Cliff Notes: 9 things we learned from Week 19

CFL.ca Staff

TORONTO — There’s plenty to take from each week of exciting CFL action, and every Monday we deliver some of the things we learned from the week’s biggest plays. Week 19 featured a tight finish in the Nation’s Capital; a snowy upset in Cow Town; a dominant wire-to-wire win in Edmonton; and a first-place showdown in Montreal. Here are eight things we learned from Week 19.

1. The REDBLACKS shouldn’t be taken lightly. 

Look out next week, Argos — these REDBLACKS may only have two wins, but they aren’t a team that can be taken lightly. They gave Hamilton all it could handle on Friday night in a 34-25 Ticats win in the Nation’s Capital, with a fourth-quarter pick-six making all the difference in a game that was headed down to the wire. 

The REDBLACKS still have a lot to work on, but they’ve addressed some key deficiencies since the start of the season: namely their running game and their defence. Ottawa’s running game was the league’s worst throughout most of the season, but the recent emergence of backs like Jonathan Williams and Jeremiah Johnson, plus the week-to-week improvement of the offensive line, has helped Ottawa make tremendous growth in that aspect of the game and also stay closer in ball games. 

Ottawa must improve its pass protection; get better production from the quarterback position; and get a better pass rush on defence in order to turn the corner and start winning games consistently — but the foundation is there. Johnson ran for 131 yards against the league’s stingiest run defence, while the REDBLACKS defence kept the team well within reach all game.

2. Brandon Banks is a dynamic game-breaking talent.

The man the Ticats call speedy is no longer a secret in the CFL, as he’s shown off his lightning-quick pace and ankle-breaking moves both in the return game and on the Ticats’ offence. Yet his role in Hamilton’s offence is sometimes diminished, such as in last weekend’s win, when Banks only had three touches on the offensive side of the ball. 

The Ticats have plenty of game-breaking weapons, but there may not be any with more ability to change a game with one touch of the football than Banks. Like the Argos feature Chad Owens and the Eskimos are getting Kendial Lawrence more involved, Kent Austin and Tommy Condell are hopefully dreaming up ways to get Banks more involved on offence. 

He’s the type of player that makes you hold your breath every time the ball is in his hands, and surely fans would love to see more.

3. Paris Cotton is running away with the Bombers’ starting RB spot for 2015.

When the Bombers demoted and eventually released the CFL’s fourth-leading rusher in Nic Grigsby, it was a move that caught the league and fans by surprise, as the Blue and Gold suddenly didn’t appear to have an immediate plan for the future at the running back position. Evidently, Mike O’Shea and the Bombers new exactly what they were donig. 

Paris Cotton has provided an upgrade to the Bombers offence, as the team has run the ball well each week since he moved in to become the starter. Before Cotton took over, production in the running game was a weakness for the Bombers and a weekly complaint among fans and reporters in Winnipeg. 

The just-turned 25-year-old wasn’t able to eclipse the 100-yard mark in his team’s win against Calgary, but he did pick up 71 yards on 17 carries and managed to churn up positive gains each time he was handed the ball. It looks like Winnipeg has its starting running back of the future, which gives the Bombers one less concern heading into the off-season.

4. The Bombers seriously need to address their run defence. 

While the Bombers are figuring things out in the run game on one side of the ball, they appear to need a lot of work on the other side. Mike O’Shea said all season that he wasn’t worried about his team’s ability to stop the run, but run defence was without any uncertainty a major factor in the team’s season-ending eight-game losing streak. 

Winnipeg has surrendered 2,230 rushing yards this season, almost 200 yards clear of the next-worst team in the expansion Ottawa REDBLACKS. On Saturday, Jon Cornish had over 100 rushing yards in the first quarter — then when he went down, Walter came in and rushed for another 100 yards.

The two backs combined for 214 yards on only 23 carries. Costly Stamps fumbles helped Winnipeg overcome such a dominant ground performance by Calgary to eventually get the win, but the Bombers should consider themselves lucky. The Bombers allow the most points per game in the CFL and are second-worst in the league in time of possession, and that all starts with their run defence allowing opponents to control the game.

5. Matt Walter could easily be a starting CFL running back. 

Every time Matt Walter’s gotten the opportunity to play, he’s been productive in the Stamps’ offence. On Saturday, he was every bit as productive as Jon Cornish in filling in for last year’s Most Outstanding Player, racking up more yards on fewer carries (109 rushing yards on 11 carries), doing everything possible to keep his offence humming. 

The Stampeders didn’t earn the victory in the end, but that had more to do with ill-advised late-game turnovers than the absence of Cornish. The 25-year-old is fast and he’s got a thick build, giving him that similar speed-power combination as Cornish. He’s young and he’s Canadian, and his career rushing average is 5.8 yards per carry. 

