Stillers-Texans Postgame Analysis and Grades

Stillers 38, Houston 17 ���. Sep 8, 2008 ����Game #1  

Stillers-Texans Postgame Analysis and Grades

The Stillers opened their �08 campaign by hosting the Houston Texans.  You�ll remember back in �05, when the Tex�s hosted the Stillers in their home opener and, despite brutal heat, insisted on keeping their retractable roof wide open and wore white unis in an effort to �wear down� the visiting Stillers.   It didn�t work that day, and nothing the Texans did worked all that well today, as the Stillers returned the hospitality by administering a thorough 38-17 beatdown of the Texans.  

Grades:

QB:  Benji was in command right from the get-go, showing poise, pocket presence, and sharp accuracy in leading the Stillers to a quick 21-0 lead.   Ben finished with 13 of 14 passing for 137 yards and 2 TDs, and no INTs.  He was stripped for a fumble, but this was a blind side strip that happened extremely quickly due to a blown blocking assignment.  The only downside to his afternoon was having his leg rolled into by a defender as he was throwing late in the 1H, which caused him some noticeable pain.  Ben shook it off and finished the half, and played the entire 3Q as well before turning it over to Leftwich.   Byron played okay, mostly handing off as the Stillers ran out the clock.  He was 0-4, but Nate dropped 1 slant and Davis dropped an easy dumpoff.    A+

RB:  Parker hadn�t played since that fateful game in St. Louis last Dec., but soon enough he looked like the old Fast Willie.  Parker carried 25 times for 138 yards and 3 TDs, and none of the TDs were simpleton 2-foot plunges of the Jerome Bettis variety.  Parker was churning, spinning, and showing speed to the corner.  He was on fire after halftime, gaining 12 yards, then 9, and then 8 to set the table for the game-sealing drive.  Parker later turned on the jets around right end, gaining 32 yards.  Rookie Shar Mendenhall had a solid NFL debut, rushing 10 times for 28 yards.  He had a nice burst on his first NFL carry, gaining 6 yards.  He showed some good quickness and running savvy, and there is no doubt that he can give the Stillers a very capable 1-2 punch.  The only downside here was that neither man was involved in the passing game, although, with the hefty lead, there wasn�t much need to pass after the score became 28-3.     A+

FB: Davis played sparingly.  He had 1 grab for 10 yards but dropped an easy dumper late in the game.   Inc. 

WR:  As is his penchant, Hines Ward probably used the �Tonio Holmes is going to have a breakthrough season� as his motivation during workouts, as he came out on fire and just toyed with the Houston secondary en route to a 6 grab, 2 TD day.   Ward also had a couple clutch blocks in the ground game, including a nice seal of ILB DeMeco Ryans on Parker�s 3Q TD run.  The lone downside was the offensive PI penalty on Ward, which negated his long 74-yard catch & run in the 1Q.  It was an enormously ticky-tack flag, but, of course, for the blind idiots and yinzers who still cling to the fallacy that Darrell Jackson�s ticky-tack, pinkie-finger OPI in Super Bowl 40 was a legit penalty, then this was, oh, about 3 times more a penalty.  

   Holmes was a bit quiet on the stat sheet, grabbing 2 balls for 19 yards.  But his 1 catch was a beauty, when, on a key 3rd down on the Stillers� opening drive, Tonio plucked a slant pass and held on despite tight coverage to move the chains.  Nate dropped the one slant, and had his mitts on another difficult try on a deep laser from Lefty, but the DB helped jar the ball out of his hands.  This would have been a highlight reel catch if Nate would have pulled it in.  Baker wasn�t involved at all and Sweed did not dress.   Not to distribute spoiled milk at the party, but as I harped on last year, this offense is going to need a modicum of production from its #3 & #4 WRs if this team has deep playoff aspirations.   A

TE:  Miller was fairly active, grabbing 3 passes for 26 yards.  Speath chipped in with 1 grab for 6 yards.  The blocking was sporadic; some good, some bad.   Overall, the play was solid and ideally Miller -- as sure handed as they come -- will see 6 passes, at a minimum, each game.    A.

OL: Gee, wasn�t the entire O-line supposed to cave in, give up, and quiver in fear now that the great, almighty Crybaby Alan Faneca has departed to New York??   The O-line didn�t miss a beat from The Missing Crybaby, as they took over the game in the 3Q and just played maul ball with the Texan defense.  Marvel Smith had a strong game, easily handling Mario Williams as though Williams were a collegiate freshman.  Smith also had a two key pulls to spring Parker on 2 of his TD runs. 

    Hartwig played, oh, about 6 times better than Sean Gahan.  Not that Hart was dominant, but at least he wasn�t getting shoved 2 yards back into the offensive backfield on every other snap.  Simmons was adequate, as was Willie The Colon.   Willie did, however, allow Okoye to slice in and hit Ben�s knee late in the 2Q, which wasn�t all too good. 

