Stillers-Chefs Postgame Analysis and Grades

Chefs 41, Stillers 20 ���. Sep. 14th, 2003 ����Game #2

 

Stillers-Chefs Postgame Analysis and Grades

 

The Stillers had 1Q leads of 10-0 and 17-7, but then got ransacked for 21 points during the 2nd quarter and never recovered in route to a fairly embarrassing 41-20 whipping by the KC Chefs.� The Stillers fought back a little in the 2nd half, but 3 turnovers and another special teams fiasco ruined any chance at a comeback.�

 

Grades:

 

QB:� Maddox was sharp early on, but decent pressure by the KC front 7, as well as a poor lack of support by his WR corps, led to problems and also a turnover.� The INT returned for a TD was off a high, but entirely catchable, pass to El, which El allowed to slip thru his hands and then into the hands of Woods, who promptly took the ball 46 yards for a score.� �Maddox made a fine pass to Plex in the EZ on the team's first drive, but Burress foolishly bobbled the ball and was ruled OOB, thus forcing the Stillers to settle for 3 instead of 7.� Ward allowed two balls to slip thru his hands and El also had a drop (in addition to the one mentioned above).� Bettis dropped a high screen pass.� To be fair, Maddox deserves blame as well.� The INT in the EZ was the kind of backbreaking play that snatches defeat from victory.� A score there cuts the KC lead to only 7, but Maddox never saw Barber and threw a hideous INT into what was double coverage, which took away whatever remaining air was left in the Stillers' sail.� �Maddox also tried jamming a few passes into double and triple coverage, and probably was lucky to avoid a couple more picks.� He had some hideous, off-target misfires in the 2H as well. Overall, Maddox was ok, but despite passing for 336 yards, he's seen better days. �B-.�

 

RB:� Amoz ripped off 22 and 15-yard runs in the 4Q, but otherwise was held to 11 yards on 9 carries.� He also grabbed 2 passes.� For a so-called "starting" RB, though, Amoz isn't on the field anywhere near enough.� Doughboy Bettis got his token carries and ran 4 times for a whopping 7 yards. �As noted above, he also clumsily bobbled a catchable screen pass that resulted in an incompletion.� �Haynes made a nice play on a 3d & 2 screen pass late in the 2Q, in which he used 2nd and even 3rd effort to churn for 11 yards.� But in the 4Q, Haynes coughed up the ball on similar 2nd effort on a screen pass, turning the ball over and essentially pounding the nail in the coffin.� And late in the 4Q, Haynes was trucked by a blitzing LB, leading to a sack of Maddox.� C+.�

 

FB: Krieder didn't play all that much.� He sprung a couple solid runs with good blocks, and also grabbed a valve dump for 1 yard.� Haynes saw some FB duty, and was generally ineffective in his blocking chores.�� B.� ��

 

WR:� On paper, Ward and Burress appeared to have great days.� Every FFL geek in America will be fawn over their 146 and 115 yards, respectively, in receiving.� Problem is, football ain't played on paper.� Ward allowed two very catchable balls to slither right thru his hands.� Stonehands Plexico had the foolish bobble in the end zone, which negated what should have been a routine, easy TD.� Burress was also a bit lazy on a 3rd down pass in the 1Q, in which he lazily never came back to the ball, thus allowing Warfield the opportunity to bat the ball away at the last second. �Plex did have a nifty pluck on the 33-yard TD pass, although he got away with a little push on the DB just before the ball arrived.� El had a drop on a 3rd down pass, and allowed another 3rd down pass to slither thru his hands and then get returned for a KC TD.� If you combine El's deflection that led to the Woods TD with Plex's bobble that turned an easy TD into a field goal, this crew caused a swing of 11 points.� As if this crew didn't do enough negative damage, both Plex and Doering were flagged for false starts, which is inexcusable for a WR in the NFL.� There's too much pro experience and talent in this crew for this kind of overall slop.� C.�

 

TE:� Welcome to the Stiller offense, Jay Rimersma.� Riem was a big hit last week, with a TD and loads of accolades.� This week, Riem was ignored, other than the EZ pass attempt that was INT'd by Barber.� Tuman and Bruener did little.� B.�

 

