Stillers
13, Browns 9 ��. Jan. 1, 2012 ����Game #16
Stillers-Browns Postgame Analysis and Grades
The
Stillers ventured to 4-11 Cleveland, amidst 40 degree weather and severe wind gusts.�� As has happened all season long, the Stillers
played fiddle-faddle and grabass
against a severely out-manned team, and then had to hold on for dear life in a
weak, totally uninspiring 13-9 win.��
Grades:
QB:� Ben started after sitting out last week with
the bad ankle.� He was immobile and too
timid to run the ball, leading to a host of problems.�� He made a shit play on 3d & 3, 1st
drive, in which he had an ACRE of room to run to is right, but with the bad
ankle, he chose to pass, and threw a barf-laden pass to Cotch
that had no chance.� Ben followed this up
on 4th and 3 with a piss-licking lob -- painfully similar to a Tino Sunseri lob -- that was way
out of the reach of Redman.�� Shit pass
on 3d & 22 late in the 1Q, which was nearly INT�d.�
Another shit lob -- with ZERO loft -- on a 2Q lob to
Brown in the EZ, which was easily busted up.� Like a complete assfuck,
Ben took at sack on 3d & 5 at the Clev 14, losing 13 yards on a play where
he could have very easily FLUNG the ball away.�
Instead of a chippie 31-yard FG, Suisham, kicking into the wind, missed
a 45-yard FG.� A really
sophomoric, stupidfuk play by a veteran starting QB.�� When you�re that close to the EZ, you can
easily fire a ball 18 feet off the ground, into the bleachers, and intentional
grounding is never, ever called in that situation.��
Horrible lob to Brown in the back of the EZ late in the
2Q from the Clev 1.� He then followed
that up with another shit lob to Ward on the ensuing play, with both passes
being well overthrown.��� Horrendously
under-thrown pass into the wind early in the 3Q, but the Clev DB simply dropped
the ball.��
Coming
off the 2MW in the 4Q, Ben diddle-fuked around at the
LOS, and then had to burn a TO as the playclock had run down.���� He completed some solid passes for some
clutch 3D conversions in the 2H, but overall, a really shoddy, weak
performance.���� C+
RB:�
Mendy:
Tiptoe, 1st carry, no gain.� Very weak and very poor.��
Got his jocked rocked on 2d & 3 run at
6:55 1Q, and got stopped for 2.� Good run
and good laying of wood on 8-yard run up RT a short while later.�� Injured his knee at end of a wide 5-yard run
late in the 1Q, when he tip-toed -- rather than powering with the 15+ yards
worth of steam he had -- near the end of a run and then his cleat seemed to get
caught in the grass turf. He did not return.��
Redman
- superb read and cut on early 3d & 1, gaining 12 yards.� Superb plunge on
3d & 1 later in 1Q, tiny hole, plowed for 2 yards.�� Good grab and RAC for 9 yards on a 3rd &
3 a short while later, and then had a good- hard-charging plunge on the ensuing
2d & 12, good for 5 yards.� Superb
corkscrew spinning run on 4th & 1, eluding a DT in the backfield and then
eluding another defender before the 1D mark.��
Superb 5 and then 15-yard runs to open the 2H.�� (His helmet was ripped off during the
15-yarder, but amazingly enough, no flag was thrown despite the facemask
penalty, by rule, including the grabbing of any part of the
helmet.)�� Superb spinning run on 2d
& 1 in the 3Q, gaining 10.� He then
had a strong power-run for a 7-yard TD run in the 3Q.� Red coughed up the ball on a plunge at 12:45
4Q, giving the Browns the ball at their 42.�
Red was benched on the ensuing series, but re-entered and ripped off a
nice� 22-yard run, only to cough up the
ball yet again at the end of the run and committing another costly turnover at
5:49 4Q.�� Red finished with a solid 92
yards on 18 carries, but the 2 fumbles are all anyone will remember.�� It�s really a shame with Redman, as these
were his first 2 fumbles of the season.��
Clay
- gained 5 yards on a plunge early in the 3Q.�
After Redman fumbled away the ball, Clay was the RB on the ensuing
series, carrying 5 times.�� After Red�s
2nd fumble, Clay resumed the RB chores.�
Good 6-yard plunge late in the 4Q.�
Clay finished with 9 caries for 31 yards.��
Clay:��
A-���� All others:� B-�
FB:
Johnson
- did not play much FB.��
Redman
- was stuffed, with no hole at all, on a FB plunge on 3d & 1 on the final
play of the 3Q.�� ���Inc. ��
WR:�
Wally
- dropped slant pass, 1st series.�� Good RAC
on bubble screen in the 3Q, gaining 11 and the 1D.� That was it for his production.��
Brown
- Led the way with a stellar effort, and at this point, is clearly the #1 WR on
the team.�� Amazing
over-the-shoulder catch amidst windy conditions late in the 2Q, good for 40
yards.� Became
1st player in NFL history to gain 1,000 yards in receiving and 1,000 yards in
kick returns in a single season.�
Clutch grab on 3d & 5, good for 11, in the 3Q.� Superb catch despite being draped by Haden on
a slant in the 3Q, gaining 11.�� Made a sterling, sliding catch on a low backshoulder
pass in the 4Q, good for 13 yards on 2d & 13.� On this play, Brown managed to cradle the
ball against his hip, just an inch or 2 off the ground.��
Cotch - nearly grabbed a TD pass on a lob in the
3Q, but he bobbled it and then stumbled OOB.� He should have made the initial catch,
although he had to fight through very tight but legal coverage.� Clutch grab for 10 yards on 3d & 7, mid
4Q.�
Ward
- dropped simple screen pass, first play of game.�� He managed to grab 5 passes, with the 5th --
and number 1,000 -- being a shovel pass that actually lost 3 yards.�� Would have been much
cooler seeing him grab a clutch 5-yarder on 3rd & 4.��
Sanders
- superb pluck and RAC on 3d & 14 in the 2Q,gaining
14.� This was his only grab.��������� A-
TE:��
Miller
- clutch grab early in the 3Q.� Good
block on Red�s TD run.� Clutch grab on
tough pass in blanketed coverage on 3d & 3 late in the 4Q, gaining 11
yards.�
Johnson
- nice grab on crosser, 6 yards, 1st play of 2Q.� Limped off field in the 4Q.�
Saunders
- committed a dumbassed hold on a running play in the
4Q.�
Miller,
Johnson:�� A-��� ��Saunders:
D
OL: The line opened some
good creases in the ground game against a weak rushing defense, but got riddle
a bit too often in pass pro.�
Starks:
solid overall game.�� Didn�t
allow Ben to get maimed from the blind side.��
Gilbert-
Got eaten alive nearly the entire game.���
Was savagely mauled by a bulrush by DE Jabaal Sheard, resulting in a
13-yard sack in the 2Q.� Did a
shit job on a 3d & 5 draw play late in the
2Q.� Abused on a wide rush by Sheard late in the 2Q, forcing a TA.� I won't go into the many other ways that
Marcus Gilbert had the most wretched game of his short career, but I want to
focus on the second Redman fumble. Gilbert falls very near this football
and has splendid position to get it, and is battling #23 on the Clowns, who is
a DB. Somehow, the weakass pussy Gilbert allows
this puny cornerback to take control of the ball underneath Gilbert's 350 lb.
