Last Saturday, Montreal went into the fourth quarter of their game against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers up 25 to 10. When the game ended, the Alouettes lost by a single point, 26-25.
Winnipeg roared back into the game in the fourth on 16 unanswered points: two majors and a field goal. Blue Bombers quarterback Buck Pierce completed 9 of 13 pass attempts for 97 yards. Chris Garrett ran for two scores. Most importantly, the Bombers defence shut down Montreal: Anthony Calvillo was picked off three times in the game. In the fourth, he was limited to four completed passes. Five, if one counts the one intercepted by Winnipeg's Jonathan Hefney.
How complete was the shutdown? Montreal picked up just two first downs in the final quarter.
The loss wasn't just a blown lead. It was a complete collapse. And it's happened before. About a month ago, Montreal nearly blew another game to the Bombers: a Montreal lead of 19 points was whittled away to just six. The game ended with Winnipeg on Montreal's one-yard line after two failed quarterback sneaks.
That's two games where the Blue Bombers have taken it to Montreal late in the game. That's twice their meetings have ended with the two tied for the Eastern Division lead. The funny thing is, it shouldn't have been that way.
The Alouettes have been good in recent memory. They've led the division for the last three consecutive years. This season, they have the best home record and a quarterback leading the CFL in passing yards, touchdowns and passer rating.
Earlier this season, Calvillo set the all-time record for total passing yards. Not the CFL record. The record for all of professional football. He even made the leap to the US, getting a profile story in Grantland. It's not unfair to call Montreal the class of the CFL; in an offence-driven league, they've amassed the most points and set the standard.
But the Bombers are also good: they have an identical record as the Alouettes, 10 wins, five losses. They've taken Montreal right to the brink twice in the last month. And it came despite losing two running backs and questionable quarterbacking.
Their starting running back, Chris Garrett - the guy who scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns on Saturday - was released by the team after training camp and was only resigned in August. He only got onto the field after two Bombers running backs had season-ending knee injuries against Toronto.
Winnipeg quarterback Buck Pierce has not has a good year, either. He's right in the bottom of CFL quarterbacks, with only Toronto's two starters below him in passing yards. He's thrown for just 14 scores (again, only above Toronto's two quarterbacks) and his 17 interceptions are the most in the CFL. He is not their Calvillo.
So with a QB who has passing issues and a running back that wasn't even on the team for most of the season, how are the Bombers tied for first in the east? Well, for the same reason why they've been such trouble for the East's other good team: defence.
On Saturday, the Blue Bombers defence kept the Alouettes at bay. Not just in the fourth, but throughout the game. Calvillo was picked off three times, sacked six times and held to just 199 yards and zero touchdown passes. It was one of the worst games of the season for the CFL's best passer. But this game was no outlier: the Blue Bombers defence has allowed the fewest points in their division.
Two Blue Bombers - Odell Willis and Jason Vega - are among the CFL leaders in sicks; together, they've picked up 22 sacks. And there's three Winnipeg players among the top six in interceptions, too. As a team, they have 24 picks. This is not a defence to sleep on.
The Bombers had some luck, too: a call that went their way led to the league firing an official. And weak teams in Toronto and Hamilton hasn't hurt their season, either: they've posted a CFL-best 7-2 record division record.
And they've had surprises, too: in only four games, Garrett's ran for 353 yards, 13th in the CFL. And his 88 yards per game is highest in the league. Who expected that from a player so deep in the team’s depth chart?
There are issues. As said above, Pierce is not an ideal quarterback and Garrett's far from proven. Their offensive line's had troubles, too: in their victory over Montreal, Pierce was sacked three times; this season, . There's special team problems too: their kicker missed twice on Satuday; this season he's hit just over 72 per cent of his kicks, one of the worst percentages among the CFL's kickers.
Still, Winnipeg and Montreal feel like the two sides of the same coin: where one has the league's best offence, the other has the best defence. Their last two matchups have not only gone down to the wire, but have played a role in the division's lead. With two games left in the regular season, each has a chance to clinch a bye-week. Montreal's facing Calgary and BC, two teams who have clinched postseason spots but are still competing for a bye week. Winnipeg is also facing Calgary but they play Toronto, a team that's living in the CFL's cellar.
What that means is either team can still win the division. And while it's no given that the two will face each other in the postseason, it feels like they will. If it's been anything like their last two meeting have been, look out: the team that shouldn't be there on paper could be the one that makes it out.
Showing posts with label cfl. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cfl. Show all posts
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Monday, November 19, 2007
How the Argos lost - Notes on the 07 East Final
Nobody thought it would end like this – but nobody foresaw the Argonaut’s fingers seemingly coated in butter, either.
