Doncos
29, Stillers 23 (OT) ……. Jan. 8, 2012 …………AFC Wild Card, Game #17
Stillers-Doncos Postgame Analysis and Grades
The
Stillers cruised out early, totally dominating the 1st quarter and seeming to
be in total command with a 6-0 lead. Teblow had done utterly nothing at that point, and the Doncos leading receiver was injured on the 1st play of the
2Q. Then, on a 3d & 12, the defense
inexplicably allowed Teblow to scramble to his LEFT
and then threw up a long lob that was hauled in for 51 yards. A couple plays later, Teblow
connected on a 30-yard TD, and the entire game shifted thereafter. The Doncos scored on a 73-yard march on
their next possession, and a Ben INT gave the Doncos a chippie FG to a make it
17-6 midway in the 2Q. The Stillers
stormed back in the 4Q, and tied the game to send it in OT. But on the 1st play from scrimmage in OT,
Timmy Teblow hit D. Thomas on a simple small post for
about 20 yards, and he shrugged off Ike Taylor and raced 80 yards for the
game-winning TD.
Grades:
QB:
Missed an open Wally down the sideline on the 2nd play of
the game. Should have been 6. Good pass under pressure to Miller, 33
yards, a few plays later. Overthrew an open Sanders on a Sunseri-like
lob in the 2Q. Totally
dogshit, horrible INT in the 2Q, which gave the
Doncos a chippie FG to make it a 17-6 game. Ben finished the 1H with 11 of 23 for 134
yards and the 1 INT.
Shitty, low bubble screen pass on the 1st drive of the
3Q, which Butterfingers Wally dropped.
Good pass to Sanders for 18 on 3d & 10 in the 3Q. Good rifled crosser to Brown for 19 in the
4Q. On 3d & 6 at the DEN 19 in the
4Q, Ben somehow felt that jamming a pass to a triple-covered Miller (who was
only 5 yards downfield) was his best option.
The pass was easily busted up, and the Stillers had to settle for a
FG. Took foolish sack
on 1st play after Mundy’s FF.
Totally shit, underthrown quail of a lob to a double-covered Wallace
that should have been INT’d by Bailey, but he dropped
it. But on the next play, Ben scrambled
to his right and hit Cotch for a 31-yard TD
pass. Took totally stupid sack -- and
nearly was stripped -- on 1st down at
1:37 4Q Late in the game (29
seconds left), on a 1st down at the DEN 45, Ben stood and stood and stood
in the pocket, and then allowed the ball to be stripped for an 11-yard
loss. This took the Stillers out of FG
range, and it was an entirely shit-eating play by a veteran QB. You simply CANNOT take a sack, or a strip, in
this situation, and there was plenty of time and room to get RID OF the fuking ball.
Overall, a gritty effort, but not nearly good enough. C-
RB:
Redman
- Not much holes early on, but showed good burrowing and plowing. Good 6 yard power run on 2d & 2 at 5:40
1Q. Superb read and slice for 13 yards
on 3d & 1 late in the 1Q. Superb inside run on 3d & 2 in the 3q, busting tackles and
scoring a 33-yard TD. The replay
review moved the ball back to the 1-2 yard line, which was total bullshit. At worst, this ball should have been placed
at the 4-inch line. Superb 28-yard run up RG in the 4Q. Superb run on 3d & 1
midway 4Q, gaining 4. Overall,
Redman had the best game by a “33” for the Steelers in Denver, since Merrill Hoge’s epic performance in the Jan. 1990 playoff game. Red had 121 yards on only 17 carries, and
grabbed 2 passes for 21. With Mendy
being on the mend at camp, Redman will be the #1 back going into the ’12 season,
unless a rookie is drafted and given a chance.
Clay
- ran a plunge late in the 1Q for 1 yard.
Moore
- Sat out due to his knee injury. A+
FB:
Johnson
- Had a couple ok blocks. They also used Johnson as a decoy, in which
the Donco LBs followed him but the run was to the
other side. B
WR:
Wally
- grabbed an out for 17 in the 1Q, although he had acres of room to gain more
had he not stumbled OOB. Made a diving
grab for 52 yards in the 2Q, but it was correctlyover-ruled
on a challenge. This should have been a much cleaner catch than it was, and
should have never slithered thru his hands.
