Stillers 29, Bills 24 ���. Jan 2, 2005 ����Game #16
Stillers-Bills Postgame
Analysis and Grades
The
Stillers, led by a host of benchwarmers and scrubeenies, came from behind in
the 4Q and beat the Buffalo Jills, a team that was fighting for a playoff spot.� This won't be an overly long post-game, as many
of the players playing won't see the field again the rest of the season,
barring a horrific rash of injury.�
Grades:
QB:�
Mommy Maddox got the start and played spottily at times. �He missed a wide-open El in the end zone in
the 1Q, and followed the play with a near INT on a pass to Kreider.� He also threw the horrific INT on a weak,
telegraphed out to Morey, which was returned by Clements for the TD.� Soon thereafter, The Human Glacier allowed
Fat Pat Williams to chase him down for a 10-yard loss on a sack that should
have never occurred.� Maddox did have
some nice completions, especially to El and the 24-yarder to Mays.� The INT by Spikes was obviously not Mommy's
fault.� St. Pierre played the entire 4Q
and threw just 1 pass, overthrowing an open receiver while scrambling.� B-.�
RB:�
Bettis did not dress, and Staley got the start and got some work, toting
the ball 8 times for 21 yards.� Haynes
quickly relieved Duce, and also toted 8 times for 22 yards, including a good
read and hole-hit on an 11-yard run.� Then
Willie Parker got the ball-carrying chores, and shredded the Buff defense for
102 yards on19 carries.� Parker hit a
hole up LG and bolted 58 yards in the 4Q, and also helped salt the game away on
the long, nearly 9-minute march with strong runs of 5, 9, 6, 4, 9, and 6.�� Remember, of course, that without Big
Jerome Bettis, the Steelers would have lost all of the past 6 games, because,
as you know, there simply was nobody else capable of toting the football.� A.�
FB: Kreider got some work, and was even
allowed to carry the pig 3 times, which may be his career high.� B+.�
WR:�
Plex did not dress, and Ward played only briefly before sitting
out.� Hines had 2 grabs for 11
yards.� El led the way with 7 grabs for
81 yards, including some clutch work on 3rd down.� He also scored on a 16-yard reception, although I felt the Bills
should have challenged this play, as El had the ball held well OOB as he leapt to
the corner pylon at the GL.� El did
cough up the ball on a fumble after a short reception, resulting in a
turnover.� Mays snagged 1 pass on a
flag, good for 24 yards.� He allowed a
high fade to go thru his hands in the 2Q, and then dropped a slant in the
3Q.� B.�
TE:�
Tuman had a rough afternoon.� He
coughed up a pass, in which the resultant bobble was INT'd by Spikes.� Later in the 2Q, he dropped an easy pass on
a quick popper.� Rasby and Cushing got
some work.�� Despite being a totally
meaningless game, Matt Kranchick was not permitted to play, despite dressing
for the game.� B-.
OL: The O-line, despite a plethora of
substitutions and benchwarmer PT, acquitted itself well.� They opened up many a hole on the ground and
gave Maddox decent time in the pocket.� Hartings
drew my rage, as he seems to every week lately, when he thoroughly botched his
blocking assignment on a 1st & goal plunge by Haynes, resulting in Pat
Williams crushing Haynesie for a 4-yard loss.�
Starks and Smith were both flagged for false starts.� A-.