slab of fat...?�� Gil sat out last week�s
game due to what Momlin referred to as, �We didn�t
like how he prepared.��� We�re not sure
what Gilbert did to prepare for this game, but it appeared he did little more
than squat his ass onto the tip of a pylon and ride it up and down like a pogo
stick.���
Foster
- good lead block on 8-yard run by Mendy in the 1Q.� Limped off in the 4Q, and was replaced by
Essex.��
Kemo
- started at LG due to a concern that Essex would have to fill in at center for
the hobbled Pouncey.�
Essex came in at LG at 5:00 1Q, but after that series, did not play LG again.� Kemo soon reentered, and then blocked no one
as Ben was sacked late in the 1Q.�
Pouncey - started for the first time in a few weeks.� Committed a dumb-assed
holding penalty on Redman�s 6-yard draw-play run early in the 2Q.�� ����Gilbert:�� D-�����
�All others:� B-��
DL:� The D-line got gashed here and there for nice
chunks of yardage by Hillis.� �The
pass rush was fairly weak and marginal.��
Keisel - helped stop Hillis
for no gain in the 3Q.� Wrapped up Hillis for a 1-yard gain late
in the 3Q.� He batted a pass in
the 4Q.� On the very next play, he
stopped Hillis on a swing pass in the flat on 3d
& 5, and then he ripped the ball loose, although it fell
OOB.�� A strong overall
game by a DE who most assuredly deserved a spot in the Blo
Bowl.��
Hampton - good clog, opening
plunge.� Blew up
plunge in the 2Q, causing a 4-yard loss.�
Hood - applied pressure and got a paw on a pass in
the 3Q.�� �������B-�
LB:�
Farrior
- lumbered like a 58-year old lady on a dumpoff late in the game, allowing the
TE to get OOB.�� Did
very little the entire game.�
Harrison
-� Missed an
easy tackle of Hillis near the LOS in the 2Q, and Hillis rumbled away for 9 yards.�� Rushed too far upfield, and allowed a gaping
avenue for Wallace to scamper up LT for a 20-yard gain late in the 3Q.�� Rushing from LOLB, he applied pressure and
forced a hasty pass late in the game.�
Foote
- painfully too slow on 3d & 2 in the 2Q, in which Wallace scrambled for 27
yards.� Despite playing in probably 20+
snaps, he was held off the stat sheet.���
Timmons
- Dong sack, 2nd play of game, his whopping 2nd sack of season.� Went to his knees and weakly flailed at Hillis on an 8 yard run in the 2Q that should have gained
only 4.� Good downfield coverage on 3d
& long in the 3Q.� Good, hard tackle
of Moore late in the game.� Timmy then
made a superb play on the TE, Moore, chasing him down and hauling him down in
bounds with about 17 seconds remaining.��
The closing-speed plays that Timmy made today have been sorely lacking
this season, and must continue in the playoffs.�
�
Worilds
- started at LOLB in place of Big LaMarr.�
Superb rush on 3 & G -- even busting through a
hold that wasn�t called -- in the 2Q, forcing a TA.� Eluded a cut block and applied the pressure
on 3d & 2, in which Pola made the INT on the hurried pass.� A much better effort than that shit-laden
effort he gave last week.������� B-��
DB:�
Pola
- slashed in between the G/C on 1st play of 2nd series, and hauled down the QB
for a 3-yard loss.�� Good bust-up of pass
to Hillis late in the 1Q.� Superb INT on 3d & 2 in
the 3Q.�
Ike
- nice bust-up on 3d & 10 with only 5 minutes left in the game.�
Gay
- busted up short pass to Cribbs, 1Q.� Abused by Cribbs on
crosser late in the 3Q, and then, like a dufgus,
failed to �touch� the WR down after he dove.��
Weakly allowed a Clev RB to bust his tackle in the
backfield, turning a 4-yard loss into no gain.�� Dropped an easy INT on an out pass at 5:18
4Q.��
Clark
- as usual, he made a shit play in the EZ late in the 2Q, mis-timing
his jump and nearly allowing a TD catch.�
Luckily, the Clev receiver (Moore) allowed the ball to slither thru his
