Mark Masters
CFL.ca
The emotional rollercoaster that is a playoff game can take fans for a wild ride. The key is not to get too high with the highs or too low with the lows. There are reasons for fans of each of the four teams who played on Sunday to be optimistic … and there are reasons for them to be pessimistic.
Here’s a look at why fans of the Eskimos, Lions, Stampeders and Ticats should be both hopeful and cynical about their team’s play and what lies ahead.
Edmonton Eskimos
The optimist:
– They went on the road and were in it to the final moments against a team that dominated them for most of the season, especially in Calgary. There were a number of times during the game when the Eskimos could have thrown in the towel, but they didn’t. They kept fighting and that’s a sign they respect their coaching staff and rookie bench boss Richie Hall.
– Skyler Green is a threat to score on every return. The LSU product returned five kickoffs for 176 yards and four punts for 77 yards in the loss. When you combine him with a healthy Tristan Jackson the Eskimos will have the league’s best return game next season.
– Jesse Lumsden will be back next season and seems more motivated than ever to stay healthy and have an impact. With the emergence of Arkee Whitlock the Eskimos could feature the best one-two backfield punch in the CFL in 2010.
The pessimist:
– It wasn’t long ago this team was in first place. Then they fired offensive co-ordinator Rick Worman and hobbled down the stretch. In the loss to Calgary quarterback Ricky Ray passed for a measly 162 yards, while Whitlock managed only 50 along the ground. Clearly Worman wasn’t the only problem with the offence.
– When they were attempting to drive for the tying or perhaps winning points later in the game it was two holding penalties and a DeVone Claybooks sack of Ray, which did them in. If you’re going to go down don’t do it to yourself. You can’t take those penalties and that sack during such a crucial part of the game.
– The supposedly vaunted receiving corps dropped a number of passes. Even Fred Stamps had a drop. They quite literally allowed the season to slip through their fingers.
– The Eskimos were perhaps the most inconsistent team in the league this season. They had some great wins, including beating Montreal at home. They had some ugly losses as well. As a result it is hard to know exactly how much needs to be changed for next season and where those changes need to take place.
BC Lions
The optimist:
– Casey Printers is back. The 2004 CFL Most Outstanding Player tormented Hamilton fans by playing at a level nowhere close to where he performed while wearing Black and Gold. Printers tossed for 360 yards and did not throw an interception.
– The team showed resilience and composure by responding to Hamilton’s comeback and slamming the door in overtime. Ricky Foley responded to his all-star snub by recording two sacks, while team mate Brent Johnson had a hat track of QB takedowns. The Lions pass rush gave Kevin Glenn trouble most of the day and will need to do more of the same vs. Montreal.
– Special teams was special: Paul McCallum was a perfect four for four on field goals and the return game allowed the Lions to start with good field position for most of the game.
The pessimist:
– They had the Tiger-Cats beaten and let them off the mat. They can ill afford to do that versus a team like Montreal.
– The offensive line had trouble containing the pass rush. Despite the Houdini-type performance by Printers the Ticats still recorded four sacks. The Alouettes will bring the heat on Sunday and it remains to be seen whether the Lions offensive line can handle it.
– JoJuan Armour and Paris Jackson lost their cool in the pre-game warm-up and got into it with some Ticats players. Jackson ended up with only three catches for 18 yards. Armour recorded three tackles and was largely a non-factor. The Lions need to stay focused to beat a team like Montreal.
– For the second straight week the Lions have to travel east for a playoff game. At the end of a long season it’s hard to believe this travel is not having an impact. The Alouettes will be well-rested while the Lions will be well travelled.
Calgary Stampeders
The optimist:
– The defence was incredible. The Stampeders shutdown an Eskimos team that scored 81 points during the last two weeks of the regular season. Ray, one of the best quarterbacks in the league, did not throw for a touchdown. Stamps, the league’s best receiver this season, was held to four catches. If defence wins championships then the Stampeders are in good shape.
– Henry Burris is a weapon with his arm and feet. The veteran pivot scrambled for 63 yards to complement his 264 passing yards. When Burris can be effective with his feet then the Stampeders feature a more potent offence.
– Arjei Franklin and Romby Bryant scored their first touchdowns since coming over from Winnipeg in a mid-season trade. If they continue to heat up and produce points then that will make it very hard for Saskatchewan to shutdown the Stampeders offence.
– Joffrey Reynolds continues to be spectacular. With him on your team you are always in a game. The CFL West division nominee for Most Outstanding Player ran for 127 yards and added 35 receiving yards in another tour de force. There may not be a more dominant player in the league right now and when you have that type of player championships tend to follow.