He grabbed a short crosser on 3d & 10 and had a HALF ACRE of room,
but like a complete pussy, he stuttered and partially slipped on his little
faggot cut and was stopped 3 yards short of the sticks. Dropped a low but catchable bubble screen
midway in the 3Q, and by the grace of God, the play was immediately whistled as
an incompletion when it was very clearly a fumbled lateral. Had the refs not botched this, Denver would
have gotten the ball around the PIT 19. Wally showed
today what a shitladen pair of hands he truly
has. Very, very
disappointing.
Brown
- mostly ignored in the 1H, but did grab a 25-yarder on a backshoulder
late in the 1H. Clutch grab on 3d &
3 in the 3Q to move the sticks. Nice run on end around for 17 in the 3Q. Good 19-yard crosser in the 4Q. Brilliant catch on a rifled
crosser at 1:30 4Q, good for1 17 yards.
This man is a warrior and is quite clearly the best WR on the
roster.
Cotch - From the DEN 46, dropped a cake-easy
little crosser on 3d & 3 in the 1Q, in which he had an ACRE of room and
would have gained at least 18 yards. He
was ignored the rest of the game, until Ben hit him with a 31-yard TD pass at
3:48 4Q. Cotch
made a tremendous catch under tight coverage, even ,taking
a pop after the grab.
Ward
- was targeted only once and finished what was probably his last game in a Stiller uniform with zero catches. Sad, really.
Sanders
- Nice grab on out pass, gained 7 in the 1Q. Good tackle on INT return in the
2Q. Good grab for 18 yards on 3d &
10 in the 3Q. Dumfuck
false start on 2d & 10 at the DEN 23 at 10:57 4Q, which bogged down the
drive and we had to settle for a FG. Very, very stupid.
Good RAC on short hitch, getting 15.
Superb catch for 18 yards on sideline lob late in the 4Q.
Wally: D+
Brown: A Sanders and Cotch: B
Ward: Inc.
TE:
Miller
- Good grab, 8 yards on early 3d &
3. Then 33 yards on a seamer the next play.
Grabbed his 3rd catch on the 3rd series, in the 1Q. Good pull and block on Red’s 9-yard run in
the 1Q. Good block to spring Brown on
the long end around. Heath had an alert
fumble recovery late in the 2Q, which, had he not recovered, would have given the
Doncos the ball in FG range.
Johnson - dropped a cake-easy lil’
middle dump in the 2Q, which would have gained 6. What a fuking pile
of shit. Good block on the Wallace TD
run.
Miller: A Johnson:
C-
OL: The O-line often
allowed leakage on simple 3 and 4-man rushes.
The blocking in the ground game was decent.
Starks:
Got totally steamrolled onto his back for a sack by Ayers in the 2Q. A totally barf-laden
blocking attempt. He somehow got
hurt, perhaps when he was flattened onto his back.
Scott
- came in at LT in the 4Q. Good block
on 3d & 1 in the 4Q.
Gilbert-
rode his man way to the left to help spring Redman for the 33-yard run in the
3Q. Wasn’t the total pile of shit that
he was last week, which was a pleasant surprise.
Leggo - On 3d & 4 late in the 2Q, with the
offense in FG range at the DEN 32, Leggo snapped a
94-MPH snap that was high, and it glanced off Ben’s hands and rolled further
for a 23-yard loss that forced a punt. Was beaten late in the 4Q for a strip of Ben, which pushed the
Stillers out of FG range.
Foster
- failed to ward off Dumervil on a 1st down sack at
7:20 4Q.
Kemo
- good pull and maul on Red’s long run in the 4Q.
Pouncey - did not play, due to the ankle
injury. C+
DL: The line got gashed here and there in the
ground game, and did nothing to even get a paw in the face of the QB, much less
harass the QB.
Keisel - injured in the 2Q and did not return.
Hampton - tweaked his knee in that long 1st series
(all of 3 plays). Did
not return.
McClendon - replaced FatBoy
Hampton.
Hood - tackle of Tebow on option keeper late in the
3Q. Had a fairly
active game with 4 solos.