     Chris Kemo got his first genuine start and acquitted himself okay.  He made a few blunders, to be sure.  He failed to sustain his block on a 1-yard run early in the 2Q.  Later in the quarter, Kemo pulled a �Faneca� and just stood there as the DE, Mario Williams, simply rushed thru the LT/LG gap while Marv Smith was blocking a blitzing OLB.  Williams stripped Ben of the ball and Houston recovered and returned the ball 35 yards.  Blame this on a greenhorn mistake, and you could also say that Kemo learned this technique the honest way from the man who did this same blunder dozens of times last season, Crybaby Alan Faneca. 

     At any rate, so much for the �sky is falling because The Almighty Faneca is no longer at LG�.   Ben had time & room, the RBs were given some good holes, and not one penalty was committed by the O-line all game long.  Nicely done, O-line.    B+. 

DL:  Mostly decent play.  It was great seeing Aaron Smith back in the starting lineup, although his side was gashed for chunks of yards on a few occasions.  He had a good stop of Slaton on the opening drive, but whiffed on a screen play in the 4Q.  Keisel was pretty active, including a nice read & hustle on a dumpoff to Slaton in the 4Q.  Fat Casey chipped in some, helping to jam the 4th down sneak that was mysteriously recorded as short of the sticks.  In the 2Q, he reminded all of us of the Hampton of old, simply blowing the center off the ball and literally back into his RB as the RB was trying to run a stretch play.  The center was so enraged that he got up and shoved Hampton in the face.  

     Perhaps the surprise of the game, to me at least, was the play of Nick Eason.  This was a man that didn�t do much of anything last season, aside from stealing oxygen.  He made a good play to contain a scrambling Shaub in the 1Q, which enabled Eason and Farrior to nab Shaub for a loss.  In the 2Q, he outdid himself, making a great hustle play to haul down the RB on a screen pass.  Damn!!   That was, oh, about 8 times better than I would have ever expected from Nicholas.   

     Kirschke and Hoke played some.   Roye did not dress.     Overall, the play was solid, although some of the ground gashing had me concerned in the 1H.    A-.   

LB:  We have found a new star LB in Pittsburgh, and his name is LaMarr Woodley.   After rotting on the bench last season -- playing all of 80 snaps -- Woodley showed what he could have done and what he can do, shoving RT E. Winston around like a foam dummy and, lest we forget, making a superb 1-handed grab for a key INT in the 2Q and a fumble recovery in the 2H.  Woodley was a beast in the pass rush, giving Winston & Co. problems all day long.  There were a few struggles in the ground game, but this seemed to be based more on reading and recognition than anything physical. 

     Another new star LB emerged as well, and his name is Larry Timmons.  After rotting on the bench last season, Timmons showed what he could have done and what he can do, making a couple of big plays and showing his God-given speed and athleticism.  He made a good, hard stick on a WR screen in the 2Q.  Then, on a 3d & 15 later in the 2Q, deep in PIT territory, Houston dumped it off to the RB with acres of open room.  Timmons flashed over with tremendous speed and alacrity, and dropped Green in open field for a meager 1-yard gain.   Not a highlight reel play, but this was the kind of sterling play that gifted players like Jack Ham and Greg Lloyd made on a routine basis.   I state again -- get this man on the field as a STARTER, right now.

     Somewhat lost in the limelight was Jamie Harrison, who had a very, very strong game.   He whipped and shoved rookie 1st rounder Duane Brown around all game long.  He actually got under Brown�s shoulders at the point of attack for a legit sack late in the 3Q, and he stripped the QB of the ball on a later play. 

     Lagging behind the rest of the LB corps were Larry Foote and James Farrior.   Foote started and did little of merit, somehow getting credit for one and only one very unmemorable solo stop.  He was flagged for PI in the 4Q, when he was hopelessly left on an island in the middle of the field against RB Steve Slaton, and had little choice but to haul Slaton down before the pass arrived; otherwise Slaton�s burn marks would have scorched Foote�s jersey for weeks.  

     Farrior picked up right where he left off last season; a step late and a dollar short.  He committed a foolish offsides penalty in the 1Q.  He was slow to react on the quick slot-slant on the Texan�s opening drive.  Then, in the 4Q, �The Winged God of LB Coverage� had simple middle coverage from the very snap of the ball on Kevin Walter.  Despite a poor pass that was behind Walter, The Winged God failed to bust up this pass, which was caught for a TD in the back of the EZ.  Perhaps his moniker should be changed to �The Winged Clod of LB Coverage�.   And perhaps Colbert should re-extend Farrior by adding another 2 years onto his new deal.  

     Wood, Harry, and Larry --   A.    All others --  C. 

