Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
TORONTO — When Travis Lulay made his return to the gridiron in Week 5 of the regular season, the Lions’ quarterback was the comeback kid for weeks to follow.
In 2017, Lulay suffered a season-ending knee injury, adding to the list of nicks and bruises the quarterback has suffered over the course of his 10-year career. Rehab from the injury would carry over to the first quarter of the 2018 season, putting him into action at the earliest opportunity as Jonathon Jennings showed signs of struggle operating the Lions’ offence.
Following back-to-back blowouts endured by BC, the return of Lulay instilled a new sense of energy and confidence in the Black and Orange’s offence.
Starting the season as suspected basement-dwellers in the West Division standings, the Lions pulled together to post 9-9 record in Wally Buono’s final season, earning themselves a crossover to the East Division for the playoffs.
Despite losing to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the opening round of the post-season, the reincarnation of the 35-year-old Lulay stood as a personal victory for a man who’s come back time and time again, finishing the season with 2,494 passing yards and 13 touchdowns in 12 games.
Unfortunately, 2018 brought more candidates to come back from serious injuries next season. Let’s look at some players who are looking to follow the same path as Travis Lulay, JC Sherritt and others before them:
Emmanuel Arceneaux
REC | BC
The Lions’ No. 1 receiver for many years had his 2018 campaign come to an early end when he went down with a torn ACL.
Arceneaux managed to haul in 32 receptions for 553 yards and a touchdown in the nine games he suited up for prior to the injury. With the duration of rehab required post-op up in the air, it’s yet to be determined whether or not Arceneaux will be ready in time for the kickoff of the 2019 regular season, but, like his teammate Travis Lulay, expect the Manny Show to make a splash when he does return.
Hoping to feed off of the similar grit and courage as his teammate Travis Lulay (14), Emmanuel Arceneaux (84) will be looking to bounce back from injury in 2019. (The Canadian Press)
Brandon Banks
REC | HAM
Since June Jones took Brandon Banks and placed him as a premier weapon in the Tiger-Cats offence, Banks has been one of the most electrifying pass-catchers in recent years in the league.
Ranking as the league’s second-leading receiver at the time of his injury, Banks suffered a broken clavicle in Hamilton’s Week 19 tilt against the Ottawa REDBLACKS.
The absence of Banks — without a doubt — had an impact on the efficiency of the Tabbies’ offensive attack in the closing weeks of the regular season and certainly could have been a difference maker come playoff time for the Black and Gold.
As for a comeback, Tiger Town can expect the echoes of “Speedy B” ringing through the PA system at Tim Hortons Field right from the get go in 2019.
Tyler Crapigna
K | SSK
With the performance of Brett Lauther in 2018, it remains to be determined what the situation will be when it comes to the kicking game in 2019, especially when the expected return of Tyler Crapigna remains a topic.
Crapigna was ruled out for the season prior to the regular season getting underway.
Wherever it may be, it’s hard to see Crapigna not making a comeback of some sort, especially considering he was one of the league’s most efficient kickers in 2017.
Kamar Jorden
REC | CGY
The unfortunate theme of this list stems from the unprecedented rash of injuries to the CFL’s top receivers in 2018.
Kamar Jorden was Calgary’s go-to target for Bo Levi Mitchell, and while it didn’t affect the end result of their season very much, without question, the absence of Jorden from the lineup was felt.
Suffering a season-ending knee injury, Jorden finished his season just shy of eclipsing the 1,000-yard mark. In the 10 games he played in, Jorden had 55 receptions for 944 yards and six touchdowns.
Naaman Roosevelt
REC | SSK
Currently a pending free agent, it’s not clear whether Roosevelt will be back with the Roughriders in 2019 or not with the emergence of Jordan Williams-Lambert and Shaq Evans, but regardless of that, you can fully expect him to be the type of player to bounce back from an injury-plagued season in 2018.
In 12 games this season, the 30-year-old pass-catcher hauled in 48 receptions for 570 yards, scoring four touchdowns in the process. He also posted a career-low in average yards per catch (11.9), which is still impressive considering the offensive struggles with the passing game the Riders faced.
While he didn’t manage to clinch the feat this past season, Roosevelt did have back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. Inconsistency at quarterback also may have hampered his production while dealing with injuries as well, which is why Chris Jones will be looking to address the situation at quarterback so then he can have players like Roosevelt make the impact that they have in the past.
Jalen Saunders
REC | HAM
A promising sophomore campaign came to an abrupt halt on Labour Day for Jalen Saunders when he tore his ACL against the Argonauts.
Saunders was on pace for his second straight 1,000-yard season prior to the injury but had to settle for the 45 receptions for 739 yards and two touchdowns that he had.
Like his teammate Brandon Banks, Saunders brought an electric style to the Ticats’ receiving corps, which is exactly why his injury is a setback he can certainly bounce back from, being a top target for Jeremiah Masoli again in 2019.
Jalen Saunders gets carried off of the field after suffering a knee injury during the Labour Day Classic against the Toronto Argonauts. (Adam Gagnon, CFL.ca)
Derel Walker
REC | EDM
For the longest time, Derel Walker and Duke Williams were the one-two punch for Mike Reilly and the Edmonton Eskimos’ offence. Like Williams, Walker ranked near the top of the receiving yards list before going down to injury.
Walker came just 125 yards short of his third 1,000-yard season, racking up 875 yards through the air on 51 receptions and scoring eight touchdowns for the Green and Gold.
Given the ‘what you can do, I can do better’ mentality that seemed to be going on between he and Williams as they traded breakout games, that sort of competitive nature in the Esks receiving corps could easily aid in Walker quickly shaking off any rust as he rehabs ahead of the 2019 season.
James Wilder Jr.
RB | TOR
2017’s Most Outstanding Rookie had his year come to an end in the final quarter of the regular season. The Argonauts’ running back suffered a leg injury in Week 16 against the Stampeders.
Wilder finished the season as the Boatmen’s leading rusher and also was actively involved in the team’s passing game as well. In 13 games, Wilder Jr. totaled 1,230 combined yards and four touchdowns.