DL:�
The line saw frequent shuffling from every active D-Liner.� McGahee was held in check, with much credit
going to the line.� B+.� �
LB:�
Porter and Farrior gave way to the backups after some cameo work.� Foote and Harrison played throughout, and
Jackson and Kriewalt some extensive PT.�
Foote was pretty active and did a nice job of drilling McGahee in the 3Q,
as well as snaring a nice INT, but then got trucked by McGahee on the late TD
plunge.� Jackson was tasked an absurd
number of times to drop into pass coverage, but when allowed to rush the
passer, did little.� Harrison grabbed the
popped-out football and raced 18 yards for the big TD. �B.�
DB:�
Some good, a lot awful.�� Colclough
blitzed and forced the fumble by Bledsoe, which was returned by Harrison for
the big TD.� Stuvaints had a nice
bust-up of a curl to Reed.� That was
about it for the good. �Taylor and
Ricardo both whiffed on Moulds after a simple curl late in the 2Q.� Sad Scott dropped an easy INT soon
thereafter.� Taylor had his face jammed
into the turf on a McGahee stiff-arm during a 16-yard run.� Wee Willie was soft and pitiful on a short
out to Moulds on 3d & 4 in the 3Q, whiffing and giving up a 12-yard
gain.� Taylor got turned around like a
top on the late deep post by Evans, resulting in a 55-yard gain.� I cannot fathom exactly what Taylor was
possibly thinking, or looking for, as the Bills were down by 12 with 2 minutes
remaining in the game.� Stuvaints was
late to help on this play, which, again, given the fact of a 12-point deficit
with 2 minutes remaining, I can't quite fathom what Russell was looking for.� Right thereafter, Sad Scott whiffed
pathetically after a simple curl catch by Aiken, resulting in a 21-yard
gainer.� Scott was also flagged for a
tripping on a 1st & 12 run from the Buff 1-yard line in the 3Q, in which he
was juked out of his jock by McGahee and oafishly stuck his foot out to trip up
the RB.� If little else was determined
in this game, this was:� Sad Scott has
no business starting for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.� �C.�
Spec
teams:� Reed was 1 of the main stars of the game,
booting 5 of 5 FGs in the blustery Buffalo weather.� His KOs were pretty deep and strong.� Of course, this has its own 2nd order effect, which is that Field
Goal Bill will become overly dependent on the field goal once the playoffs
begin.� Ike had a good FF in the 1Q on
punt coverage, which gave the Stillers golden FP, as well as a good fielding of
the late onsides kick by Buff.� Chidi
had a good stick in KO coverage.� El had
a solid 18-yard punt return in the 4Q.�
Aside from some slop in the 4Q, the KO coverage was good.� Even Chris Gardocki, the lonely Maytag
repairman, finally earned his keep with 3 punts.� B+.
OC:�
It's hard to evaluate The WiseHunt in a game like this, because he was
playing a plethora of benchwarmers, and he's trying not to show his hand to
opposing coaches who are studying film.�
Case in point -- the QB draw in the 1Q, on 3rd & 6, which, given
Maddox's stupendous lack of speed, is a playcall we'd likely never see in a
game that had real meaning.� One related
comment -- Mike Mularkey had a nice initial season as the Pgh. OC in 2001, but
then fell in love with gimmickry and gadgetry.�
Today, Mularkey showed he hasn't lost that love, and thanks goodness
he's no longer employed by the Pittsburgh Stillers.� Inc.� �
DC:�
The one concern was the softee defense late in the 2Q, which allowed the
Bills to march for a FG just prior to halftime.� The march was enabled, in large part, by a softee 4-man rush that
allowed Bledsoe to play pitch-and-catch.�
One could argue that LeBeau didn't want to show his hand, but, trust me,
the rest of the NFL has seen 5-man rushes at least, oh, about 9,000 times this
season and wouldn't be provided the secrets of The Rosetta Stone if Dick were
to apply some pressure with more than 4 rushers.� The delay handoffs to McGahee presented some problems, with
McGahee ripping off 13 and 20 yard runs in the 1Q when just about every starter
was still in the game.� B.�
HC:� Billy Cowher
got his 15th win of the season, and is now basking in the glory of an unprecedented
15-win season.� He now has about 12 days
before he starts to pucker his anus and swallow the big chunk of apple.� B+. �
Synopsis:�
It's a nicety to achieve a 15-win season, which has very rarely ever
been done in NFL history.� It's even
nicer to get that 15th win on the road, against a team desperate for a win in
order to make the playoffs, by way of using a host of benchwarmers and
backups.� Of course, bear in mind one
thing: the supposed "momentum" from this win is as insignificant as the
pimple on the backside of a rhinoceros.�
The Stillers won't play for 13 or 14 days, and as we all have seen time
and time again, there is no momentum -- especially on a Billy Cowher coached
team -- from the season finale.� Take
the win at face value, and nothing more -- a nice win; an enjoyable win; with
backups playing key roles, on the road.�
The real season -- THE PLAYOFFS -- begins in 2 weeks for this club, and
what they do, or fail to do, will be the real final exam.