His RAC work
against the Browns defense was so outstanding, that I began to wonder if the
Cleveland players were wearing roller blades, due to the ease that Ward was
having in outmaneuvering Clev defenders.�
Plex chipped in with a big day himself, grabbing 6 balls for an even 100
yards and a TD.� Rookie A. Randle El
answered the concerns about the #3 WR, grabbing 5 balls for 85 yards.� El took a lot of hits, but made some tough
catches and bedeviled the Browns with his RAC work.� Mathis did a nice job of plowing to the s-line to get OOB late in
the 2Q, but then dropped a pass on the next play.� Still, he chipped in with 3 grabs for 40 yards.� In all, a clutch day for this crew.� A.�
TE:�
Jerame Tuman -- for years called the team's "pass receiving tight
end" despite rarely ever catching any passes -- earned his moniker today
with some simple but clutch grabs.� He
grabbed a TD pass, as well as a 2-pointer.�
He also helped spur Amoz to the healthy 5.6 yards/carry, showing that
you can, in fact, run the ball without a 1-dimensional, bootfooted, cap killing
TE by the name of Mark Bruener.� Special
mention goes to backup TE Marco Battaglia, who, on the Tuman TD, released on a
short crosser and got absolutely hammered and pancaked by a Clev
linebacker.� A.�
OL: The line did a solid job against a
fairly rugged front 7.� Ample rushing
room was provided for Amoz, and had the team not been down by as much as 17
points, the offense could have likely pounded the ball on the ground with
decent success.� The O-line also gave
The Madd Ox decent time in the pocket.�
Tommy was sacked 3 times, 2 of which were the direct fault of rookie RG
Kendall Simmons, who got thoroughly tooled and abused in sickening fashion on
each of these sacks.� Of course, the
asinine use of a 3-man rush by Clev in the 2nd half made the pass protection by
the 5-man line as easy as shooting fish in a barrel.� A-.�
DL:�
Facing what is easily one of the 5 worst O-line in the NFL, the D-line
ate them alive, just as I'd predicted in my pre-game report.� Not counting a 5-yard end-around by a WR,
nor 2 QB scrambles, the Clowns finished with 25 rushes for a paltry 30
yards.� (And 23 of those came on 1 carry
by Green.)� Hampton, Kimo, Smith and
Bailey all deserve kudos for shutting down the running lanes of William
Green.� A.
LB:�
Going into this game, ILB Kendrell Bell was listed as questionable with
his on-going problematic ankle.�
Somehow, Bell was able to give it a go, and he responded with one of the
greatest playoff efforts by a Stiller LB in its long history of great
linebacking.� Bell was all over the
field -- stuffing running plays; disrupting running plays; and smothering
would-be pass catchers.� I shutter to
think what Bell might have done had he been 100% healthy.� Joey Porter was tough and active, and helped
force a FG when, on 2d & goal at the Pit 4, he sniffed a cutesy hand-off
and "option pass" play by KJ, and dumped KJ for a 15-yard loss.� He also dropped RB W. Green for a loss with
an incredible, Spiderman kind of 1-handed grab and shove to the dirt.� James Farrior provided some good pressure
with some inside blitzes, and also helped jam the running game.� On a down note, Farrior -- The Great
Winged God of LB Coverage -- got tooled badly by TE Mark Campbell in the 3Q
on a routine little seam route, resulting in a 16 yard gain.� Jason Gildon collected a lot of slop solos
on ground plays in which Green had nowhere to run, and simply ran wide into the
arms of the lightly-touched Gildon.� Big
Jason also was flagged for offsides.�
Jason was sucked-and-sealed in badly on the 4Q TD pass to Davis, a play
that was exactly the same as the TD to Keyshawn Johnson 2 weeks
ago.� And Big Jason -- supposedly armed
with his newfound "bull rush" -- spent the entire day
loop rushing wide of mediocre RT Ryan Tucker, providing virtually no heat or
harassment on the QB the entire game, although did get a hand on the arm of
Holcomb on a pass attempt late in the 4Q.�
This grade would be higher if this crew had hit, punished, harassed, and
disrupted the QB with some regularity.� B+.�
DB:�
The team's Achilles heel, which was missing starting CB Chad Scott, got
burned and scorched throughout the game by the Cleveland WR corps and Holcomb's
solid passing.� Hank Poteat took the
most abuse, so much so, that the Allegheny County Board of Social Services has
already started an inquiry on the pubic humiliation and abuse that was given to
Hank by the Browns' offense.� Hank gave
up the long 83 yard gain to KJ on 3d & 14 on the very 1st drive (although
Brent offered no help whatsoever), and what made it all the more despicable was
that Hank literally stopped running after KJ.�
On his behalf, Hank is where he is in his 3rd season, thanks to a
myopic, ostrich-like coaching staff that has not only failed to develope this
guy at all, but forced him to rot on the bench his first 2 seasons, in
which he played maybe all of 15 plays on defense.� Logan was beaten for the N-cutt TD, and also was flagged for a
15-yard "leading with the helmet on the QB".� But he atoned for it just 2 plays later with
a huge INT, with Clev. up 24-7 and fairly deep in Stiller territory.�� DeShea took his lumps, getting fooled on a
pump fake by the QB and giving up a deep completion to KJ.� On the play prior to Logie's INT, Washington
adroitly busted up a flag to KJ in the end zone.� Flowers looked clumsy and thoroughly out of place on the deep,
but underthrown, bomb to Davis that was good for 44 yards.� Lee did deliver some hits, and led the team
with 10 total tackles.� Other than
Logan's INT and the bust-up in the EZ by DeWayne, the DB crew made a play on maybe
one other pass all day.� Despite
what simpletons like Ron Cook may claim, the Clev. WR crew is talented and
deep, but getting roasted for 429 yards by a scrub journeyman like Kelly
Holcomb -- who was playing on the road and behind a horrific O-line -- is
absolutely reprehensible.�� D-.��
Spec teams:�
In typical fashion under the supreme tutelage of Billy Cowher, the spec
teams were an abortion, fumbling away one punt return (by El), giving up a long
punt return by Northcutt of 59 yards; and missing a very makeable FG of 46
yards.� Saving the bacon for the spec
teams, however, was El, who fielded a 2Q punt on 1 knee, and then skirted past
a bunched up gaggle of Browns and dashed down the s-line for a 66-yard TD
return. �As noted, Reed missed his only
FG try, although his plant foot slipped badly, which caused the knuckled
miss.� His KOs were a bit shallow.� Punter Tom Rouen was a bit short with his
boots, although the blustery weather wasn't all that conducive to booming
punts.� C.�
OC:�
Mularkey (perhaps Cowher as well) deserves credit for making an
outstanding pre-game decision -- starting Amoz and sitting FatBoy Bettis.�� Unlike the shameful loss to NE last year,
when Bettis moved like a bloated whale, the staff shrewdly sat down The
Doughboy and got excellent productivity from Amoz.� Of course, why Mularkey threw in The Doughboy on a critical 3d
& 1 plunge is anyone's guess.�
Another bizarre event occurred when Ward caught a short curl to the Clev
3, setting up 2d & G at the 3 with 0:54.�
Maddox looked to the s-line, and was evidently given the order to call a
T.O.� WHY ???� The prior play, Plex had gotten OOB, which gave the Stillers
plenty of time to huddle and call 2 successive plays in the huddle.�� 50-plus seconds to get off 2 plays from the
opponent's 3-yard line is ample time, and what essentially happened is that
Mularkey and Co. left a load of time on the clock for Clev to come back and
nearly get into FG range.� Obviously, it
may have been Billy Cowher who called the TO, and not the OC.� At any rate, Mularkey had an easy time
feasting on a prevent defense that was foolishly rushing 3-men.� Yes, it was a great idea to go to the
no-huddle, spread offense, but with the score 24-7, this wasn't some Einsteinium
decision.� What aided the passing
offense was the Cleveland asininity of rushing only 3 men at the NFL's slowest
quarterback.� Mularkey's real
test will come next week against a Titan defense that will sooner gouge their
eyes out with burning pungi sticks than play a sissy defense that rushes just 3
men.� B+.�
DC:�
Here's all you need to know about Tim Lewis' coaching preparation: on
the 2nd play from scrimmage, the Stillers had to burn a T.O. because -- gasp --
the Browns went no-huddle and used a 4-WR formation.� Apparently, the Stiller defense was coached to sooner
expect an appearance by Jimi Hendrix than the no-huddle, 4-WR formation.� It's hilarious to look back and see all the
fawning over Tiny Tim and his defense when the opponents were inept buffoons
like Houston, Carolina, and Tampa.�
Facing what was the worst starting QB in the 2002 NFL playoffs,
along with the worst O-line in the '02 playoffs and the worst
rushing attack in the '02 playoffs, the vaunted Stiller defense still got
carved up for 429 yards passing and 33 points.�
The inability to make plays on passed balls -- so marked that one must
wonder if the secondary is coached to avoid a flying football -- has
gone on all season and was thoroughly horrible today.� To his credit, Coach Butch Davis took my pre-game analysis --
in which I'd stated that his only chance for success was to spread the
field with his 4 gifted WRs -- and went with it with exactly the success that
I'd said would occur.� In all, a totally
unacceptable day by the DBs.� D-.�
HC:�
Billy Cowher dodged a bullet due to the late-game comeback.� Billy was on the verge of choking away yet
another playoff game, until the Cleveland 3-man rush and the late-game heroics
of Maddox and Co. pulled the apple from his throat.� Cowher will crow and preen over this win, but put into
perspective, he damn near lost in embarrassing fashion -- while playing in the
comfy confines of his HOME field -- to an out-manned, out-talented,
out-experienced team.� Only Billy Cowher
-- playing at HOME -- could allow a grossly inferior team like the Cleveland
Clowns to take the Stillers down to the wire.�
Cowher's expertise is supposed to be defense and spec teams, and
aside from the El TD return, both of these aspects sucked ass.� The 2nd play from scrimmage, and his defense
has to call a timeout due to befuddled confusion??� Preposterous, but true.� Add
this sloppy squeaker to the long list of sloppily played, poorly-prepared-for
playoff games that have been "led" (sic) by the esteemed coaching of
Billy Cowher.� Poor preparation, loads
of befuddlement, sloppy execution, pitiful special teams play, and the
never-ending failure to rectify glaring problems -- all a tradmark of a Billy
Cowher playoff team, and all comprising the reason why Cowher is the worst
playoff coach in modern NFL history.� This
game was the classic example of the team winning in spite of -- not because of
-- their head coach.� D.�
Synopsis:
�The thrill of victory -- for the Stillers --
and the agony of defeat for the Browns!!��
A thrilling, come-from-behind win for the Stillers!� I'd called for a 3-point Stiller win, and thankfully
we came back and got it.� This game was
fun, entertaining, and exciting, and we all may as well enjoy this one for a
day or two.� Then, the reality must be
faced.� Like the sloppy-assed 7-6
playoff win over New England in Jan. of 1998, this game showed a host of warts
that, with the gleeful celebration of the big win, will probably be quickly forgotten
by most fans and most assuredly the entire coaching staff.� The pass defense, which has been a problem
all season long when facing at least mediocre passing attacks, was absolutely
horrendous.� And this was against a
backup QB who was playing on the road and fighting the loud crowd noise.� Next week, it won't be the sieve-like Brown
O-line; it will be a decent Titan O-line.�
It won't be Kelly Holcomb; it will be Steve McNair, who was a prime
contender for the league MVP award.� It
won't be rookie William Green toting the ball, but Eddie George.� It won't be Tyrone Rogers rushing the QB,
but rather a fellow named Jevon Kearse.�
Cowher and his crew have an enormous amount of work to do to prepare for
Tennessee, because, as stern as Cleveland may have been, the Titans will be a
bit sterner, and then some.� Savor the
victory, Stiller fans, and then get on your game face and get ready for the
Bitans.��