Heyward - got a 1-handed grab of Ball on 3rd &
long to force a FG try in the 4Q. Over-bvit on a read-keeper in the 4Q,
good for 10 yards. Superb hustle play to chase down McGayboy
and help strip the RB for a FF in the 4Q.
Overall, I’m really disappointed in this man’s upper body strength. He needs to spend at least 6 days a week.
Overall, not good enough. B-
LB: An entirely weak-assed, subpar effort by the
crew that, schematically, is supposed to be making the plays to lead this
defense.
Farrior
- weak whiff on bubble screen, 2nd series.
Weakly whiffed like a complete pansie on a McCaghee plunge for 11 yards late in the 2Q. Finished with paltry 3 solos and did
nothing.
Timmons
- flashed into the BF and dropped the RB for a 2-yard loss, 2nd series. Blasted into the BF for
another loss-drop on the final play of the 1Q. Had 5 solos and 1 A. Earned his keep.
Harrison
- delivered a low lick to Decker (not his man in coverage) and knocked him
silly, as Decker lay woozy after he hit the ground. The hit forced an incompletion instead of a
21-yard reception. Fooled
on a Tebow keeper around end for 4 yards in the 2Q. Flagged for a late hit on
the QB in the 2Q. Fooled on option keeper late in the 3Q, good for 11 yards. Good stuff of McGahee
late in the 4Q. On an option pitch in the 3Q, Harrison had a
chance to LIGHT UP Timmy Teblow, but instead, he held
up and just gave Timmy a wee lil’ baby tap. On this kind of play, a LB must light up the QB. THAT is how you stop the option in the NFL. Me thinks the fines
and suspension finally put a crimp into Harrison’s play, because up until 4
weeks ago, he would have simply lit up the QB on that kind of play.
Foote
- As usual, did absolutely nothing. A total waste of oxygen.
He did manage to get blown out on the Tebow TD run.
Woodley
- Made a rare stop, 1st play, stopped Tebow on keeper. Gay helped considerably, but Big LaMarr was
given a solo stop. After that long,
laborious 1st series (all of 3 plays),
he gave way to Worilds. LaMarr returned
for the 3d series. Just as I warned in
my pre-game analysis, Big LaMarr did a huge Wide Loop Rush on 2d & 6 on the
8, and the resulting ALLEY was wide enough to fit a ’72 Oldsmobile, and Tebow
ran in nearly untouched for an easy TD. Being the complete puss that he is,
LaMarr sat out a good bit of the 2H. He
did return late in the 3Q. Whiffed on Tebow on an option keeper late in the 3Q. Whiffed on a fairly easy sack at 8:34
4Q. Big LaMarr, who was standing around
and doing nothing, managed to recover the fumble that was forced by Mundy. The lazy, fat-fuk
that he is, he blatantly grabbed Tebow’s facemask
back in the pocket on a pass play at 2:00 4Q, but luckily the refs failed to
see it. Overall, Big LaMarr provided no
more impact than if the coaches had merely inserted a 55-gallon drum in his
place. No pressure, no heat, and no
harassment on the QB. NONE
at all.
Worilds
- On 2nd series, superb chase-down on bubble screen on OTHER side of field,
stopping the play short of the sticks and forcing a punt.
Timmons: B+
Harrison and Worilds: B-
Farrior, Foote: C Woodley:
D-
DB:
Pola
- chipped in with Mundy on FF on 1st series.
Overplayed a long loft on the 2nd series that could have been an 92-yard TD pass, but it was 2 inches too long. Bit up on
the rollout that gained 40-yard in the air in the 2Q. Flashed up and nailed McGahee
for no gain late in the 3Q.
Ike
- Had a barf-licking, putrid effort the entire game. Played like a complete faggott. Failed to make ANY play on
the ball on the deep ball to Thomas for 51 yards. Got literally spun like a top on a stop n’
go by Thomas in the 2Q and then tried a weak-assed, girlish tackle attempt,
which gained 58 yards. (At that point,
this was the longest pass play of Tebow’s
career). Ike was flagged for a hold
early in the 3Q. Flagged
for a ticky-tack PI in the 3Q on a deepish lob to Thomas in the 3Q, good for 32 yards. Like a complete asspump,
Ike grabbed HIGH on the huge, strong Thomas after the catch in OT, and Thomas
shrugged him off like a toddler and sped another 55 yards for the game-winning
TD. Going into the game, I felt Ike was
man enough to at least moderately handle Thomas, but I had no idea Ike would
play as though he squats -- not stands -- when he pisses.