OL: The O-line had its problems against the Chef defense.� I'd pointed out in my pre-game report about just how big it was for the Chefs to have Ryan Sims back from injury, as well as the acquisition of Holliday.� Sims spent a good bit of the day in the Stiller backfield, applying loads of pressure and hits on the QB, and helping to bottle up the ground game.� Hartings was called for a hold on a running play; was also feeble in allowing a sack in the first series of the 3Q; and overall was well below average.� Todd Fordham continues to be an abysmal failure at RT.� He was equally wretched on a Bettis run that was stopped for -1 (getting whipped badly when all he had to do was seal the back side!), as well as on a sack early in the 4Q, when Gary Stills effortlessly wheeled him back and then shoved him aside as though he were an invalid.� This sack-play was simply a horrible play by Fordham, in which words can do no justice to the horrific technique and footwork by Ford that allowed Stills to crash inside for the easy hit on Maddox.� When your tackle is getting abused to the inside, as Ford has for 2 weeks now, there's a very high chance your QB will miss playing time from an injury.� Simmons was flagged for a false start.� Surprisingly, Marvell Smith continues, for the most part, to hold his own over at LT with another ok effort.� Not by any means great, but better than adequate.� Overall, this O-line isn't playing anywhere near up to snuff.� Very disappointing.� D+.�

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DL:� The D-line was far too soft and spongy.� Leading the way in the disappointment department was none other than Casey Hampton.� Fat Casey was facing an undersized center (Wiegmann), and instead of eating him up, Casey got eaten up. �He wasn't bullied, but all too often, he allowed himself to be influenced too wide, as well as allowed himself to wander too far upfield at times, in which Priest would merely cut underneath thru a massive fissure.� Kendrick Clancy continues to show that he has no business even being on this team's active roster, much less getting somewhat regular work.� The Priest TD run in the 2Q came with much assistance from the feeble play of Ken Clancy, along with some slothful support from Rod Bailey.� On the plus side, Kimo and Smitty had very solid games.� Kimo's clever swim move caused the flush of Green, which allowed Fat Casey to record a sack.� Smitty was stout against the run.� Bailey chipped in with a couple solid chasedowns.� �In my pre-game report, I'd noted my concerns about this run defense, as well as the containment of Priest being the key matchup, and this D-line was shellacked rather thoroughly.�� C.�

 

LB:� A mixed bag from the LB crew.� In my pre-game report, I'd noted my concerns about this run defense, as well as the containment of Priest being the key matchup, and this LB crew (along with the D-line) clearly didn't come even remotely close to "getting it done". �Farrior led the way with some stellar play.� He showed confidence and good technique on a few stops, and also had a key INT.� On the down side, Farrior got caught up in the 'wash' during more than a couple Priest runs, which allowed sizeable chunks of yardage.� He was also trucked by a pulling lineman on the Priest 4-yard TD run early in the 3Q.� Bell jammed and stuffed a few plays -- to include a nice knife-in & stop of Priest on a 3rd & 1 plunge in the 3Q -- but overall, this man simply isn't on the field anywhere near enough to make the kind of impact that he is unquestionably capable of making.� Haggans had his share of ups and downs today.� He was badly mismatched in zone against Kennison on a short 2Q reception, and could do little more than chase on a 21-yard play that was mostly all RAC yardage.� Hagg missed a tackle of Priest on a 1Q screen play, but to his credit, he'd aggressively dashed forward in the first place and beaten the block by an O-lineman, and he got back to his feet and helped corral Priest for what turned out to be a piddly 1-yard gain.� Hagg was fooled on a reverse by Hall in the 2Q, but unlike some OLBs you'll see, he showed great hustle and desire to chase down Hall.� Hagg was called for an offsides, although Hampton was just as much offsides on the play.� Overall, Hagg finished with 6 solos, and also did a nice job of stringing out Priest in the 2Q on a 2d & goal run from the 3, in which Priest gained nothing.� �

 

