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View Full Version : Week 17 Thoughts - Browns vs Steelers



Chidi29
01-06-2012, 10:01 PM
Always nice to end the year with a win over a divisional opponent.

First Half

- Kickoffs: 4.20 (OZ), and two squib kicks

- Ike was the holder on the opening kickoff.

- Starting o-line. Starks, Kemoeatu, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert. Believe I read that we've had nine different starting offensive line combinations this year. Might go back later on and pull them up week-by-week to get a good look at the changes.

- 3rd and 1 conversion early in the game. WILL Maiva sucked up thinking it was a dive, Redman runs off end for a first down.

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Redman_run.png

- Defenses are starting to key in on screens, calling out alerts for it. Forcing us to look at other options on those plays, for example a slant on the backside as we tried to Wallace early.

- I'm still amazed by Troy's ability to anticipate snap counts.

- Essex came in for an apparently dinged up Kemoeatu on the second series. Kemoeatu returned a few plays later on the same series.

- Kapinos has done a great job filling in for Sepulevda this year, downing his second punt of the game inside the three.

- Split Davis Johnson out wide on first play of the 2nd quarter. Didn't look like he was Ben's first read, looked like Wallace down the seam, but he hit Johnson for a first.

- Smart play to hit Sanders quickly on 3rd and 15 and letting him get YAC and try to get the first. Browns in dime and playing really deep, have the MIKE D'Qwell Jackson about 15 yards deep pre-snap. He's the player between the hashes.

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Sanderscheck.png

- Following 4th and 1 play. Really great effort by Redman to spin away twice for the first. Penetration in part helped by motioning Heath to the weakside and the LB Gocong probably didn't have a pass responsibility anymore, allowing him to key in on the run and step up right on the LOS. But Redman made he and Rubin miss for the first.

- Brown had Patterson beat vs Cover 1 in the end zone. Ben just didn't lead him. Maybe it was an intended back shoulder throw Ben should've made the adjustment.

- Interesting wrinkle in our nickel, 2-4-5 package. Foote the lone LB over the middle pre-snap. He blitzes to the outside (looks like Fire Stunt with Harrison and Keisel crashing) and Worilds the strong side LB pre-snap, rotates to the middle of the field. CB blitz with Gay. In the picture, Foote is right above the yellow arrow, Worilds to the right of the right hash behind Keisel.

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Worildsrotate.png

- Brown with a bad decision to take out the kick after Dawson's first FG. Halfway in own end zone and momentum was carrying him backwards. Only got out to the 16 (but hindsight isn't the reason why I'm being critical).

- Cotchery became upback on kick returns with Redman in the starting role at RB after Mendenhall's injury.

- Ben was driven into the turf on one inside stunt we failed to pick up, as we've struggled with all year. Pouncey seemed overzealous and followed the DT to the outside as he was looping, allowing the DE to come up the middle with ease. Ben just able to check it down to Redman in time avoiding the sack.

- 3rd and 5 draw to Redman that went nowhere. Probably Ben with the call. No huddle and you can see him making a call/check at the line. Sheard jumped to the inside and blew up the draw. Normally, the OT is able to punch the DE to the outside and up the field and then get to the next level.

- Cortez Allen's injury. Arm wrapped inbetween Cribbs, Ivy and he got swung around.

- 3rd and 7 conversion to Cribbs. 15 yard out route. Same thing the 49ers did to us in Week 15. Stack receiver to force off coverage from the CB and then use that seperation to run the out. Couple of pictures The first two being man on, and then man off, and then right before the catch. Keenan Lewis does slip on the play but Cribbs would have made the catch regardless if he slips or not.

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/manon2.png

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/manoff2.png

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Cribbscatch.png

And compare this to the pictures from what San Fran did. Only thing different is the camera angle.

http://i43.tinypic.com/16gmk44.png

http://i42.tinypic.com/106yeer.png

- Brown's 40 yard catch at the end of the half. Kudos to the MVP. Won off the line and a great adjustment to make the catch and let us get points before the half. Not sure where that ball was supposed to be thrown. On the inside of the numbers where Brown got off the line and the wind took it or if it was supposed to be outside and Brown had to release inside and get back on his stem because Haden was heavily shaded outside. Either way, great job AB.

- Kemoeatu could've easily been called for a clip on one play. Luckilly wasn't.

- Split Redman and Clay a few times at WR throughout the game.

Second Half

- Within a few plays of each other, late 2nd and early 3rd, Wallace didn't get his head up on shallow crossing routes. Didn't seem scared to get hit, he was just trying to avoid running into the WR coming the other way and wanted to set up the rub correctly but he still has to get his head up. Especially vs blitzes.

- D'Qwell Jackson welcomes John Clay to the NFL with this hit.

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Clayhit.png

- Troy's INT. Wallace on 2nd and short rollout. Motion Moore right before the snap and have him run a speed out. With all this in mind, Troy is able to jump it and come away with the pick. Also a nice job by Worilds to fight off the cut block by the back and pressure Wallace, forcing him to throw off his back foot and not get as much velocity on his throw.