hands.� Clark nearly whiffed, but managed
a blindside sack of Wallace late in the 3Q.�
Lewis
- good stick and wrap, 3d & long on 1st series, held Cribbs
short of the 1D.� Whiffed on Cribbs late in the 2Q, allowing an extra 4 yards.��
Fadden
- totally abused by Massaquoi on deep crosser in the
4Q, but the WR dropped the ball.��
Pola
and Ike:� A.���� All others:� C+�
Spec
teams:�
Brown
took a KO out from 8 yards deep, and then got drilled by Cribbs
at the PIT 18.�� Good punt catch on a
short, high punt in the 4Q, with 4 Browns literally
buzzing around him on the FC.��
Cortez
Allen nicked up his shoulder/arm in punt coverage late in the 2Q after he
chipped in on a tackle of Cribbs.�
Cotch had a 19-yard return off a short KO late in
the 2Q.��
The
KO coverage team forced a fumble by Cribbs after a
squib KO in the 3Q, but Clev recovered the ball.�� Of course, Keenan Lewis was offsides on the
KO, so the turnover would have been negated.�
The punt coverage unit forced a fumble by Cribbs
laet in the 4Q, but the ball popped OOB.��
Kapinos - lucky bounced just before the GL and spun
backwards, pinning the Browns on their own 4 late in the 1Q.� Vomit-laden 36-yard punt late in the 2Q,
giving Clev the ball at their own 31.�
Combined with Dick�s softee defense, the
Browns were able to parlay that FP into a 45-yard FG late in the half. ��Solid 49-yard punt on the
first play of the 4Q.�
Suisham -� Hooked and missed a 45-yard FG in the
2Q, albeit it was into the wind.���
Still, not good.�� ����B-�
OC:� �Arians, as usual, ran a grab-bag offense that
had little purpose and zero set-ups.�� There
were the blustering winds that Arians never did seem to account for.�� �
The
offense dominated TOP in the 1H, but came away with just 3 points.���
Wally
had zero catches 1H and only one 1 for the game.� Brilliant game plan by
Arians.���
On
3d & 2 from the PIT 37 at 2:00 4Q, the Browns were out of timeouts.....yet
unbelievably, Arians actually tried a PASS here, amidst a snow squall.�� The slant pass was slapped away, and the
Browns were able to save about 35 seconds of clock with the freebie clock
stoppage. �How in the fuking
hell do you call a pass play there???����
Sure, Mendy was injured and Redman was on the bench due to the fumbles,
so a rookie was at RB. So what ??�� You either run a plunge, or have Ben simply
KNEEL down for no gain.�� But that�s
Arians for you....no clue on the situation whatsoever.� ��C-�
DC:� Dick once again had
the luxury of facing yet another shitbag QB.�� He faced QB Seneca Qallace,
a career shitbag who last week versus Balt threw for all of 147 yards and carried the ball once
for 5 yards.�� To make matters even
easier, RB Peyton Hillis injured a knee in the 3Q and
returned only sparingly.��
On a 3d & 2 in the 2Q, Dick had NO ONE
covering for a QB scramble up the gut -- aside from Larry Slow-a-Foote, who
shouldn�t have even been on the field -- and Wallace easily scampered up a
GAPING hole for 27 yards.� This set up a
chippie FG to put the Browns in front, 3-0.�
On 3d & 7, late in the 2Q, Dick allows Cribbs to be WIDE open for a cake-easy reception
of 23-yards.� Instead of forcing a punt
with 2:00 remaining in the half, Dick allows a mammoth play and allows Clev to
retrain the ball and chew more clock, and ultimately
Clev was able to tack on a FG late in the half.��
�
The offense dominated the 1st half TOP (20
minutes to 10), yet Dick allowed 2 Clev drives for easy, wind-at-their-back
FGs.��
In the 3Q, the Stillers scored 10 points to
take a 13-6 lead.�� After the Redman TD,
Clev started at its 23.� RIGHT HERE was
the spot to take control of the ballgame and shovel dirt in the face of a shitbag QB like Seneca Wallace,�� What does Dick do ?� He goes SOFT, and allows Clev to conduct a
