The Great Fa�ade Known as
Dick LeBeau, Part Deux�
Another weekend, and
another chance to hear the bleating and worship of Def. Coordinator Dick
LeBeau.�� I�d highlighted -- er, rather, lowlighted -- the great fallacy and fa�ade known as Dick
LeBeau a couple weeks ago.�� This caused the predictable uproar from
Dick�s Jonestownian masses, until, of course, Dick
managed to piss away the vast bulk of a 24-point lead against the NY Jest (sic) and nearly
snatched defeat from victory.�� At that
point, ya couldn�t hear a peep from Dick�s loyal
masses, aside from the usual blather of bullshit rationalizations, quibbling,
and rabid excuse making.
The collapse against the Trippers would have gone
down in NFL lore as the greatest since the Oilers�
infamous 32-point collapse against Frank Reich and the Buff Bills.� And it wasn�t like the Stiller
offense just handed the ball to the Jets at their own 20-yard line.�� There were only 2 PIT turnovers --� the drop by Mendy
that was harmlessly grabbed for 0 return yards at the NY 35, and the other INT
grabbed near the NY goal line and returned to the NY 14.��
The worst sequence of this epic collapse by Dick The
Dullard occurred late in the 1H.�� Ike Taylor had just stripped Sanchez of the
ball, and Gay ran it in for a 24-0 lead.�
The stadium was ROCKING as Sanchez hobbled to the sideline with his
shoulder sagging in pain.�� Mentally,
Dirty Sanchez was fraught with terror and fear.��
On the ensuing KO, starting WR Jericho Cotchery was INJURED and had to be helped off the
field.�� So here you have the Jets, with
their starting QB a frantic, terror-stricken wreck, and now without a starting
WR.� This is when a real defense, with
real leadership, smells blood
and goes in for the KILL.�� This is where
this defense should have continued the assault, the pressure, and the
tenacity.�� Nope, not
Dick, The Flying Frenchman.�� Dick
immediately calls off the dogs and goes into a pansie-assed,
pussyfied defense, allowing Sanchez to march down the
field with all the ease of a tourist strolling down a beach at Oahu .�� Aside from
1 (one) 5MR (5 man rush) all 6 other plays in that drive were panty-waisted 4MRs, with Sanchez afforded plenty of time, room,
and vision to just pick Dick�s defense apart, while gaining gobs of confidence
and rhythm.��
�
You could just see the
entire thing unravel like a ball of twine, starting with this drive at 1:08
2Q.�� 5 yards.� 16.�
9.� 9.� Just like that, the Jets booted a 42-yard FG
right before halftime and they came off life support, all thanks to The
Dullard, Dick LeBeau.��
The 2nd half was more of the same, with Dick
standing by as helpless as a 1-legged man in an ass-kicking contest.��� Just as in Jets1, the Jets spent the entire
2H marching up and down, and up and down the field like the Grambling marching
band.��
Dick got
soft, both in pass rushing as well as the positioning of his back 6-7
coverage-men.�� Here�s a re-cap of the 1H
pass rush stats:
3MR:� 3 times
4MR:� 10;� 6
of which came on the last drive of the 1H, resulting in a chippie FG
5MR:�� 6
6MR:�� 0
7MR:�� 1; which resulted in Woodley�s sack late in
the 2Q, which set up the 3d & 17 that Ike got the strip-sack.
Here�s a
re-cap of the 2H pass rush stats:
3MR:�� 5 times
4MR:�� 8
5MR:�� 7�
6MR:�� 0
7MR:�� 0
(There was
also a 4MR on a draw play; and on the Keller TD drop, it was impossible to distinguish
how many defenders were rushing, what with it being that close to the GL.)�
Quite
clearly, starting at 1:08 2Q, Dick lamely called off the dogs and played right
into Sanchez�s hands, going with a pussyfied, softee
defense that was as easy to shred as provolone cheese.��
And just to
remind those folks who aren�t terribly bright, a 4-man rush is NOTHING in terms of
pressure and harassment.��� There are 5
O-linemen.�� If a RB stays in to help,
that makes SIX blockers.�� A TE staying
in to help a tackle makes a SEVENTH blocker.�
4 men rushing isn�t jack shit.��
For all the babble and adulation about Dick�s �exotic blitz packages�, a
true blitz doesn�t occur until at least FIVE men are rushing.��
Only a
failure by starting TE Dustin Keller -- a very accomplished pass-catching TE,
no less -- to corral a 2-yard TD pass, prevented this game from quite possibly
being tied.�� (Keller�s botched TD came 3
plays before the Jets scored 2 points on a safety).�
Of course,
for those of us that actually study football and go past the gaudy stats and
