Buccaneers at Steelers Wrap-Up, Browns at Steelers Preview

This wouldn�t be quite as troubling if it weren�t for the fact that the team is now missing its two starting WR�s. Walter Young and Sean Morey will be coming out in spread formations (possibly even Lee Mays now), and beyond Cleveland, they will have to face the defenses of Carolina and Baltimore. This is a situation that could take some bold and creative coaching, so I�m not too optimistic right now. Hopefully Wilson and Ward can make their return after the 10 day layoff following Thursday.

I expect Parker to play a larger role in the pass game, along with Miller. The TE will most likely line up outside on some four-wide sets, and I think we could see some of Parker lined up outside with Davenport in the backfield.

Options are limited. Last time, the Steelers were able to have success by spreading the Browns out and throwing (late in the game). That doesn�t seem like a realistic expectation this week without both Ward and Wilson. The key is to not turn the ball over this time, though. The defense should be able to bottle-up the anemic Cleveland offense, and keep the pressure off Roethlisberger.

The Browns did not blitz frequently in the last meeting, which isn�t what I had expected or thought while watching the game. Throughout, they blitzed sparingly (probably under 10 times), and it was generally just on third and longs or in other obvious passing situations. The few times they did bring pressure, though, they brought the house, and played man coverage. There was some whining from Browns fans that they laid off too much at the end, but most of their blitzes probably came in that fourth quarter in an attempt to stop a red-hot Roethlisberger. It still wasn�t very successful. After watching what the Ravens did, I would expect them to try and copy their scheme.

What is interesting watching the game is how little respect the Steelers WR�s are given. The Browns seemed to be playing a lot of cover-3 (already banged-up), and left their corners on islands with the Steelers wide-outs. The majority of the time they were in press coverage.

The Steelers waited until the fourth quarter to begin taking their shots down field, of course. They began to run a lot of fly routes, combined with deep crossing/out patterns. The Steelers took five shots on fly routes, and while never actually connecting, there were numerous close calls for the Browns, and the Steelers were able to get one-on-one match-ups frequently.

I expect them to take a few shots deep in this game early. Holmes screwed up his routes twice last time, but he has the speed and ability to do it. This is the game where he has to show why they traded up to draft him in the first round. Washington lacks speed, and seems to be a less attractive option. Miller will have to work the middle of the field. The Steelers need to be able to throw out of their base formation, which they could not last time.

The OL seemed to have trouble making the right blocks, which is a reoccurring theme. They don�t seem to know who they are supposed to block, and it means someone is coming free to make the play. Man-for-man, though, they generally beat the Browns up front. There was some good push, and of all the OL, only Marvel Smith seemed to really struggle. He had a tough time blocking Wimbley no matter the situation, and never got any push on the DE�s. He had two mediocre to awful games in a row there.

The run game clearly needs to come up big. I had hoped/expected it last week. Parker isn�t a great back, but he�s talented and can run when given a real lane. The Steelers had few negative plays last time around, and I do believe they can get themselves into manageable situations with the run game. The key is simply not to fall behind early, as they did last time. The run game will be consistent this week, albeit unspectacular.

It seems likely that they will face Derek Anderson, and not Charlie Frye. It�s hard to know exactly what to expect. Anderson has given Browns fans a new hope, but even Frye had been throwing well on the Chiefs before leaving the game at halftime. He actually outplayed Anderson, as he completed 11/13 passes for 113 yards and 1 TD. Anderson was 12/21, for 177 yards, 2 TD�s, and 1 INT. He was able to get the win, however, and that certainly is a rarity for Browns fans.

Anderson doesn�t seem much different from Frye to me. If there�s one thing he has an edge in, it would be arm strength. Anderson had two nice runs, but Frye likes to scramble himself. I don�t think Anderson will be much different from facing Frye.

What is troubling is that the Steelers will possibly be without both starting safeties. The Browns tried to spread and throw on the Steelers periodically in the last meeting, and I would expect more of that with the injuries. Edwards had a few big catches, but never got deep. I could see them attempt some deep passes this time around (only one aimed at McFadden in the last game), or jump balls to him (especially after the two close hail maries). Townsend has play better than he has been.

There was a bit too much running room for the Browns last time, and that was without Droughns, who is one of the leagues strongest runners. He had some success against the Steelers last year before his team was overwhelmed. The Steelers have had problems tackling all season, and that could pose problems. LB�s and DB�s need to make the play on first contact, which was a big reason Jamal Lewis looked so good running a week ago.

The Steelers weakness in the last meeting was Aaron Smith. The Browns had the overwhelming majority of their success running right, and Ryan Tucker clearly got the better of the match-up. Luckily for the Steelers, Tucker is done for the season due to mental instability. Haggans generally did a good job holding the point, but Smith was washed out of the play on multiple occasions or just knocked back, opening up some running lanes. On the other side, Andruzzi was and is awful. He couldn�t block anyone. Shaffer didn�t give too Keisel too many problems, either.

It was a bit different with Joey Porter, who on a few occasions actually found himself turned and washed completely out of the play by Kellen Winslow. We aren�t talking about any great blocking TE here. It was embarrassing to re-watch that. It didn�t get as much play as Porter getting knocked on his ass with a stiff-arm, but it was probably worse. This was a match-up that went from one extreme to the other, as Porter was able to blow by Winslow and make some plays in the backfield (especially early on), but there�s absolutely no reason a LB who was called the NFL�s most feared man and makes about 6 mil a year should not dominate Winslow in the run game.

Prediction: The defense will have to win this game, as I find it hard to believe the Steelers will have a big day offensively. The good news is that the defense didn�t give the Browns much last time, and as long as the team can avoid turnovers or special teams disasters, they should be fine. The Steelers also have the good fortune of playing this Thursday game at home, and after a fairly easy win. The Browns are coming off an OT victory against the Chiefs. Road teams are 1-4 so far in these Thursday games, with the lowly Lions suffering the only home defeat.