Stillers-Ravens Postgame Analysis and Grades

Balt. 20, Stillers 17 (OT) ���. Nov. 30, 2009 ����Game # 11

 

Stillers-Ravens Postgame Analysis and Grades

 

The struggling Stillers, saddled with a 2-game losing streak, ventured down to Balt. for what amounted to a must-win game. �Once again, the team was ahead LATE in the 4Q, but once again, the defense choked and gagged away the lead to send the game in OT.�� In OT, a poor INT by Dixon and more softee defense led to a chippie FG by the Ravens to win the game.� Due to the late-nite ending of this game, this analysis will be a bit shorter than usual.�

 

Grades:

 

QB:� With Ben ruled out due to his concussion last week, Dixon got the start.�� Dixon went 8 for 10 in the 1H, which obviously wasn�t shabby.�� He hit Tonio for a TD in the 2Q.� He had a rather dreadful 2H, but to his credit, he led the march that gave the Stillers the LEAD, LATE in the 4Q, when he ripped off a 24-yard TD run.�� He nearly threw a pick-6 late in the 4Q, and also was far too hesitant to unleash the deep ball to an open Wally in OT that also drifted OOB.�� The INT in OT was to be expected for a greenhorn making his 1st NFL start, which is WHY you put the guy on the MOVE with waggles, boots, and rolls.���� B-�

 

RB:� Mendy had a strong game, rushing for 95 yards on 24 rushes when everyone in the stadium knew he was getting the ball on nearly every touch he had.�� Parker got decent PT and had a good effort as well with some hard-nosed running.� Moore, the best pass-catching back on the team -- who would have seemed to have been the perfect security blanket for the young QB making his 1st start -- caught ZERO passes and worse, had zero passes thrown to him.�� Moore committed a hold that negated a superb juggle-grab by Holmes on 3d & 18 that was converted, but did have a nice peel-back block on Dixon�s TD scamper.�� �A-

 

FB: Davis ran a SG draw late in the 1H for 14 yards.� Johnson had a decent lead block in OT on a 6-yard run.�� Inc.��

 

WR:� Holmes led the way with 6 grabs for 74 and a TD.� I wasn�t fond of his hot-dogging prior to getting to the goal line on his TD, though.�� Very immature.�� Hines had 3 for 47, with some good RAC work.� The big disappointment was Wally, who was held off the stat sheet and seems to have hit the rookie wall.�� He was open in the EZ on a deep lob in the 3Q, but failed to READ the ball and ADJUST to its flight, and never put himself in a position to make a play on the ball.�� Very poor.�� B�

 

TE:� Miller spent most of the nite pass blocking.� He had 1 grab for 2 yards on a 3d & 9 play where he gimpily just fell to the ground like a complete pansie.�� What a puss!!��� What a coward.�� Very poor.���� Spaeth was flagged for a hold on a running play; an utterly assaholic hold by one of the worst blocking TEs in all of pro football.���� C�

 

OL: The line had some weak moments, but overall played half-decent given the circumstances (greenhorn QB).� Colon had a pitiful whiff early in the game, causing a 1-yard loss by Mendy.� Essex was simply shoved backwards by Ngata on a 2Q plunge for no gain.� Very weak, and very piss poor.�� Hartwig got stood up and shoved back on an OT sneak, but Dixon converted.�� Hartwig committed a hold that negated a 31-yard scramble by Dix.� Starks had a false start.� The line opened up some creased for Mendy to gain 95 yards against a stout run defense stacked to stop the run, which showed a good effort.�� The pass pro was decent as well given the circumstances of the Ravens teeing off against a greenhorn QB.�� B ��

 

DL:� A fairly shoddy effort.�� Rice gashed them for 88 yards, over 15 of which came in OT when a STOP needed to be made and everyone in the stadium knew the Ravens would plunge the ball.� McClain also chipped in 28 yards on 4 rushes.�� Hood got a lot of PT and really did next to nothing.�� Very disappointing.�� Keisel blew up a screen for -3 late in the 4Q, but it mattered little as he was backed by a coordinator as dumb as fuking rock.�� �C-

 

LB:� An evening of good play surrounded by utterly shitty play.

 

The shitty play was mostly provided by none other than James �Taunto� Farrior, who had an utterly wretched game from beginning to end.�� The guy was a total, piss-drowning, bag o� barf.�� On the game�s opening drive by Balt, Farrior was EASILY sealed off on a 19-yard run by Rice.� Then, on the 2-yard TD run, Big Taunto was shoved, face first, into the turf like a complete asspump.�� Late in the 3Q, Farrior feebly whiffed on McClain on a NINE yard run. ��On THE BIG play of the game -- in a d�j� vu of both Cinci losses -- on 4th & 5, Farrior was ISOLATED on Gay Rice in simple 1-on-1 coverage, and got abused on a simple lil� 4-yard slant pattern, leading to a 44-yard play that set up the tying FG.� This, my friends, is what is known as a PILE OF SHIT.�� A total, wretched, stinking, pile of shit.��� Supposedly �The Winged God of LB Coverage�, Farrior looked like a drunken stooge staggering down Forbes Ave.�� A complete disgrace.� Sure enough, you�ll hear idiots like Ron Cook fawning over Farrior and praising the guy, despite another wretched effort in simple coverage late in the game on a RB.�� I�ve repeatedly asked why Farrior is even on the field in these situations, and have never been given a sensible explanation.�

 

Harrison had a good, strong effort.� No splash plays, but plenty of stout, quality LBing.�

 

On paper, Woodley had a big game.�� On paper.�� While he did have a couple of good rushes against a rookie RT, he also had numerous struggles and boners.�� On a 2d & 4 in the 2Q, he was trucked by the RB, although credited for the assist.� A really cheesy, soft play.�� On the very next play, he basically stepped AWAY from a plunge on 3d & 1, which netted FIVE yards.� Later in the 2Q, he titty-grappled on a routine running play, allowing Rice to bounce wide for an EIGHT yard gain. In the 3Q, he did a pitiful job of shedding the block, and a McClain run up RT gained SEVEN yards.� Woodendick seemed to perk up after the 3Q boners with some good pass pressure, although he was teeing off against a rookie (Oher), which shouldn�t have taken 2+ quarters to get untracked.��

 

Timmons had an active game, showing speed on the blitz.� He had a key FF in the 4Q.�� Fox saw some time in the base D in the 1H.�

 

Harrison and Timmons: A-���� Woodley:� C+��� Farrior:� F-�

 

DB:� Facing a very humdrum passing attack, the secondary had an overall unacceptably poor game.� Gay flopped around like a tuna the entire evening.�� Ike struggled in pass coverage.�� Clark offered no more help than a lifeguard tossing an anchor to a drowning man.��

 

Late in the 2Q, Gay and Clark decided to do a 2-man comedy routine.� Gay, just dawdling in no man�s land, was torched deep by Clayton on a long bomb.� Clark, slow as shit, still ambled over and was in perfect position to not only bat the ball away, but also INT it.� Instead, like the complete turd that he is, he simply flailed about like a toddler undergoing an epileptic seizure --- never even raising his HANDS to deflect the ball -- and Clayton hauled in the long ball totally unfettered by Clark.� Pitiful.�� Utterly fuking pitiful.� �Ike followed this up 2 plays later by failing to make ANY play on the ball on a 10-yard TD lob to Mason.�

 

Early in the 3Q, Gay forced a fumble by Clayton, and Clark was the closest player to be able to corral the lose ball.� Instead, Clark dawdled over toward the ball as though he were trying to catch a python, and a scrum ensued, with the Stillers (Carter) luckily getting the turnover.��

 

Late in the 3Q, Gay whiffed on Rice on a 3d & 12 dumpoff, and Townsend over-pursued and Clark whiffed, allowing an 18 yard gain.��

 

Ike got tooled and torched in the 4Q and OT.�� He was beaten deep by Mason -- the slowest starting WR in the NFL -- early in the 4Q, and luckily wasn�t called for PI.� Late in the game, Ike, like a complete dumnfuk, bit on a stop n� go by Mason that gave the Ravens golden FP prior to their last-second FG miss.�� You have to be a complete, stupid asshump to fall for a stop n� go with less then a minute remaining in a tie game.��

 

Carter and Ike both had pitiful whiffs on Rice on the hideous 4 & 5 pass to Rice that netted 44 yards.�

 

Here are the 1st 3 Stiller picks in the �10 draft --� FS, CB, CB.����� D-�

 

Spec teams:� No disasters, although there was a near fiasco late in the 4Q that allowed a long punt return by Balt.��� Luckily, a Raven was flagged for a ticky tack nip in the back.��� Sepulveda launched another punt into the EZ.�� Shitty coverage and tackling allowed a 34-yard punt return in the 4Q, with Fox and Ike over-running the play.� The KO coverage was vastly better than it has been.�� Logan had a couple decent punt returns.�� ��C ��

 

OC:� Arians will get a pass from the entire free world due to Dixon pressed into service.��� I won�t be so kind or foolish.��

 

The running game was working well in the 1Q, especially on 1D.�� But there was never a PAP to follow up that success, UNTIL the 2Q.�� The 1st PAP ??�� 18 yards to Ward.����

 

There were 2 wasted timeouts in the same 2Q drive due to foolish confusion and excessive time to get the play in.���

 

With a QB who is enormously fast AND quick, with tremendous athleticism, it took Arians, the dumfuk �genius� that he is, over 53 minutes to call a DESIGNED running play for Dixon (aside from a QB sneak, of course).�� All that play gained was a 24-yard TOUCHDOWN.��� The ONLY rollout in the game?�� A TOUCHDOWN strike to Holmes.��� Armed with a super-athletic QB, Arians managed to make the guy more immobile than Curt Warner.�� Unbelievable, but certainly not surprising.� Only Bruce Arians could take a young QB whose best strength right now, at the NFL level, is getting out of the pocket and on the MOVE, and instead having him play a pocket-QB like Dan Fouts.� Remember, the Ravens defense had no experience this year dealing with a quarterback who could also run, having faced Croyle, Rivers, Derek Anderson, Brady, Palmer, Favre, Orton and Quinn.� Nearly every one of these QBs couldn�t run the forty in less than 5.1 seconds.�� At Oregon, Dixon set a school record with 1,208 rushing yards, with 199 rushing attempts the two years he started at Oregon and nine rushing touchdowns in his senior season.�� Yet again, the idiot OC called ONE rollout the entire evening and ONE designed run, with each play scoring a TD.�� Otherwise, Dixon never once waggled, booted, rolled, or ran a designed QB draw or keeper.� That�s called being a stubborn, stupid, ignoramus of the highest proportions, and the culprit was none other than Bruce Arians.�

 

The Ravens sold out and run blitzed to stuff the run.�� Pop passes to the TE??�� None.�� End arounds?�� None.��� Reverses?�� None.��� Reverse bootlegs?�� None.� Rollouts?�� One, as noted, which resulted in a TD.��� It was a typical brainless, vanilla, dumfuk game plan by 1 of the very worst OCs in the entire NFL.���� D-�

 

DC:� I�m so fuking sick and tired of the bullshit worship and adulation of Dick LeBeau.� Yes, he WAS a good coordinator.� WAS.��� He�s been a total tool this season, constantly getting out-dueled, out-foxed, and out-smarted time and time and time and time again.�

It would have been nice if Dick didn�t have his head buried in his buttocks to start the game.�� Here we are, with a greenhorn QB making his 1st start.�� It�s IMPERATIVE for the defense to play its ass off.� What does Dick do??�� He plays this faggotfuk, vanilla defense on the Ravens� opening drive, and the Ravens calmly marched 73 yards in 9 plays for a cakewalk TD.�� What a fukstick !!��� Flacco, hardly Joe Montana, went 5 for 5 on the drive and never had a defender within 11 or 12 feet of him while he stood casually in the pocket.� Here we are, trying to win a key game, and LeBeau, the dimbulb that he is, goes vanilla and dull to start the game, and basically HANDS 7 points to a very woeful, struggling offense.��

 

Then, in the 4Q, the Stillers grab the lead with 6:32 remaining.�� A Raven penalty sets up 3d & 22. ��3d and fuking TWENTY TWO!!�� But Dick goes soft and vanilla, and Flacco easily hits a WIDE open Mason on a deep in for 17 yards.�� 4th and 5, with only 3:31 remaining, for essentially the ballgame.� Dick, the fuking idiot that he is, has REFUSED to learn his lesson from ANY loss this season, where Farrior has been tooled badly in the 4Q by RBs.�� Does LeBeau think that NOBODY watches game film??�� Sure enough, Farrior gets tooled badly by Rice, and defeat is snatched from victory.�� The tying FG drive went 84 yards on 10 plays.�� This is now the FIFTH game -- all losses -- in which Dick has pissed away a tie or a lead in the 4Q.�� ��

 

In OT, after the Raven INT, the entire stadium knew the Ravens would pound the ball on the ground and settle for the easy FG.� What does Dick do???��� He goes totally vanilla, never once going for broke, and the Ravens just jammed the ball down our throats.�� Runs of 2, 6, 5, and 6 moved the chains and made what could have been a challenging FG into a genuine chippie.��

 

The Ravens hadn�t scored a passing TD in their past 3 games.�� They should have been a perfect tonic for Dick�s defense, but instead LeBeau, the most over-rated coordinator in the entire NFL, got tooled again and again and again by this moribund offense.�� Absolutely fuking pitiful, and unacceptable.�� F�

 

HC:� Tomlin continues to talk a lot and spew bullshit, but is production NOTHING in terms of RESULTS.�� The coverage teams still suck ass.�� The defense again pissed away a 4Q lead.�� Tomlin knows nothing about offense, but he is supposed to be a defensive guru.�� At what point in time is Tomlin going to man up and start taking over for the obviously senile, struggling, bumbling LeBeau???��� When, in March??�� April?�� The season is rapidly slipping away, primarily due to a 4Q defense that can�t stop a low-tier college offense, and Tomlin is too stupid, or too scared, or both, to make the necessary adjustments. �The utterly wretched tackling is another problem that has lingered far too long.�� Time to stop babying and coddling these players and time to start having FULL PADS and FULL HITTING in some of their practices.� The country club that Tomlin promulgated at camp and during the bye week has had, and is having, a horrendous negative effect.� Finally, there�s Ward popping off about Ben not playing, basically insinuating that maybe, just maybe, Ben was okay to play and that he indeed should have played.�� Locker room dissension, here we come.�� F�

 

Synopsis:� Please, stop the caterwauling and excuse-making about Dixon having to start, and please do not point the finger at Dixon for this loss.�� Dennis Dixon did NOT lose this game.�� The softee, vanilla, grab-ass defense lost this game, as it has in EVERY loss this season.�� Playoffs?�� Playoffs??��� This team need not worry about the playoffs right now.� They need to start concentrating on the upcoming opponent and come out ready to hunt bear.�� At this point, not even the lowly Raiders can be taken for granted; not with this softee, underachieving defense.��

 

 

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