- Redman TD. Trap block by Kemo and Heath pulling as the lead blocker. Great blocks from both of them. Gilbert gets to second level and while he doesn't stick on Jackson, he does get enough of a piece of him so Jackson can't fill the gap. Rookie safety Eric Hagg, to the far right in the following picture, takes a bad angle to Redman and has no shot.

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Redmanblocking.png

- Pouncey reaggrevated his ankle on this play. Tried jumping over a DL laying on the ground and came down wrong. You can see him in this shot walk off the field instead of celebrating and when watching the video, you see him hobbled.

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Pounceyhurt.png

Pouney and the trainers have to take him/himself out there. Don't play on it hurt for another quarter and do even more damage.

- Steelers smartly squibbed it to Cribbs when kicking into the wind.

- Troy taken out for a few plays late in the 3rd quarter.

- FB dive to Redman (Clay at RB) on 3rd and 1. Didn't convert it though.

- Keisel and Hood had pass deflections.

- Again dropped Keisel into flats on one zone blitz.

- The greatest 3 yard loss in NFL history! Congrats Hines on 1000 catches!

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Ward1000.png

- Ike became temporary jammer after injuries to Allen and Lewis.

- Two injuries, Johnson and Foster, and a hold on Saunders on the same play. Ugh.

- John Clay showed good leg drive, pushed the pile.

- Real quick side note of praise for the Browns. Chris Gocong is an underrated LB. Hard hitter, physical, and a solid tackler. Looked great in both games against the Steelers.

- Just as he does with Keenan, Gay moved to slot when McFadden came onto the field.

- Announcer summed up Ike well. #1 corner on #1 pass defense.

- Heath may not be used a whole lot this year but he's still an irreplaceable target on 3rd downs. Passed Swann for 4th all-time in catches. Pass Swann, pass Nickel in the span of a few weeks, not too shabby.

- David Johnson returned to the game with a sleeve on his injured right arm. Didn't appear that Foster returned but he'll play Sunday.

- Realize this is the front we would have been trying to run against on the 3rd and 2 slant to Brown at the 2 minute warning.

http://i1111.photobucket.com/albums/h471/Chidi2955/Browns_front.png

That's seven players within two yards of the line.

- Credit to Will Allen for diving tackle on Cribbs on our last punt. Don't know if Cribbs be able to get the corner if Allen doesn't make the tackle but I don't want to find out.

- Timmons with an excellent job to tackle Evan Moore in bounds to force the Browns to use more clock and only get off one last play.

- Using a lot of double shallow crossing routes with Wllace and Brown throughout the game. Trying to get our big YAC guys open in space underneath.

Sacks

- 2nd and 13, 2:12 left in 1st. Shotgun, empty. Redman split out wide as 5th WR. Failure to communicate. Kemoeatu thinks he is passing Rubin off to Pouncey. but Pouncey pulls to block blitzing LB. Starks goes to pick the LB up as well so both end up trying to block the same guy. Rubin comes up the middle free and drops Ben. Hard to say who was supposed to pick up the OLB but I'd have to guess it was Starks' man and Pouncey left too quickly.

- 3rd and 5, 10:25 left in 2nd. Empty. Browns bring four. Sheard with solid punch against Gilbert though it looks pretty clear that he hit him in the facemask. Disengages and sacks Ben.

Sack Counter (Game)

Maurkice Pouncey: 1
Marcus Gilbert: 1

And now the sack counter for the 2011-2012 regular season.

Ben Roethlisberger: 7.5
Max Starks: 6.5
Marcus Gilbert: 5
Good defensive scheme/coverage: 4
Chris Kemoeatu: 3
Ramon Foster: 3
Maurkice Pouncey: 2
Jonathan Scott: 1.5
Wide receivers: 1.5
Trai Essex: 1.5
Bruce Arians: 1
Doug Legursky: 1
Willie Colon: .5

Documentation

FB: 9
Pony: 1
Empty: 17

Documentation for the season. Formations were looked at in 14 games.

FB: 159 (11.4 per week)
Pony: 11 (.78 per week)
Empty: 114 (8.1 per week)

Fullbacks were used more often than empty sets in eight of the 14 games.
Empty sets were obviously used more than fullbacks in six of the 14 games.

Kickoff Info

I have data on 63 kickoffs this year which is just under the number we actually had for the year (I only missed a few kicks in one game).

At the beginning of the year, I predicted a 20% touchback rate. I was way wrong.

Before the kickoff rule last year, Suisham had a 8.8% touchback rate on 34 kicks.

This year, that it up to 42.9% for the season (27 touchbacks).

I broke it down into the cold/warm weather months to see if there was a difference.

In the "warm" weather months, Sept-Oct, Suisham had a 41.2% rate on 34 kicks.

In the "cold" weather months, Nov-Dec, Suisham had a 44.8% rate on 29 kicks.

And from what I remember in my stats class, the 30 or near 30 sample size is just large enough to reliably draw conclusions from. The weather didn't seem to have an effect and the kickoff rule obviously greatly helped Suisham.