Gay
- Mimicking Ike, Gay got caught flat-footed 2 plays later and never made a play
on the ball on the 30-yard TD pass. Of
course, the WR only got ONE foot down and his ass landed OOB, but the review ruled
it a TD anyway. Saved
a TD with an ankle-nip tackle of Royal in the 2Q. On the next play, on 3d & goal, Gay
busted up a TD pass. Good tackle of McGahee near the end of the 2Q for a 3-yard gain.
Mundy
- FF, 2nd play of game (but Denver recovered).
Helped strip McGahee for a rare FF in the
4Q. Got caught up near the LB box on the
game-wining TD, although we can presume that his
coach, who is in the Hall of Fame, you know, tasked him to be there.
Clark
- did not play, due to his sickle cell issues in altitude. Facing an inept QB who was missing his most prodctuve WR (Decker) for 70% of the game, this was a total
pile of bile. Ike: F All others: D
Spec
teams: Surprisingly, no fiascos or blunders at all.
Brown
- nice catch of a fair-catch punt in the 1Q, in which he was blatantly interfered
with (crowded by a coverage man who was well within the 1-yard bubble), but no
flag was thrown.
Kapinos - decent pooch punt in the 1Q, with it being
FC at the DEN 11. Booming
62-yard punt in the 2Q.
Suisham -
45-yard FG to put the Stillers up 3-0.
Nailed a 38-yarder late in the 1Q to increase the lead
to 6-0. Did a
god job with all his KOs, getting TBs on each time but one, with the 1 return
coming out only to the 15. A
OC: Arians, as usual, arrived to this game with
no plan, no purpose, and no sense. It
was yet another exposition of grab-bagism at its best,
or worst.
1st
series, 3d & 7 -
Airhead Arians calls a bubble screen to Wally, which was easily
stopped for a piddly-ased 2 yards. A shit playcall by a
shit-for-brains coordinator.
Miller is ravaging the Doncos on this drive, and you also have Brown,
Wally, Ward, et al, to pass to near the sticks….and you call a piss-drinking,
behind the LOS bubble screen ?? Fuk Bruce
Arians. Arians went on to call 3 bubble screens, 1 of which gained 5
yards; another which should have been ruled a fumble recovery by Denver; and
the 2 yarder by Wally.
Finally,
at 1:05 2Q, Arians finally decides to get the ball to his BEST receiver, Tonio
Brown, which gained 25 yards. Prior to
that, the only pass Brown had thrown his way was a bubble screen for 5
yards.
12 men in huddle early in the 3Q. How fuking stupid
can you get ?
Rare, smart call on the jet sweep that scored an
untouched TD by Wally in the 3Q. Another
rare but smart tactic was to use Johnson as a decoy in short yardage, as the Doncos must have shown a tendency to rabidly over-pursue wherever
the FB went.
As
usual, the offense pissed away gobs of time late in the game. At 1:04 4Q, Ben hit Brown on a fairly quick
17-yard completion. The play ended at 0:56. In true Arians Offense fashion, the offense took
nearly an hour and a half to get off the next snap, which did not occur until 0:33. At this level of football, it should not
take 23 seconds to get a snap off after a 17-yard catch.
Arians
never did adjust his offense to accommodate Ben’s injury and lack of mobility, resorting
instead to the ad-hoc, playground offense that Arians uses when Ben is
healthy. It all spelled a complete clusterfuck.
D-
DC: Dick, once again, for the 14th time this
season, had the luxury of facing a totally inept offense led (sic) by a totally
inept QB. Coming into this tilt, the
lowly Donco offense had not
scored a TD in
their last 19 drives. The Doncos lost their starting RG last
week, and had to user a backup. Lil’
Timmy Tebow was THE MOST inaccurate passer in the NFL this season and was THE
WORST QB, statistically, in the entire league this season.