The pessimist:
– Sure Reynolds is amazing, but nothing that happened Sunday makes you think the Stampeders have enough to beat the Roughriders. Calgary basically struggled to beat an Edmonton Eskimos team that they thoroughly dominated 30-7 in a home game Oct. 23. Now, the Stamps have to go back to Saskatchewan and face a well-rested team.
– Calgary surrendered a special teams touchdown against Edmonton allowing Green to return a kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown. The Eskimos averaged 10 more yards per punt return than Calgary. If Calgary is to beat the Roughriders they can’t let Darian Durant have a short field. The special teams brain cramps did not end with the return game. Demetris Summers conceded a single point late in the first half when he could have easily ran the ball out of the end zone. You are tempting the football Gods when you make a mistake like that.
– The team couldn’t close the deal. Calgary settled for field goals of 21, 20 and 15 yards when a major score likely would have sealed the game. They can’t let Saskatchewan off the hook like they did with Edmonton.
– Foolish penalties helped Edmonton stay in the game. The prime example: Two roughing-the-passer calls on Charleston Hughes, allowed Edmonton to get its second touchdown.
– The incident involving fullback Teyo Johnson is an unnecessary distraction during a time when a team must have supreme focus and concentration. Johnson continues to be around the team and questio
ns will continue to persist about his injury and how it came about. Usually the team with baggage like that is heading out of the playoffs.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The optimist:
– Hosting a playoff game for the first time since 2001 makes the season a success. The Ticats have found their head coach in Marcel Bellefeuille and a quarterback in Kevin Glenn. The franchise is in much better shape today than it was at this time last year. As Jaime Stein writes in a column this week on CFL.ca the future is bright in Steeltown.
– The resilience they showed in erasing an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter is a sign this team is maturing at a fast rate. The playoff experience gained this year will position them well to take the next step in 2010.
The pessimist:
– The game was there for the taking and Hamilton let it get away. Heading into overtime the crowd was in a frenzy and the Lions were reeling. Instead of delivering the knockout punch the Ticats let the Lions get an easy touchdown before meekly going three and out.
– Sure Glenn played well, but what do you do next year? Does Quinton Porter once again play the role of understudy? Glenn is aging and Ticats management still says Porter is the future. Any way you spin it there is uncertainty for Hamilton at the quarterback position.
– In the biggest game of the year the team’s biggest playmakers didn’t make a difference. Running back DeAndra’ Cobb, who victimized the Lions in two games during the regular season, was held to 34 yards on seven carries and had one catch for five yards. Meanwhile, Arland Bruce, the team’s star receiver, was held basically in check recording six catches for 80 yards. That’s a solid day, sure, but a player of Bruce’s talent is expected to be a major factor in a playoff game and not to simply finish third on his team in receiving yards.
– They weren’t going to beat Montreal anyway so going out like this, in an overtime thriller, is much better than getting humbled at Olympic Stadium. It’s much easier to sell season tickets to a fan base who remember seeing an amazing overtime playoff game where their team showed guts and determination in a losing cause vs. getting smoked by Montreal.
TWEETS OF THE WEEK
There may not be a better story in the 2009 CFL playoffs than the play of Printers and he knows it:
@CaseyPrinters These past weeks have been a blast … Can’t even explain the gratitude that I have. The journey has brought me happiness and I am thankful. (Nov. 9)
The Johnson stabbing incident helped Calgary’s quarterback put things in perspective.
@Henry Burris Sometimes the game we play is so small compared to the real important things!!! I’m praying for ya TJ (Nov. 13)
Saskatchewan Roughriders linebacker Tad Kornegay takes full advantage of his team’s bye week:
@T2daK In Moose Jaw at the spa soaking in the Mineral Pool. So necessary!! (Nov. 14)
National Post reporter Sean Fitz-Gerald reveals that Hamilton’s plan to disrupt Printers started in the pre-game warm-up.
@SeanFitz_Gerald Ticats LB Otis Floyd, on Printers’ hand: “Casey was 100%. I met him before the game and shook his hand pretty hard. He didn’t say ‘ouch.’ (Nov. 15)
Lumsden, the oft-injured running back, has a message to Eskimos fans:
@JesseLumsden28 Our season ended earlier than it should have. I will be back next year and it will be a good year. Whatever it takes. (Nov. 16)
Toronto Argonauts director of communications Beth Waldman is embracing the Grey Cup spirit despite the fact her team is out.
@ArgoBeth Making plans for Argos at Grey Cup. Not in the game but we may as well be everywhere else!!! (Nov. 16)
And isn’t that the great thing about the Grey Cup … whoever you cheer for and wherever you live the Grey Cup week is a big party uniting the CFL community.
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