cake-easy march that resulted in a 49-yard FG.��
Very soft and very feeble. ��
After the first Redman fumble, Dick faced a
3d & 10 at the PIT 43.� Of course,
there was ZERO pressure and Massaquoi was WIDE open
for an easy 11-yard completion.��� Two
plays later, Mass was again WIDE OPEN on a crosser, and simply dropped the
ball.��
Late in the 4Q, in a blinding snowstorm and
the Browns forced to pass INTO the wind with NO TIMEOUTS, Dick had to hold on
for dear life in trying to stave off Seneca Wallace.�� The Browns, who took over at their own 24
with only 1:46 remaining, casually and easily marched down the field.�� Clev had a
very makeable pass to the EZ from the PIT 24, but luckily the pass was busted
up on the game�s final play.��
Facing such an inept, bumbling defense, Dick
should have very, very easily pitched a shutout.���� Very underwhelming.���� D+�
HC:� Mike Momlin, whose in-game
decision making is similar to that of a complete drunkard, made a plethora of bizarre
decisions during this game.� It all
started with his decision to play Ben, who stated he was only 60%.�� If that�s all Ben was, why play him ??��� Ben has
become Momlin�s security blanket, and Momlin cannot bear even the thought of playing a series --
much less a game -- without his blanket.��
Facing a 4th & 3 on 1st drive, Tomlin
eschewed the 49-yard FG -- with the wind at the kicker�s back
-- and went for it.�� Ben�s pass was
woefully off-target and the ball turned over to Clev.�� Momlin knows Ben
is nowhere close to 100%; Ben was scattershotting the
ball all over the place early in the game; and Suisham
has more than enough leg to hit that FG, especially with a nice breeze at his
back.��
�
Late in the 3Q, Clev was called for holding
on an incomplete pas on 3d & 17.��
Rather than accepting the penalty and setting up a 3d & 27, Tomlin,
the complete stupid dumbfuk that he is, declined it
and allowed Dawson, with the wind at his back, to drill a 49-yard FG to cut the
lead to 13-9.�� Remember, Dawson had
earlier nailed a 45-yarder with the wind at his back, so it was by no means unreasonable
to expect Dawson -- a very reliable, strong-legged kicker -- to have more than
enough leg for the 49-yarder.� WHY in the
sam fuking hell, while
facing a shitbag QB like Seneca Wallace, would you
not accept this penalty?��� ��
Late in the game, at 1:57 4Q and the LOS at
the PIT 37, Momlin actually had Kapinos
punt the ball directly to Josh Cribbs, rather than
ordering a punt OOB.�� Why
???��� This is really stone-stupid
football.� Momlin
was clinging to a flimsy 4-point lead, and Cribbs --
the best weapon on a team devoid of weapons -- was THE BEST chance the Browns
had to score 7, what with Sen Wallace at QB.�� Anyone recall DeSean
Jackon�s late punt return for a TD last year??�� Even a 30-yard punt (that lands OOB) puts
the Browns, with zero timeouts, at their own 33.��
All in all, a shit day at the office
for Momlin.���� D ��
Synopsis:� A weak-assed win over a weak-assed opponent,
which is about the 10th such win the Stillers have eked out this season.� Thanks to Cinci gagging against the Ravens, the
Stillers are a wild-card team and will play at Denver this Sunday. ��Denver, of course, is an enormously
weak-assed opponent with a putrid offense, and this should be an easy, mop-up
win for the Stillers.�� But given how
mightily the Stillers have struggled on the road in 2011 and how miserably they
have failed to put away pathetic opponents, absolutely nothing can be taken for
granted, and you can fully expect a flimsy 4-point, nailbiting
score differential in the 4Q of this game.�
(Still
Mill and Stillers.com -- when it comes to the analysis of the