By Greg Frers,
CBC Sports
Toronto Argonauts (2-4) @ Montreal Alouettes (6-0)
Hopefully all of the kinks were worked out for the Argos in their disaster game against the B.C. Lions last week. Heading into the game, including pre-season, Damon Allen had only thrown 11 passes and completed just four. It was not surprising that the timing of the offence would be off. It doesn’t get any easier for the Argos as four of their next five games are on the road and they now hit a string of divisional games that are crucial for them if they intend to push for a playoff spot. The saving grace for Toronto right now is that Hamilton just doesn’t seem like they can get it right this season.
Being sacked five times, as was the case last week against B.C., usually means that the O-line played poorly but the criticism needs to be directed at the receiving corps. Even with time, Damon was unable to find receivers (other than Arland Bruce and Keith Stokes) that had the desire to keep fighting into the fifth and sixth second of the down. If there was a positive out of last week’s game it was that the finger of Allen looked to be just fine.
This is the third time since 2002 that the Alouettes have gone undefeated in the first third of the season. This team can easily play better as they have yet to put together a complete offensive game. Montreal has been beating teams in 2006 with a dominating defence and special teams. In the game against Edmonton it was 7-6 after three quarters of play and once again we were able to see the value of Anthony Calvillo. The veteran quarterback stayed composed and did not panic as he responded with a 10 play, 77-yard drive in the fourth quarter.
Head coach Don Mathews was once again amazed at how much Calvillo understands what is going on around him. Allen better be a lot sharper this week as defensive coordinator Chris Jones has implemented a very sound bend-but-don’t-break defence that will force Allen to put together 10 play drives of his own on a defence that is the stingiest in offering up majors.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats (1-6) @ Winnipeg Blue Bombers (5-2)
Both Hamilton and Winnipeg were understandably the most active teams this off-season and yet the results cannot be anymore different. Both teams were able to acquire proven players and yet one team is having success and well, the other is not. I know that Joe Paopao is a tremendous person but I have yet to see him be successful as a coach. I understand that Kani Kauahi and Joe are great friends, however, is it beneficial to have them as a package deal?
What’s next for the Cats? They need to sign running back Antonio Warren, not because he is necessarily the answer to their lack of a rushing attack, but he is a way to keep fans in Steeltown coming to the park. Next, they then need to woo O-line coach George Cortez to come and be their offensive coordinator for 2007. Until then, get Jason Maas back in the lineup and hope for the best.
Winnipeg’s success story trumps the turn around that we saw in Calgary a year ago. There has been some concern raised that Mr. Stegall is getting too many balls to allow the Bombers to be successful in 2006 as it is keeping this team from evolving offensively as it should. Until someone is able to stop Mr. Stegall, keep feeding him the ball. If you have a player in the zone, as Stegall is, you maximize this for all it is worth. Running back Charles Roberts is now in a fight for the rushing title as Joffery Reynolds has passed him and now leads by 63 yards. Oh, and Reynolds has touched the ball 37 less times than Roberts if my math is correct. The challenge is out.
Edmonton Eskimos (2-4) @ BC Lions (4-3)
After a defensive battle last week, the Eskimos could not seal the deal once again. Defensive coordinator Rick Campbell justifiably came under criticism last week and this week the offence deserves the blame. Down by eight points, the offence did not take a shot downfield which is confusing to me. I understand that you need to take what the defence is giving you, but your last play of the game cannot be a dump pass to running back Troy Davis. The miracle victory for the Bombers only occurred because a player decided to take it upon himself to make a play. There are way too many playmakers on Edmonton not to challenge a defence at the end of a game.
The B.C. Lions again responded to the challenge that head coach and general manager Wally Buono threw at them two weeks ago, playing a full 60 minutes against the Argos. The inconsistency of the Lions season has been attributed to injuries and lulls in games that have come to hurt them. Buono has sent a message to his team that their will be swift and sure changes made if the performance of the team is not at the expected level and although I appreciate Antonio Warren, I also can appreciate the aggressive move made to improve the team inserting Joe Smith into the lineup.
Winning 11 straight games last year masked problems early and this year Buono will not make the same mistake. I thought that the strongest performance last week was the play of the secondary and that the five sacks that were recorded came directly from their coverage as the play was strung out into the sixth and seventh second.
Saskatchewan Roughriders (3-3) @ Calgary Stampeders (3-4)
This season series is now tied 1-1 and the grudge match takes place this week. This game is huge as the West Division is extremely tight and a tie breaker is very likely to come into account this year. For both of these teams, it is tough to figure out who is going to show up.
Saskatchewan quarterback Kerry Joseph, is going to give the coaching staff a heart attack if he continues to carry the ball they way that he does. He has now fumbled the ball seven times. Head coach Danny Barrett will need to convince this team of the intense importance of this game as it seems like the only time the Roughriders play well is when their backs are up against a wall.
You never want to be known as a team with potential because all that means is that you haven’t accomplished anything yet. The Stamps came into the 2006 season with lofty expectations and yet with all of their talent they are still just a team with a lot of potential. Calgary seems to come up against a wall when they get into a position to score and I find it confusing why they are only successful 25 percent of the time inside the 10-yard line.
The key to this team offensively is to get Henry Burris to understand that the pressure of the game doesn’t fall directly on his shoulders but that it is a responsibility of all 12 offensive players. Burris needs to take what the defence is giving him rather than forcing his eyes downfield for the home run play. It is amazing what can happen when you get the ball into the hands of players that can make people miss. If the Stamps come up short again this week, it will be interesting if Coach of the Year Tom Higgins will be able to massage this highly talented group into a Grey Cup contender.
Greg Frers played 10 seasons in the CFL with the Calgary Stampeders, Winnipeg Blue Bombers and B.C. Lions and has been a panelist on the CFL on CBC since 2003.
(The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily of the Canadian Football League)