Hindes204
01-06-2012, 10:32 PM
You are going to be one hell of an analyst one day (actually, you already are). I am in awe of your in depth coverage every game. I still cant believe your only in college. Youre more knowledgeable than a lot of professionals Ive seen. Keep up the good work!

Chidi29
01-06-2012, 10:37 PM
Our offensive line week by week starting with Week 1. Number of changes to the right.

J.Scott, Kemoeatu, Pouncey, Legursky, Colon.
Scott, Foster, Pouncey, Legursky, Gilbert (1)
Scott, Kemo, Pouncey, Legursky, Gilbert (2)
Week Four - Nothing Written
Starks, Legursky, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert (3)
Starks, Legursky, Pouncey, Foster, Scott (4)
Starks, Kemoeatu, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert (5)
Starks, Kemo, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert
Starks, Kemoeatu, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert
Week 10 - Nothing Written
Starks, Legursky, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert
Starks, Legursky, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert
Starks, Legursky, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert
Starks, Essex, Legursky, Foster, Gilbert (6)
Starks, Essex, Legursky, Foster, Scott (7)
Starks, Kemoeatu, Pouncey, Foster, Gilbert

----------

The most we went with the same offensive line for consecutive weeks was just three or four weeks with at least seven different starting combinations this year. Not many teams had problems of that magnitude.

Chidi29
01-06-2012, 10:42 PM
You are going to be one hell of an analyst one day (actually, you already are). I am in awe of your in depth coverage every game. I still cant believe your only in college. Youre more knowledgeable than a lot of professionals Ive seen. Keep up the good work!

Thanks Hindes!

Austin87
01-07-2012, 10:13 AM
Great write-up as usual.

Chidi29
01-07-2012, 10:34 AM
Thanks Austin.

tube517
01-07-2012, 10:37 AM
Kickoff Info

I have data on 63 kickoffs this year which is just under the number we actually had for the year (I only missed a few kicks in one game).

At the beginning of the year, I predicted a 20% touchback rate. I was way wrong.

Before the kickoff rule last year, Suisham had a 8.8% touchback rate on 34 kicks.

This year, that it up to 42.9% for the season (27 touchbacks).

I broke it down into the cold/warm weather months to see if there was a difference.

In the "warm" weather months, Sept-Oct, Suisham had a 41.2% rate on 34 kicks.

In the "cold" weather months, Nov-Dec, Suisham had a 44.8% rate on 29 kicks.

And from what I remember in my stats class, the 30 or near 30 sample size is just large enough to reliably draw conclusions from. The weather didn't seem to have an effect and the kickoff rule obviously greatly helped Suisham.

Interesting. I wonder what it was for home vs away?

Great write up as usual. Always look forward to your insightful analysis. Already better than those clowns on BSPN or NFLN.

Chidi29
01-07-2012, 10:51 AM
I can take a look at home/away splits later today. Also need to do a writeup on hangtimes.

Chidi29
01-07-2012, 10:51 AM
By the way, I'll be on Tribive at 12:30 if anyone is interested.

Count Steeler
01-07-2012, 11:39 AM
By the way, I'll be on Tribive at 12:30 if anyone is interested.

Caught it just in time. Thanks for the heads up. Listening now.

Chidi29
01-08-2012, 12:07 PM
Interesting. I wonder what it was for home vs away?

Great write up as usual. Always look forward to your insightful analysis. Already better than those clowns on BSPN or NFLN.

I'll do the home/away splits after some lunch.

But if I did my math right, I have Suisham for a yearly average of a hang time of an even 4 seconds landing 4.3 yards deep in the end zone.

The 4.3 just doesn't seem right to me though. Maybe I did the math wrong. I just added up the distances and then divided by the total number of kicks.

Chidi29
01-08-2012, 01:07 PM
Interesting. I wonder what it was for home vs away?

Great write up as usual. Always look forward to your insightful analysis. Already better than those clowns on BSPN or NFLN.

Home/away splits:

Home (40 kickoffs)

Hangtime: 3.98 seconds
Distance: -4.1 yards deep

Away (23 kickoffs)

Hangtime: 4.04 seconds
Distance: -4.4 yards deep

-------

Being away from Heinz helped some. But the most striking thing from this actually didn't have much to do with the kicks. It shows our lack of scoring offense on the road with 17 less kickoffs. Yikes.

Hindes204
01-08-2012, 01:31 PM
By the way, I'll be on Tribive at 12:30 if anyone is interested.

Damn, I missed it...any chance it was recorded?

Chidi29
01-08-2012, 01:46 PM
Damn, I missed it...any chance it was recorded?

They sent me the mp3. I just don't know how to put it into a link.

X-Terminator
01-08-2012, 01:55 PM
They sent me the mp3. I just don't know how to put it into a link.

You can send it to me and we can get it linked, if you'd like. I'll PM you with my email address.

Chidi29
01-08-2012, 01:58 PM
I PM'd Gary but I can send it to you.