Everyone knows you do NOT ALLOW Tebow to
scramble to his LEFT. Everyone, that is, except Dick LeBeau. On the 2nd series, the defense allowed Tebow
an ACRE of room, and what would have been a 92-yard TD pass was just 2 inches
too far for the WR. Early in the 2Q,
with the Stillers in total command and leading 6-0, the Doncos faced a 3d &
12 the defense again allowed Tebow to scramble to his LEFT, and the pitiful QB
easily completed a 51-yard bomb to Thomas on 3d & 12. Everyone knows you don’t allow Teblow to scramble to his LEFT, and it was at this point
that I quickly realized -- LeBeau and his vaunted defense were totally unprepared
for this QB.
In the 2Q, Dick allowed a 58-yard deep ball
to Thomas, the longest
completion of Tebow’s career (at that point). Soon thereafter, Teblow
ran a keeper for 4 yards, setting up a 2d & 6 at the PIT 8. ANYONE who has watched the Doncos this
season knows this a situation where the Broncos LOVE to run the QB
keeper. Sure enough, they did, and Dick
was entirely unprepared for it, and Teblow ran up a
GAPING hole, nearly untouched, for a cake-easy TD run. “Duh-uh……I am Dick LeBeau and I am a
clueless fuking idiot….”
Later in the 2Q, the vaunted “#1” defense
allowed a designed rollout to Teblow’s LEFT, and Tebow,
totally unfettered, easily completed a 40 yard pass on a long loft. Late in the 2Q, Dick, as helpless as a
1-legged man in an ass-kicking contest, allowed a 59-yard march for a chippie
FG to make the lead 20-6. In the 2Q
alone, Dick allowed 226 yards of offense to a lowly, putrid, sack o’ shit
offense that passed for 60 (SIXTY) yards in the entire game last week.
Dick finally managed to stop Timmy and the
Broncos on the 1st drive of the 3Q,
Problem was, Dick allowed the Doncos to make a couple first downs, and
the Doncos marched to the PIT 37 before punting and pinning the Stillers on
their own 12. That’s called FLIPPING the field, and no one
allows it to happen easier in big games, than Dick LeBeau.
On 2d & 7 late in the 3Q, Tebow had an
ETERNITY in the pocket. He finally took
off running up the gut, and had an ACRE of room for an easy 8-yard run. A couple plays later, Tebow ran the
read-option keeper for 10 yards. The
flat-footed defense looked about as prepared as the French army was for either
World War.
In the 3Q, the Stillers scored a TD to make
it a 7-point game. The KO was a TB and
Denver took over at its 20. RIGHT HERE
was a chance for this softee, over-rated defense to
make a STOP, force a punt, and get the ball back for the offense. What did Dick do ? He allows the Doncos to casually MARCH, and
MARCH, nearly the entire length of the field, in a long, clock-chewing 11-play,
87-yard drive that culminated in a chippie 35-yard FG to make it a 10-point game. That’s some dominating defense, isn’t it ?
After Ben tied the game, DEN took over at its
own 15-yard
line with 3:42 remaining in the game.
RIGHT HERE, the defense could force a punt and give the offense golden FP
for a game-winning FB. Nope, not LeBeau. Dick allows another bootleg left, which
Tebow casually completed for 17 yards to Fells. Dick finally did force a punt, but precious
time, and yardage, was pissed away.
On the first play of OT, Tebow had no
pressure in his face, and then calmly hit a WIDE OPEN Thomas on a short
post, With NOBODY back at safety, Thomas ran 80 yards for the game-winning TD. When the ball was snapped, there were 11
(ELEVEN) defenders within 4 yards of the LOS.
Why ?
It’s not like McGahee was tearing it up. He’d gained 61 yards on 19 rushes,
about half of what Redman had gained with 2 less carries. LeBeau was a complete fuking
ignoramus for sticking EVERY defender up at the LOS on a 1st down play from the
opposing 20 yard line. A stupidfuk scheme by a complete stupidfuk.
By the way, lest anyone forget, the Broncos
lost their LEADING RECEIVER, Eric Decker, to injury in the 2Q and he did not
return. LeBeau faced a depleted Denver
receiving corps, and still gave up yardage and points to a pitiful, scattershot QB the
way the French army got over-run in both World Wars.
