THE CANADIAN PRESS
Last week we wondered aloud when one of BC, Winnipeg, or Montreal would truly stand up and be counted. Heading into Week 18 action, all three teams had five wins and not one of them had looked like the odds on favorite to claim the CFL’s final playoff spot in 2015. Two teams answered the bell this weekend, which is exactly what the doctor ordered.
Answering the bell
The Alouettes were simply dominant on Friday night, as they didn’t allow Toronto to score a single point on offence in a much-needed 34-2 win. The win snapped a four game losing skid for Montreal and was the Alouettes’ most resounding effort of the season. It came at a pretty darn good time, too.
| Making their move |
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The Alouettes made a substantial improvement to their playoff chances over the weekend, winning a one-sided affair over the Argos. |
Not surprisingly, Kevin Glenn looked significantly more comfortable against the Argos than he did in his first Alouettes start last weekend against Hamilton. Prior to his first start with Montreal, Glenn had all of about four days to cram the playbook and attempt to understand the offence. An extra week clearly made a huge difference.
Glenn was solid as he threw three touchdowns and just eight incomplete passes, but it was Montreal’s defensive effort that was most impressive. The Alouettes frustrated and eventually chased Trevor Harris at quarterback (more on that later), and in the process, held Toronto to just two points.
Later on Friday night, BC answered Montreal’s challenge with a really good effort of its own. The coming out party for Jonathon Jennings continued as the rookie quarterback threw for three more touchdowns in a 40-13 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. But it was another player on offence that made me nod my head most in approval.
Andrew Harris had an outstanding evening at running back, finishing with 119 rushing yards and two touchdowns in BC’s win. With this playoff battle likely coming down to the Lions and the Als, Harris is the biggest X-factor for me. He’s the league’s leading rusher and I believe the most dynamic player on either team. If the Lions close out the league’s final post-season spot, it will very likely be on the back of Harris.
Remember, Montreal cannot be tied with BC to have a chance at a crossover playoff spot. For that to happen, they have to finish with more wins than the Lions. The Alouettes finish with a game in Edmonton and a home date with Saskatchewan. BC, on the other hand, is in Toronto and finishes by hosting Calgary.
Yes, Montreal likely has the more favourable schedule. However, because of Harris and because the Als can’t finish in a tie, I still think this is BC’s playoff spot to capture.
By a thread
Winnipeg is not mathematically eliminated from playoff contention yet, but this weekend sure didn’t help. Not only did both Montreal and BC win their games, but the Bombers fell 27-20 at home to Ottawa to hurt their position even more.
Winnipeg has just one game remaining and that game will not even matter if either the Lions or Als win this weekend. The Bombers don’t play until Week 20, so while they’re mathematically alive right now, they may not be when you’re reading next week’s edition of this column.
I’ll give Winnipeg some credit, because the Bombers played like their season was on the line against Ottawa. Unfortunately for the Bombers, they ran into a better team who also has a lot to play for. The REDBLACKS moved into a share of first place in the East Division and they were fully aware of the opportunity that presented itself after Friday losses by Toronto and Hamilton.
We won’t do the postmortem on Winnipeg’s season just yet, because that wouldn’t be fair with them still alive. But despite their push against Ottawa on Saturday night, the Bombers are well behind the eight ball going into their bye.
The right choice
If this was a couple weeks ago, I would have been strongly against Toronto making a quarterback change. But as the Argos enter the final two games of their season, I think they’re making the correct call by giving the ball to Ricky Ray in Week 19.
It’s tough for me to say that, because I’ve been so impressed with Trevor Harris for the vast majority of this season. But with the way Harris has struggled the last two weeks, and with the Argos having the luxury of a healthy Ray waiting in the wings, I think the right choice is being made.
| A long-awaited return |
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I fully believe Toronto would have stuck with Harris had he given them reason to. But in losses to Calgary and Montreal over the last two weeks, Harris has struggled mightily. When you have a quarterback like Ray as a second option, it’s tough to not go down that road when things aren’t going well with your Plan A.
The Argos have as good a chance as anyone in the East to be playing for the 2015 Grey Cup. To be there, though, they can’t keep rolling out an offence that seems to be grinding to a halt. Toronto needs to be firing on all cylinders as it enters the post-season, and right now, that isn’t with Harris under centre.
If Harris and the Argos were struggling and there wasn’t a fresh, rested Hall of Fame quarterback ready to return to game action, things would be different. Toronto needs to do what is best for its football team right now, and giving Ray a Week 19 start against BC is doing just that.
It’s never easy
The Edmonton Eskimos sure do like to make life difficult, don’t they? They finished off Week 18 with a 35-24 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders, but they decided to spot their two-win opponent a nice big early lead first. While it’s good to see the Esks come back and further tighten their grip on the West Division, they have to guard against this pattern going forward.
Edmonton finishes its season on Sunday against Montreal, and then the Eskimos will enjoy a Week 20 bye. With the prospect of another week off after that if they win the West, the Eskimos need to ensure they finish strong against the Alouettes. To do that, they probably shouldn’t put themselves in a spot where they need a big second half comeback.