hyperbole, none of this was a surprise.��
As clearly shown in the table below, Dick�s 2010 defense feasted and
made a killing off of the weak; the inept; the green; and the mediocre.���
Below is a
chart that summarizes the 2010 regular & post season for Dick�s vaunted
defense:
|
|
W-L |
Score |
QB faced |
Def. Pts allowed |
TDs allowed |
Rush Allowed |
Pass Allowed |
INTs |
FFs |
|
����� Notes |
|
vs. Atl |
W |
15-9 |
Ryan |
9 |
0 |
58 |
252 |
1 |
0 |
|
3 FGs
allowed.�� 3-3 at Half.�� Atl. ran 5 plays
in OT |
|
@ Tenn |
W |
19-11 |
Collins
& Young |
11 |
1 |
46 |
215 |
3 |
1 |
|
Kerry
Collins = 17-25 1 TD.� PIT up 13-2 at
Half.�� Huge, ticky-tacky hold� call on Tenn
negated C. Johnson's 85-yard TD run in 1H. |
|
@ Tampa |
W |
38-13 |
Josh
Freeman & Josh Johnson |
13 |
1 |
75 |
251 |
1 |
1 |
|
PIT up
28-6 at half |
|
vs. Balt |
L |
14-17 |
Flacco |
17 |
2 |
70 |
256 |
1 |
2 |
|
BAL up
10-7 at Half, due to FG at 0:05 2Q.� �D gave up winning TD
0:34 4Q |
|
vs. Clev |
W |
28-10 |
McCoy |
10 |
1 |
69 |
281 |
2 |
1 |
|
Rookie
McCoy's 1st NFL start.� Harrison
knocked out top 2 Cle WRs. �PIT up 14-3 at Half. |
|
@ Mia |
W |
23-22 |
Henne |
22 |
1 |
64 |
257 |
1 |
1 |
|
PIT up
17-16 at Half.� TD allowed, 2:00 left
in 2Q, then go-ahead FG allowed 5:23 4Q |
|
@ N.O. |
L |
10-20 |
Brees |
20 |
2 |
30 |
305 |
1 |
1 |
|
2
4Q TDs allowed, incl. winning TD at 4:47 4Q |
|
@ Cinci |
W |
27-21 |
Palmer |
21 |
3 |
54 |
248 |
1 |
1 |
|
PIT up
20-7 at Half.� 2 TDs
allowed in final 1:38 |
|
vs. NE |
L |
26-39 |
Brady |
33 |
4 |
103 |
350 |
0 |
0 |
|
PIT down
10-3 at Half.� D
then got shredded in 2H. |
|
vs. Oak |
W |
35-3 |
Gradkowski |
3 |
0 |
61 |
98 |
1 |
3 |
|
PIT up
21-3 at Half. |
|
@ Buff |
W |
19-16 |
Fitzpatrick |
16 |
1 |
74 |
265 |
1 |
2 |
|
PIT up
13-0 at Half.�� Tying FG allowed, 0:07 4Q.�� Buff
winning TD dropped by wide-open WR in EZ in OT |
|
@ Balt |
W |
13-10 |
Flacco |
10 |
1 |
43 |
266 |
0 |
1 |
|
BAL up 7
at Half.� Star
TE T. Heap injured on 1st play of game and never returned. Jacco picked apart defense nearly entire 1H until Stiller
defenders begged the DC to dial up some heat on the QB. |
|
vs. Cinci |
W |
23-7 |
Palmer |
7 |
1 |
34 |
178 |
3 |
0 |
|
PIT up
10-7 at Half. |
|
vs. NYJ |
L |
17-22 |
Sanchez |
13 |
2 |
106 |
170 |
0 |
0 |
|
Tied at 10
at Half. PIT up 17-10 in 3Q, then allowed TD and FG.� D allowed 13-play
FG drive in 4Q for NY's winning points. Mark Sanchez had thrown 4 INTs
and no touchdown passes in the past two games and the Jets had not scored an
offensive touchdown since Thanksgiving.�
Sanchez finished season with 75.3 passer rating, and was sacked 27
times while throwing 13 INTs. |
|
vs. Carol. |
W |
27-3 |
Clausen |
3 |
0 |
74 |
72 |
1 |
0 |
|
PIT up
20-0 at Half. |
|
@ Clev |
W |
41-9 |
McCoy |
9 |
1 |
43 |
209 |
3 |
2 |
|
PIT up
31-3 at Half. |
|
vs. Balt |
W |
31-24 |
Flacco |
17 |
2 |
35 |
125 |
1 |
1 |
|
Other
fumble was on botched under-center snap.�
INT was on unfettered pass 15 feet over TE's
head.�� Late 4Q TD was DROPPED by Anquan Boldin on a short,
cake-easy slant pass that hit him squarely in the chest, which would have put
the Ravens ahead by 4.�� Thanks to the
drop, the Ravens settled for a tying FG.�
|
|
vs. Jets |
W |
24-19 |
Sanchez |
17 |
2 |
70 |
233 |
0 |
1 |
|
24-0 lead
at 1:08 2Q, then FG allowed late 2Q.��
Then 2 TDs allowed, 1 in 3Q & 1 in
4Q.�� Another TD avoided when Keller
dropped 2-yard TD pass deep in 4Q.�
Lone turnover was off Taylor blitz & strip.��� Sanchez = 20 of 33 |
As you can
see above, this was a defense that FEASTED on the mediocre and the
incompetent.�� Dick faced only 2 top-tier QBs all season, and both times got shredded like provolone
cheese at a pizza parlor.�� Dick has been
the great stat-padder this season, padding his stats
against the incompetent and the bumbling, but has been entirely feeble &
helpless when facing the slightest bit of competence.� We�re constantly bombarded with cries of,
�Dick is so clever� and �Dick�s blitzes are so diabolical and confusing�.�� WHERE, praytell,
was all of that diabolical cleverness
in the shreddings issued by
Turns out the great fa�ade of Dick LeBeau is nothing more than abject
mediocrity.�� So it is with most things
French.�� It�ll certainly be interesting to
see what the almighty lord of defensive football can do in the Super Bowl vs.
Aaron Rodgers and the Pack.��
(Still Mill
and Stillers.com -- when it comes to the analysis of the