Timmmy Tebow, a total pile o’ dung as a QB, completed
10 of 21 passes for 316 yards. He averaged an unheard-of 15 yards per attempt
and had a passer rating of 125.6. Timmy’s passer ratings in the two previous
games were 37.9 and 20.6. Yet Dick LeBeau, supposedly The Supreme Almighty
Lord and Deity of Defensive Football, allows this sorry pissfuk
of a QB to achieve a 125.6, with zero turnover.
And Dick allowed Timmmy a gaudy 31.6 yards per
completion, which is the 3rd highest mark EVER in NFL history.
Overall,
Dick got tooled and schooled. Pressure on the QB? NONE. Heat on the QB ? None. Clever
disguises? NONE. Exotic coverage that fooled the young, greenhorned Tebow ? NONE. Forced INTs? NONE. Forced turnovers? Only one, that by a RB’s
fumble.
Quiz Question -- How do you make Timmy Tebow look like a
competent QB ?
Answer: Let him face Dick LeBeau and that vaunted “#1
defense” !!
Dick LeBeau -- totally befuddled, totally
confused, and totally worthless. Sure
enough, you’ll hear plenty of babble and fury, making pathetic excuses and
rationalizing the performance of Dick’s schemes and his flaccid defense. The defense was woefully unprepared for the
Denver read-option and the entirely left-handed
nature of Tebow. Proper preparation
prevents piss poor performance. A complete farcical fraud of a coordinator that was EXPOSED for the entire world to see and
snicker.
Senility is sad. Denying it is
even sadder. Time for
this senile fool to do himself, and his team, a favor by retiring. There has been one, and only one, nationally
followed web site that has broken down how flaccid, how weak, how over-rated, and
how much of a paper tiger LeBeau and his vaunted “#1 defense” is....and you’re
reading it right now.
Of
course, Mister Teflon, Dick Lebeau, was in total
denial after the game and pulled a Todd
Graham by throwing Ike Taylor under the bus. "I just talked to him corner to
corner," LeBeau said when asked what he said to Taylor. “"I know how he's feeling," LeBeau
said of Taylor. "But that's part of playing
corner. Ike will be back. He's down right now, but he'll be back." Ike indeed will be back. Let’s hope Dick is not. F-
HC: Tomlin had yet another
miserable playoffs. He oversaw a dogshit defensive gameplan and
never helped to make adjustments. And,
isn’t defense supposed to be Momlin’s specialty and expertise ? Perhaps
after this ass-raping, Momlin will finally get the cajones to let Dick The Dullard go
and find someone who can instill some modern schemes and adjustments into a
stale, flaccid, vastly over-rated defense.
In a rare fit of intelligence.
Momlin challenged the Decker play in which Harrison
hit Decker and the ball came loose, early in the 2Q. The reception was over-ruled and it was
ruled an incompletion.
The gaffes, simpleton errors, and silly-assed
mistakes were typical of a pee-wee football team. There was no defensive game plan against the
left-handed QB at all. 12-men in huddle flag.
Dropped passes. A bad snap to take the offense out of FG
range. A totally assaholic false start by a WR at the Denver 23 in the 4Q. A delay of game on the offense with 12
seconds left in the game and the “O” trying to get into FG range. Mike Tomlin -- the statue who stands around
and does nothing. F
Synopsis: A disgraceful, embarrassing loss against a
badly outmanned, weak-assed opponent. This
game should have never gone into OT. Ever. It was a dogshit defensive game plan that allowed a barf-spewing QB
to riddle and roll all over the defense.
Only Dick LeBeau could manage to make Timmy Tebow look competent. The offense did its usual sputtering,
although they were missing Pouncey and Mendy, plus
Starks.
Of
course, to those of us like myself who objectively
studied this team all season, none of this was a surprise. None. This is a team that, all season long,
faltered against good teams and eked out weak-assed wins against shit-pile
opponents. This is a defense that
feasted on a plethora of shitbag QBs and inept
offenses, and on the rare occasions they faced offensive competence, they
almost always were riddled and shredded.
Even had they squeaked by the lowly Doncos, this
team would have had their asses whipped and thrashed next week against the
Patriots. Just as well to end this
hideous season and move on to the offseason.
Stay tuned.
No one provides better season-ending coverage, and pre-draft analysis,
than Stillers.com.
(Still
Mill and Stillers.com -- when it comes to the analysis of the Pittsburgh Stillers, no
one else comes close….)