DB:  Games like this are always difficult to evaluate the DBs.  The game became a blowout, and the Texan pass offense won�t make anyone forget about Rice & Taylor.   Ike was picked on early, but tightened the clamps and had a key bust-up of a 3D out pass in the 3Q.  His tackling was solid.  Troy made me beam with joy when he flashed up on a valve dump on the Texans� 2nd play of the game, putting a lick on the RB.  Not sure when the last time Troy made a play like that, but that is precisely the kind of play I expect from Po�-lam-a-lu.   Troy also had an easy INT off a totally ridiculous pass by Matt Slaub. 

     Townsend had a key, rugged stop on a 3d down dumpoff on the game�s first drive, which forced the 4D sneak that was mysteriously ruled short.   Clark laid a couple good hits, but was also tooled badly on a deep flag in the 4Q in which he committed a PI in order to save a probable TD.  McFadden saw a lot of PT and chipped in decently.  Ty Carter played in garbage time.  Tony Smith did not dress.    Andre Johnson enjoyed a big day, and although some of it was in garbage time, I�m rarely enthralled when an opposing WR has double-digit grabs and receives little punishment in the process.   B. 

Spec teams:  A rare, bright day for the spec teams.   The return game wasn�t dazzling, but there were no bobbles, fumbles, or bumbles.  Menden had a couple solid KO returns.   Moore bravely fielded one punt, taking an immediate hit but holding onto the ball. 

     The coverage teams were splendid.  Woods was a demon on KO cover, making 2 stops, including one on the 12-yard line, which is almost unheard of in this day of the NFL (unless a returner initially drops the kick, etc.)   Timmons had a good stop on KO coverage, and Gay had a good stop on punt coverage.   Even Jamie Harrison got into the act, making a firm solo stop in punt coverage early in the 4Q. 

      Berger had a solid 43 yard average with his punts.   Reed nailed a 44-yard FG, and his variety of KOs was effective to limit the dangerous Davis of Houston.   In fact, the Stillers introduced a new wrinkle in their KO scheme, with Reed varying the style of his KOs.   He opened, with the wind, with a traditional boot 8 yards deep into the EZ.   Soon later, he booted a line drive that trickled through the EZ.   Then, in the 2Q and facing the wind. Reed hit a 9-iron that landed around the Houston 20 and totally confused the Texan return team.   For a unit that has been feeble and unimaginative, I applaud this initiative.       A-

OC:  Airhead Arians had 8 months to stew over his now-infamous �Arians Abortion�.   He deserves kudos for having his offense well prepared, and running a crisp array of run and pass plays -- with lots of boots and playfakes -- that left the Texans guessing the entire 1H.   The play-action TD pass to Ward in the 2Q, which made it 21-0, was a beaute.   The one downfall was the 3d & 2 late in the 2Q.  Arians, never sure of what to do on 3rd & short, went with the homosexual empty backfield, which, quite obviously, totally eradicates ANY use of a play-action fake to freeze & hold the LBs.   Instead, Houston sent a jailhouse blitz that swarmed Ben�s 5 blockers in a matter of 2 seconds for an easy sack.  We have no idea if, or when, Arians will ever grasp the concept of what to do on 3rd & short, aside from running his gimpy-legged, slow-footed QB on a naked running play to the side away from his throwing arm.       B

DC:  Nobody in NFL history has benefited from hefty leads and weak-assed opposing offenses, as has Dick LeBeau.   To his credit, the defense was swarming, which was a welcome sight.   It�s hard to evaluate the defense, given the hefty lead and the weakness of the Houston offense.     Inc.

HC:  Tomlin showed he wasn�t going to piss around in a season opener like his predecessor, who made openers as scary as a Freddie Krueger movie.   This opener had everything a Cowher opener did not -- crispness, alacrity, purpose, malice, intensity, and focus.   Rather than playing fiddle-faddle, the team put the dagger into the heart of the Texans and blew them out.   The offense moved the ball with blitzkrieg efficiency and the defense was swarming and hard-hitting.  Only 5 penalties were committed and none were overly foolish or costly.   The special teams were vastly better, and starters were mixed in to boost performance.   If there were a blueprint for starting a season, this would be it.   A

Synopsis:  A terrific start to the �08 season.  Of course, it�s only 1 game, and it was a non-divisional game to boot.   A road game in Cleveland beckons, and despite their whipping at the hands of the Cowpokes, the Browns will be plenty fired up and treat this game as their personal Super Bowl.  This Stillers win was a nice start, but it shouldn�t be treated as anything more than a stepping stone to bigger and better things.   All the glee from today�s win could easily be flushed down the commode if the team lays an egg next Sunday evening.   Let�s hope Tomlin and the veteran leadership keeps things in perspective.  If they do, this team could be 2-0 and flying high atop the AFC North.   

(Still Mill and Stillers.com -- when it comes to the analysis of the Pittsburgh Stillers, no one else comes close�.)