Jack B. Bedell
CFL.ca
Watching the Calgary Stampeders run away with their game against the Saskatchewan Roughriders this past weekend, I wouldn’t blame anyone for getting the impression that the Stamps had a stranglehold on the top spot in the West.
Calgary’s defence was playing with effective aggression, controlling Saskatchewan’s ability to score by forcing turnovers with pressure and coverage and completely frustrating Michael Bishop by taking away his lanes of escape out of the pocket.
The Stamps’ offence was proving it could score from anywhere on the field against any scheme. Henry Burris’ 85-yard bomb to Nik Lewis behind the Riders’ man coverage and in the face of serious pressure was more than enough proof of that.
And the combination of Sandro DeAngelis and Burke Dales were establishing themselves as one of the better one-two special teams punches in the league, providing excellent field position with their kicks and nailing scoring opportunities with great consistency.
It was truly as dominating a performance as we’ve seen in 2008.
The fact simple fact is, though, the win only gave Calgary a two-point lead in the West standings. With three games remaining on the schedule, literally anything COULD happen in the division.
A few weeks ago, I went out on a limb picking the Stamps to be the divisional champs with B.C. pulling the second seed and Edmonton getting the third spot. I relegated the crossover spot to the Roughriders.
Here’s a quick look at how those picks hold water with three weeks to go:
Calgary—(remaining games: Winnipeg, at Hamilton, B.C.) should win two of three to hold top spot in the division.
B.C.—(remaining games: at Edmonton, Toronto, at Calgary) needs all three to avoid crossover. Don’t see that happening.
Edmonton—(remaining games: B.C., at Saskatchewan, Montreal) will win two of three to claim second seed.
Saskatchewan—(remaining games: Hamilton, Edmonton, at Toronto) should get two of three to claim third seed.
Like I said, anything could happen. One thing’s for certain, though, the West will be a shootout down to the final gun.
WEEK 16 QUICK HITS
Lots of players to be thankful for after all the Thanksgiving Classics last weekend. Not much space. So here goes:
How unconscious have Anthony Calvillo’s numbers been the last two weeks? In two games, Calvillo went 77 of 94 for 839 yards and seven TDs. That’s an 82% completion percentage at well over 10 yards per completion. It’s hard to imagine there are many back-to-back performances better than that in league history.
And while I’m on the Als, I want to throw a quick out to Dahrran Diedrick for his performance filling in for Avon Cobourne against the Ticats. Diedrick rumbled for 127 yard on 15 carries, with most of those yards coming when Hamilton’s D knew the Alouettes were trying to eat clock. It’s really nice to see him have a little success pounding the rock after several seasons of doing the dirty work on special teams.
Talking about pounding the rock, how about Fred Reid and Joe Smith double-teaming the Argonauts for a pair of 100+ yard games? Reid gashed the Argos in the first half, and Smith brutalized them to close out the game when it was on the line. If they can keep that kind of dual assault going the rest of the season, it’ll take pressure off Kevin Glenn and set the Bombers up for a serious playoff run.
Enough offence, though, I’ve got to give some props to the Stampeders’ defence for finding a way to neutralize Michael Bishop’s success on passes outside the pocket. It’s a real credit to defensive coordinator Chris Jones and his front seven that they were able to devise a scheme to contain Bishop and to force quicker throws by having outside linebackers attack the point of release every time Bishop attempted a roll out. That aggression forced three picks and helped turn the game into the rout it was.
And finally, some long overdue credit has to go out to the Esks’ Brandon Guillory. After working so hard all of last season to make it back from a potentially career-ending spinal injury, it’s a real pleasure to see my fellow Louisianan being the force on ‘D’ I knew he could be. In two starts, Guillory’s piled up four sacks. Keep it going, Big Man!
RWB’S PRIMETIME PERFORMERS
1) Fred Reid
2) Joe Smith
3) Ricky Ray
4) Kelly Campbell
5) Anthony Calvillo/Ben Cahoon (combo pick!)
6) Reggie Hunt
7) Henry Burris
8) Chris Jones and the whole Stamps D
9) Wes Dressler
10) P.K. Sam
WEEK 17 PREDICTIONS DOOMED TO GO WRONG
I’ll take 3-1 any week, especially when the one game I’m wrong about is a humdinger like the Esks won in B.C. Place last week.
The games don’t get any easier to call this week with all four teams fighting for first in the West. No point going away from the gut in crunch time, though. Gut says: Edmonton, Montreal, Calgary, and Saskatchewan.
UP NEXT
Check back next week to get my takes on all of week 17’s action. I’ll also be weighing in on the Coach of Year debate.
Until then, take care. Better get your hats blocked and your boots shined early, because it’s going to get wild out west this weekend.
Jack B. Bedell is a Professor of English at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana and has followed the CFL for nearly three decades.