Leading the way in doing absolutely nothing all day long was none other than the "defensive captain", Jason GilDong.� Jason stood around and did nothing the entire day.� Jack shit nothing.� He was credited with a tackle on Hall's 1Q end-around, in which he flaccidly stood and got shoved back, as though he were wearing roller blades, a full 6 yards by Dunn -- to include turning his back to the blocker -- and made a weak tackle along the sideline after a 12-yard gainer.� Twice -- to include Priest's 3Q TD run -- Jason was bullied so badly off the line of scrimmage that he ended up out of bounds.� Yep, that's right -- he was literally shoved and bullied off the field of play on 2 different occasions.� ("Jason had outside contain," The GiDongites will claim.)� On the Dunn 3-yard TD catch in the 2Q, Dunn ran right by Jason off the snap of the ball, yet Jason didn't give Dunn even a pinkie's worth of a shove or a jam.� �The biggest mention of Big Jason all day was his offsides flag in the 2Q.� In sum, the Stillers could have set out an empty 55-gallon drum and gotten just as much impact.� The Big 3:� B-.� Jason GilDong:� D.�

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DB:� The secondary picked up right where they left off against Balt. last week -- getting beaten downfield and committing penalty upon penalty.� DW committed a foolish personal foul on a tackle OOB in the 2Q, and 2 plays later Chad was whistled for PI.� Chad was also badly beaten by Morton and the 4Q and had to commit a PI in order to avoid an easy TD.� Townsend looked weak and unsure of himself on a short completion deep in Stiller territory in the 2Q, coming up meekly and allowing a couple extra yards near the Stiller goal line.� Logie had a nice bust-up early in the game, although it would have been nice if he'd picked it.� Chad had the nice INT and TD on the 2d play from scrimmage, but did little afterwards.� Brent whiffed rather feebly on the Priest 2Q TD run.� This will come as a major surprise to Billy Cowher and his band of minions, but 2 games into the season, Bent has yet to defend a single pass.� Troy Pola got a decent amount of PT but didn't make any kind of impact.� The Achilles heel was badly exposed today, and without a change in personnel and scheme, it will continue to be exposed against competent offenses.� C-.� ��

 

Spec teams:� As I'd noted in my pre-game, Dante Hall was 14 times the threat that last week's inept Raven return game presented.� Sure enough, Hall torched the Stillers for a 100-yard TD return to get the crowd and the KC team back into the game after a 10-point deficit, and he also set up another TD with a 45-yard PR that set up shop at the Stiller 7. �The main culprit on the long KO return for a TD was rookie LB Zo Jackson, who pulled a silly, foolhardy, Gildonesque pirouette move and thus took himself out of his lane, which thus opened up a crevice about 18 feet wide.� Josh helped Hall on the long punt return by delivering a rotten 33-yard punt with little hang time, smack near the middle of the field.� Remember this sorry punt the next time you hear someone fawning about how great a punter Josh supposedly is.� Troy Pola and then Haynes missed tackles on that jaunt.� Reed did a better job on KOs today than last week, and he came thru with a clutch 51-yard FG as the 1st half expired.� Aside from the shameful, gawdawful punt that led to the long punt return, Josh's punting was ok.� Ike Taylor chipped in very nicely in coverage, making 2 stops on PRs in the 1Q and then (combined with Haggans) chasing down Hall with good speed and hustle on the 45-yard return in order to prevent the TD. �Chidi had a solid stop on the opening KO.� When the special teams give up a TD on a 100-yard KO return, and allow a 45-yard punt return that sets up an easy 7-yard TD drive, they deserve to be flogged in public.� F.�

 

OC:� Mularkey had a rather poor afternoon, showing too much cuteness and an apparent smugness in himself.� The Stillers had to waste a TO on the very first series, on 3d & G at the 2, because the play apparently took far too long to get to the QB, and by the time the team broke the huddle, the playclock was approaching zero.� More egregious were the total refusal to throw the ball to that big, 6-5" WR named Burress on that 3Q march deep in KC territory, as well as things like going 5-wide and throwing the ball on 3rd & inches.� On the 3Q drive that ended in the INT, Mularkey out-clevered himself with a 2nd down lob to little Hines Ward --while Plex sat on the bench -- and then a cutesy pass to Riemersma that wasn't sold with any play-action and was smothered by 2 Chiefs, one of which (Barber) picked it off.� Sure, Maddox connected with Plex on that 3rd & inches, but going 5-wide on 3rd and inches is, in essence, telling your offense and your line that you've got no confidence to either run the ball or gain the yardage off play-action for a 1st down.�

 

And, in essence, Mularkey seems bent on slinging the ball and the running game be damned.� Not good and not smart. �We don't want Woody Hayes football here, but in these first 2 weeks the running game has been treated with the kind of disdain associated with cleaning out the garage -- a chore that has to be done once in a while, but is done grudgingly and with very little enthusiasm or mental effort.� At halftime, the Stillers had rushed for a whopping total of 13 yards.� Unacceptable.�

 

There was also a disgusting dickdance in the 2-minute drill late in the 1st half.� The Stillers began the drive at 2:19, and after Plex was stooped in-bounds on a 5-yard completion, the offense lazily allowed the clock to run down to 2:00.� Then, after the 2-minute warning "timeout", the Stillers came out and completed a pass to Haynes for 2 yards.� Instead of rushing to the LOS -- aided by the ability to call two plays during the 2:00 warning -- the offense instead slogged back to the huddle and dawdled around like schoolchildren after recess.� Haynes was stopped on that 2-yard gain at 1:50, and the ensuing play wasn't snapped until 1:17, a full 33 seconds later.� Some will crow a line of babble that Mularkey wasn't sure if the offense would be moving or if they'd punt, but with enormous talent level at the skill positions, combined with the 10-point deficit on the road, this offense needed to go full-bore during this 2-min. drill.� There was also a DOG penalty late in the 4Q, another indication of sloth by the OC.� �

 

Finally, it was a known fact that this Chef front 7 is far more of a flowing defense than a "stout at the point of attack" defense.� So what did Mularkey do?� Virtually every running play was a slow-developing play that allowed the Chef defense to flow and spurt, thus disrupting and stopping the play for little or no yardage.� �Mularkey needs to shelve some of the cutesy bullshit and get back to mano-o-mano, helmet-on-helmet drive blocking.� �C-.� �

 

DC:� No surprise here.� With no rookie QB to feast on like last week, Tiny Tim Lewis was in his usual small-minded mindset.� His defense applied no heat or harassment on Green whatsoever.� And, the D was far too soft against the run, playing too much "catch the blocker and read" instead of playing with mean-spirited aggression.� The total lack of heavy blitzing to rattle and pressure Green was inexplicable.� As noted above, the Achilles heel (the pass defense) was badly exposed again today, and without a change in personnel and scheme, it will continue to be exposed against competent offenses.� They say that insanity is doing the same thing over and over and over again, all the while expecting different results.� So it is with Tiny Tim Lewis.� C-.�

 

HC:� This stenchfest was classic Billy Ball at its best.� Disorganization.� A dozen penalties.� Loads of slop & slather.� Horrific special teams.� Softness & a lack of hitting on defense.� Carelessness and lack of discipline all over the field.� There's 1 man responsible for making sure all of the aforementioned horse manure doesn't occur, and his name is Billy Cowher.�� Cowher himself was a special team player, and only a spec teams player, during his few playing years, and he's a former spec teams coach, yet his spec teams continue to get burned for one big play after another.� D.�

 

Synopsis:� This was precisely the kind of team stink you expect from Billy Cowher this early in the season.� As I'd sternly warned in last week's post-game, as well as my pre-game report, this Stiller team has yet to show they can play defense against the big boys of the NFL, and today it showed.� Their gross inability to stop the running game and make critical stops of the Chefs in the red zone shows this defense isn't anywhere near ready for playoff-caliber competition.� Offensively, the offense is still groping for an identity, but we know for sure that the O-line and offensive scheme aren't geared at all to running the ball with any kind of determination or success.� The right side of the O-line is a glaring weak spot, but given Cowher's refusal to address it during the plethora of time in camp, it's doubtful it will be fixed during the tight time constraints of the regular season.� The special teams continue to be a sorry bunch of woefully inept clowns, and, as we've seen the past 10 years, it certainly won't be rectified before the playoffs hearken.� The Stillers get some generosity from the schedule with a game at Cinci next week, followed by a tough battle against the Titans at home.� Be wary of Cinci, though�Kitna threw for over 300 yards against the Raidas yesterday, and against the Softee Defense of the Stillers, Kitna is capable of the same next Sunday.