Yes, the Toronto Argonauts, who entered the playoffs winning their last seven games in a row, lost decisively to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in a game marred by turnovers – some three on each side.
As the fourth quarter started, with the Bombers inside the Argo 10 yard line, it looked as if the Bombers were going to try and wrap things up. After all, they led 19 – 1; the game was theirs to lose.
But when Bomber QB Kevin Glenn hurt his arm in the fourth while diving on a loose ball, the momentum shifted, significantly, to the battered Argos.
One monster pass to Arlen Bruce III later, and the game, the Argos and even the fans, roared back to life.
Michael Bishop showed off his powerful throwing arm, driving the Argos some 92 yards to their first touchdown of the game with some long, precise passes, capped off with his own quarterback sneak for the major.
As reserve quarterback Ryan Dinwiddie came in for the Bombers, the Argo fans were on their feet and screaming.
It seemed a lot like the inverse of the last Eastern Final played in the Rogers Centre in 2005. In that game, the Argos led throughout the first half, only to collapse to Montreal – and in particular, to QB Anthony Calvillo – in the second, losing 33-17.
“All of a sudden, this isn’t the Rogers Centre - this is the noise dome,” said CBC’s Steve Armitage.
But Dinwiddie pulled it out. Airing the ball, and running down the clock, he wore down the Toronto defence with long passes. A touchdown pass to Edwards sealed the victory for the Bombers.
Or did it? The ref on the field had to check it out – and then went to the booth for a review. And it was overturned.
And then the Argos grabbed another fumble in their own end.
“Are you kidding me,” shouted CBC’s colour commentator Khari Jones. “That’s their third fumble today!
“They should be blowing the Argos out!”
But Toronto’s ball-handling woes continued, as their receivers dropped passes that would have brought the Argos deep into Winnipeg territory.
Winnipeg’s smothering defence kept the Argos out of the game, clogging the secondary and keeping Bishop under pressure – including a huge sack late in the fourth.
It was an incomplete pass, late in the fourth that sealed it – although, with less then two minutes to play, what could the Argos have done? They would have needed a touchdown, then a field goal – just to tie.
Nonetheless, the Bombers prevailed. They limited the Argos to just 31 rushing yards and keeping the Argo offense smothered, like a heavy blanket put on a fire, for three quarters.
“We played them well all year,” said Winnipeg running back Charles Roberts.
“We took it upon ourselves to come out here and prove them wrong.”
And so, what an upset it was. The Bombers were seven underdogs going into this game, but they played like 14 point favourites. They ran the ball, they passed the ball and they, most importantly, stopped the Argos from doing likewise.
Simply put, they played like champs.
And in the end, that was the only thing that mattered.
Yes, the Toronto Argonauts, who entered the playoffs winning their last seven games in a row, lost decisively to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in a game marred by turnovers – some three on each side.
As the fourth quarter started, with the Bombers inside the Argo 10 yard line, it looked as if the Bombers were going to try and wrap things up. After all, they led 19 – 1; the game was theirs to lose.
But when Bomber QB Kevin Glenn hurt his arm in the fourth while diving on a loose ball, the momentum shifted, significantly, to the battered Argos.
One monster pass to Arlen Bruce III later, and the game, the Argos and even the fans, roared back to life.
Michael Bishop showed off his powerful throwing arm, driving the Argos some 92 yards to their first touchdown of the game with some long, precise passes, capped off with his own quarterback sneak for the major.
As reserve quarterback Ryan Dinwiddie came in for the Bombers, the Argo fans were on their feet and screaming.
It seemed a lot like the inverse of the last Eastern Final played in the Rogers Centre in 2005. In that game, the Argos led throughout the first half, only to collapse to Montreal – and in particular, to QB Anthony Calvillo – in the second, losing 33-17.
“All of a sudden, this isn’t the Rogers Centre - this is the noise dome,” said CBC’s Steve Armitage.
But Dinwiddie pulled it out. Airing the ball, and running down the clock, he wore down the Toronto defence with long passes. A touchdown pass to Edwards sealed the victory for the Bombers.
Or did it? The ref on the field had to check it out – and then went to the booth for a review. And it was overturned.
And then the Argos grabbed another fumble in their own end.
“Are you kidding me,” shouted CBC’s colour commentator Khari Jones. “That’s their third fumble today!
“They should be blowing the Argos out!”
But Toronto’s ball-handling woes continued, as their receivers dropped passes that would have brought the Argos deep into Winnipeg territory.
Winnipeg’s smothering defence kept the Argos out of the game, clogging the secondary and keeping Bishop under pressure – including a huge sack late in the fourth.