Depending on Cornish’s health, this year’s playoff run could be Walter’s chance to really shine in teh spotlight. Either way, expect him to take on a role as a featured CFL running back some time in his future, whether it’s with Calgary or someone else.

6. The Eskimos look poised for a deep playoff run this season.

They won’t win the West Division this regular season, but the Edmonton Eskimos are peaking at exactly the right time, setting themselves up for a chance to go deep in the 2014 CFL Playoffs. Their 37-3 win over the Lions on Saturday provided a bold statement, as they did it against a team that was also on a recent winning streak and eager to get on a late-season run. 

Special teams, defence, and offence are all hitting stride at exactly the right time, as the Esks look like the only team in the CFL right now without any glaring weakness as the playoffs approach. The defence hits hard, gets to the quarterback, and forces turnovers; special teams create positive momentum swings with big returns while also affecting strong field position; and the offence is explosive yet methodical and balanced all at the same time. 

Most impressive is the thought that when the Eskimos need to sustain a long drive and control the flow of the game, they’re perfectly capable of that. Yet they probably also have more big-play guys than any team in the CFL, led by the likes of Kendial Lawrence, Adarius Bowman, and John White.

The Eskimos are 12-2 against teams not named the Calgary Stampeders and 0-3 against the Stamps, but remember: quarterback Mike Reilly missed a good part of those three games. An Edmonton-Calgary West Final would be a dream CFL matchup, and the Esks will have every opportunity to finally overcome their demons in defeating the Stamps and representing the West in the Grey Cup.

7. Solomon Elimimian and JC Sherritt are defensive game-changers.

Saturday’s game in Edmonton put the CFL’s best on display when it comes to the defensive side of the ball. Odell Willis, Solomon Elimimian, and JC Sherritt, all in the same game? That’s enough cause nightmares for any offensive player.

Willis was limited in his impact, but Sherritt and especially Elimimian showed how defensive players can make change a game, despite the one-sided 37-3 decision. In the same game in which Elimimian notched 12 tackles and broke Sherritt’s CFL’s all-time single-season tackles record, Sherritt was equally impressive, picking up eight total tackles and three sacks.

In Sherritt’s record-breaking 2012 season, he was an afterthought as the league’s MOP, especially with players like Chad Owens and Jon Cornish putting up the offensive numbers they did that season. This year, though, is a different story, as defence has been the story of 2014 up to this point. While offensive players struggle to hit their usual benchmarks, players like Elimimian, Sherritt, Willis, and Saskatchewan’s John Chick are dominating stat sheets. 

Is this the season a defensive player finally wins MOP? Elimimian’s contributions defensively are unrivaled, and it’s hard to fathom where the Lions would be without him in the lineup. Surely he makes the difference of at least two or three wins, which also means he could be the difference between playoffs and no playoffs.

Someone like Jon Cornish or Adarius Bowman may wind up taking the coveted award, but Elimimian’s name should be in the discussion.

8. The Argos aren’t the same without Andre Durie in the lineup.

While the Argos’ defence kept Sunday’s duel in Montreal for first place close and to the wire, it was the offence that couldn’t produce enough points to come away with a difficult road win against an elite defence. Two head-to-head games in a row the Alouette ‘D’ has stifled one of the league’s highest-scoring offences, with the Argos scoring only 26 points and a single touchdown in the two most recent meetings. 

Scott Milanovich was quoted after the game as saying his team came up just a yard or two short on second down too many times, as Ray took what the ferocious Alouette defence gave him but the Argo receivers couldn’t make enough happen after the catch. 

Given that, one has to think having Andre Durie in the lineup might have made all the difference. That’s not to take anything away from the Alouettes, who are consistently holding opponents below 20 points, but Durie is among the CFL’s elite when it comes to racking up yards after the catch. Owens is good at that for the Argos, too, but on Sunday the Als were able to key on him and limit the damage done by number two. 

As Toronto’s season is now on the brink of extinction entering Week 20, one is left to wonder if Durie’s presence would have made a different story.

9. The Alouettes are the favourite to represent the East in the Grey Cup.

The Alouettes are the CFL’s hottest team, and after starting 1-7 have now battled back to ensure themselves a playoff spot. As they look to clinch a division title next Saturday in a marquee matchup against the Ticats, Week 19’s win over the Argos has made Montreal the clear-cut favourite to represent the East in the Grey Cup. 

Jonathan Crompton doesn’t light the world on fire and the Alouettes won’t put up big points, but the combination of elite defence and timely scoring has made Montreal a team that can stay close in ball games and win them late — something the Alouettes have now done in eight of their last nine games.

Duron Carter said after Sunday’s 17-14 win over the Argos that he and his team feel unstoppable. They look it, too, as they now focus on trying to wrap up that bye week and a chance to host the Eastern Final.

In short, if the Alouettes make it to the Grey Cup on Nov. 30, it’s hard to say anyone as of now would be surprised.