My original goal was to write strictly about the Ottawa REDBLACKS.
Beyond expressing my joy for their return to the league and my bitterness when they beat Toronto, I really haven’t written much about them. So I was planning on doing a column loosely based on the idea of 10 secret reasons to love the REDBLACKS.
Considering their record I figured the team needed some love. That plan went awry somewhere in the second half when Weston Dressler and the rest of the Roughriders decided to rip the heart out of every Ottawa fan with the kind of day that makes Saskatchewan fans cheer for joy and Kansas City Chiefs fans wondering how the hell they let Dressler go.
Anyway here are my big picture and little picture thoughts from the best game of the 2014 season.
Big Picture:
Henry Burris needs some help at receiver. Watching him play you can see he still has enough accuracy and arm strength; witness Marcus Henry’s 13-yard catch in the first quarter where Burris zipped a pass through a tiny hole between two defenders.
However one common theme for me was that none of Burris’ targets were getting open. Just go back and watch Wallace Miles’ two touchdown catches in the second quarter. Both of them were the result of Burris scrambling for his life, rushing for about 300 yards east and west until he found an open target.
Yes, credit Miles for never quitting on the play but I have to ask, what took so long for someone to get open? The Roughriders secondary deserves credit for their coverage but play after play you saw Burris being forced to scramble to buy time for his targets to get open.
One of the reasons why Ottawa had just one touchdown in the past 59 offensive drives is a lack of explosive playmakers at the receiver position. Of course that does not excuse the Burris interception in overtime.
The pocket had collapsed, his vision was obscured and he got hit the moment he released the ball into a hornet’s nest of green and white defensive backs. That throw was more about over confidence/ego than football smarts.
Little Picture:
I’m done pining for Chevon Walker and I think Ottawa may have something with D.J. Harper (Hope he is healthy for next week!) and Jeremiah Johnson. The duo touched the ball 17 times and produced 140 total yards and one touchdown.
Big Picture:
I’m not convinced that Tino Sunseri can lead a team to a Grey Cup, but considering his lack of experience and how poorly he played two weeks ago against Hamilton he should hold his head up high for leading his team back to a last second win.
He was a non factor in the first half, many of his passes had the same degree of accuracy as Ricky Vaughn in the first couple scenes of ‘Major League’ and a great deal of his overall passing yardage had everything to do with the individual brilliance of Weston Dressler.
Yes everyone now in Regina is loving him but at the half he had 26 yards passing and was booed off the field by the home fans. However on the game-tying touchdown drive, the two point conversion and the 16-yard pass to Chris Getzlaf that set up the game winning field goal, Sunseri exhibited the kind of toughness, accuracy and overall awareness needed to lead a team.
Good job by the coaching staff to get Tino on the move more in the second half, he looked more comfortable outside of the pocket. At the end of the half people were wondering if Henry Burris was playing his way onto the Roughriders roster to Sunseri being hailed as a hero. That’s a helluva ride for any quarterback to experience in one game. Yes Sunseri is a work in progress but that’s the case for most team’s back-ups.
Little Picture:
I missed watching you, Jon Gott. I was shocked when Calgary traded you to Ottawa. Your pancake block on Harper’s 25-yard run in the first quarter looked so familiar. You just keep being you.
Big Picture:
I am so happy that Kansas City booted Weston Dressler from their roster. Yes I know that sounds cold but he may have been buried on the Chiefs squad.
Let’s go over some his big moments. The punt return touchdown was more about superb blocking by Saskatchewan’s special teams. All Dressler had to do was make one man miss and than just use his speed to get behind a giant wall of green.
As a receiver there isn’t a better player at weaving his way through traffic and past plodding officials who get in his way to find that open spot in any zone. Dressler’s 60-yard touchdown was a breathless display of his athleticism and Ottawa’s commitment to surrendering as many yards after contact as possible.
Dressler broke four tackles, he kept spinning away from tackles, it looked like a play from Madden ’94 on Sega Genesis when you would just keep hitting the B button. I wish I could be in the REDBLACKS film session when they replay that one.
Little Picture:
John Chick had a sack! With only one sack in the last five games my “John Chick is your 2014 CFL MOP” campaign had been losing speed. Of course I didn’t see him do much for the remainder of the game. Hmm should this be a big picture issue? Considering Saskatchewan registered six sacks on the day I’ll say it wasn’t a big deal and I shall continue to lobby Chick for MOP.
Little Picture:
Yes the final Roughriders touchdown drive and the craziness of overtime may have been more exciting, but the most fun play was Alexander Krausnick’s 31-yard catch. I rewound that play more times than any other, and really isn’t that the best indicator of the most entertaining moment from any game?
Krausnick just destroys Tyron Brackenridge, knocking him over twice on this play. Great job by Burris looking off the defence before finding Krausnick “streaking” (alright more like sauntering but that play got me fired up) down the left side.
I demand the CFL enforce that every team has at least one tight end and that they must be targeted at least twice a game and they must be at least 280 pounds. I don’t think I am asking too much. Quick side note Tyron would get his revenge in the 3rd quarter with a perfect hit on Carlton Mitchell who fumbles the ball to Saskatchewan. Two plays later Sunseri would begin the comeback with an 18 yard touchdown pass to Will Ford.
Big Picture:
This game had every thing you could want, plus it was a reminder of just how entertaining this game is. Oh sure we all make fun of the rouge but it also gave us that crazy Jamill Smith kicking the ball out of the end zone madness that would send the game into a second overtime.
Even for people that didn’t know exactly what was going on you couldn’t deny it was compelling TV. For Saskatchewan the win not only keeps them in second place but it may also give the entire team a boost of confidence.
They lost their leader in Darian Durant and were coming off an embarrassing loss to Hamilton. Hopefully this victory gives the coaching staff and Sunseri something to build on.
I don’t believe in moral victories so there is not much to say for Ottawa beyond the sad reality of being 1-10 and letting such a winnable game slip through their fingers.
The real shame is that an Ottawa win would have given the much maligned Eastern Division a clean sweep of the West! I tried to google when the last time this had happened and even google had no idea. Of course Google was also confused about what Jamill Smith was doing in the end zone so really what does Goggle know anyway?