It was an incomplete pass, late in the fourth that sealed it – although, with less then two minutes to play, what could the Argos have done? They would have needed a touchdown, then a field goal – just to tie.
Nonetheless, the Bombers prevailed. They limited the Argos to just 31 rushing yards and keeping the Argo offense smothered, like a heavy blanket put on a fire, for three quarters.
“We played them well all year,” said Winnipeg running back Charles Roberts.
“We took it upon ourselves to come out here and prove them wrong.”
And so, what an upset it was. The Bombers were seven underdogs going into this game, but they played like 14 point favourites. They ran the ball, they passed the ball and they, most importantly, stopped the Argos from doing likewise.
Simply put, they played like champs.
And in the end, that was the only thing that mattered.
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Welcome to Toronto
I was watching the NBA Playoffs on The Score when I found out the news that everybody has been expecting but was not really sure about: Ricky Williams has offically signed with the Argos.
On a day where Carolina won a OT thriller, where Barry Bonds hit his 715th home run and the Mavericks defence shut down the best offence in the NBA, it was signing of a running back that I'll remember the most.
Last season the Argos posted a great - 11 wins, 7 losses - record but lost to their rivals from Quebec, the Montreal Alouettes, in an epic 2nd half collapse that I witnessed first hand. It was almost sickening, really - although it's hard to feel that way when you have free tickets way up in the 500 section, with people drinking copious amounts of liquor, waving around camcorders and lit cigarettes and acting crazy, yelling at a lone Quebecber, who is all too keen to yell right back, like some 21st century Rocket Richard... Right, where was I?
Oh yes, the Ricky Williams signing.
This will be good for the Argos - they don't really need a running back as much as they do a Quarterback or a wide reciever that can catch a ball in the 4th quarter... but Ricky isn't just a running back. He's a player that instantly makes his entire defence better - from drawing extra coverage away from other players, from an explosive abilty to run with the ball and a decent - not that it'll be used much in the CFL - ability to recieve passes. He could be - okay, is - the cog that could win the Argos a Grey Cup (but the same could be said for any team, really. He could help the Hamburg Blitz win a NFL Europe championship, whatever that's called, had he signed over there).
And he's a draw. A name player. Someone who even my grandmother makes jokes about - and will pay to see. And I suspect she's not alone, either. The Argos haven't had a name like this since the days of Pinball and Flutie and the Rocket in the 90s.
******
He came; he saw; he, er, got seven yards of rushing.
So who cares? It's the Preseason, baby... if the Argo sdecided to run him like they will later in September, they risk getting him hurt - a major no-no for them and their relationship with the Miami Dolphins.
So stop caring that Ricky was barely there - let's focus on the real issue at hand; Joe "Glass Leg" Theismann's sudden love of the Argos, the team he ran away from once the Redskins made him an offer and never once looked back.
On a day where Carolina won a OT thriller, where Barry Bonds hit his 715th home run and the Mavericks defence shut down the best offence in the NBA, it was signing of a running back that I'll remember the most.
Last season the Argos posted a great - 11 wins, 7 losses - record but lost to their rivals from Quebec, the Montreal Alouettes, in an epic 2nd half collapse that I witnessed first hand. It was almost sickening, really - although it's hard to feel that way when you have free tickets way up in the 500 section, with people drinking copious amounts of liquor, waving around camcorders and lit cigarettes and acting crazy, yelling at a lone Quebecber, who is all too keen to yell right back, like some 21st century Rocket Richard... Right, where was I?
Oh yes, the Ricky Williams signing.
This will be good for the Argos - they don't really need a running back as much as they do a Quarterback or a wide reciever that can catch a ball in the 4th quarter... but Ricky isn't just a running back. He's a player that instantly makes his entire defence better - from drawing extra coverage away from other players, from an explosive abilty to run with the ball and a decent - not that it'll be used much in the CFL - ability to recieve passes. He could be - okay, is - the cog that could win the Argos a Grey Cup (but the same could be said for any team, really. He could help the Hamburg Blitz win a NFL Europe championship, whatever that's called, had he signed over there).
And he's a draw. A name player. Someone who even my grandmother makes jokes about - and will pay to see. And I suspect she's not alone, either. The Argos haven't had a name like this since the days of Pinball and Flutie and the Rocket in the 90s.
******
He came; he saw; he, er, got seven yards of rushing.
So who cares? It's the Preseason, baby... if the Argo sdecided to run him like they will later in September, they risk getting him hurt - a major no-no for them and their relationship with the Miami Dolphins.
So stop caring that Ricky was barely there - let's focus on the real issue at hand; Joe "Glass Leg" Theismann's sudden love of the Argos, the team he ran away from once the Redskins made him an offer and never once looked back.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
The Flutie Question
On Monday, as I’m sure you already know, Doug Flutie retired from the New England Patriots, officially ending the career of a man whose career had spanned three decades, who had played in three leagues and who Jim McMahon once referred to as “Bambi” – not to mention at least two ESPN Classic moments (The 1984 Hail Mary pass to Phelan and the 1992 Grey Cup, where he scrambled in the game winning TD minus a shoe) and more SportsCentury moments then he had any right to do.
When everything is all said and done he had, the stats say that he had a fantastic career – 58,179 total yards, 369 Touchdowns, three CFL Championships and six MVP awards. That’s more yards then Jim Kelly (45,309 yards), more TD’s then Steve Young (248) and more CFL titles then, well, pretty much anybody enshrined in Canton who isn’t named “Warren Moon”. For a player who was generally considered to be ‘too small’ (he was only recruited by one Division 1 school) for pro football, those are phenomenal numbers.
After rattling off one of the most memorable careers in the history of the CFL – one that I remember all too well – Flutie went off to play in the NFL, winning another award (comeback player of the year, 1998) and getting himself locked into the NFL film vaults while he was at it – oldest player to score two TD in a single game, the drop-kick of 2005. In an age where bigger is better, Doug was the consummate underdog – he was too small, he worked too hard and the odds were almost always stacked against him when it mattered most. He was someone who was often at his best at the very edge of the play, when the pocket was collapsing around him, when the defence was closing in, when the receivers were covered and when he had to run for it… it was in times like these that we saw the real Doug Flutie, the one who could throw the last-second long bomb or the one who could run it in at the last second… The Doug Flutie that was, looking back, almost like was the prototype for the modern scrambling QB like Michael Vick.
So, if that other CFL legend – Warren Moon – can make it into Canton, Ohio, then why is there much debate over Doug Flutie? Sure, Moon’s career is almost like a flip of Flutie’s (while his best seasons were in the CFL, he has better numbers in the NFL), but it is, after all, the Professional Football Hall of Fame – not the NFL Hall of Fame, the Football Players who only played in the US Hall of Fame or the No-CFL Hall of Fame. And if the other Hall of Fames can accept players who never played in their main leagues – like how Cooperstown has elected players from the Negro Leagues or how the Hockey Hall of fame elected Valeri Kharlamov – then why shouldn’t a player who was fantastic in a non-NFL league be excluded?
To put it simply – it shouldn’t be; Doug Flutie is a bona-fide Hall of Famer.
When everything is all said and done he had, the stats say that he had a fantastic career – 58,179 total yards, 369 Touchdowns, three CFL Championships and six MVP awards. That’s more yards then Jim Kelly (45,309 yards), more TD’s then Steve Young (248) and more CFL titles then, well, pretty much anybody enshrined in Canton who isn’t named “Warren Moon”. For a player who was generally considered to be ‘too small’ (he was only recruited by one Division 1 school) for pro football, those are phenomenal numbers.
After rattling off one of the most memorable careers in the history of the CFL – one that I remember all too well – Flutie went off to play in the NFL, winning another award (comeback player of the year, 1998) and getting himself locked into the NFL film vaults while he was at it – oldest player to score two TD in a single game, the drop-kick of 2005. In an age where bigger is better, Doug was the consummate underdog – he was too small, he worked too hard and the odds were almost always stacked against him when it mattered most. He was someone who was often at his best at the very edge of the play, when the pocket was collapsing around him, when the defence was closing in, when the receivers were covered and when he had to run for it… it was in times like these that we saw the real Doug Flutie, the one who could throw the last-second long bomb or the one who could run it in at the last second… The Doug Flutie that was, looking back, almost like was the prototype for the modern scrambling QB like Michael Vick.
So, if that other CFL legend – Warren Moon – can make it into Canton, Ohio, then why is there much debate over Doug Flutie? Sure, Moon’s career is almost like a flip of Flutie’s (while his best seasons were in the CFL, he has better numbers in the NFL), but it is, after all, the Professional Football Hall of Fame – not the NFL Hall of Fame, the Football Players who only played in the US Hall of Fame or the No-CFL Hall of Fame. And if the other Hall of Fames can accept players who never played in their main leagues – like how Cooperstown has elected players from the Negro Leagues or how the Hockey Hall of fame elected Valeri Kharlamov – then why shouldn’t a player who was fantastic in a non-NFL league be excluded?
To put it simply – it shouldn’t be; Doug Flutie is a bona-fide Hall of Famer.
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