Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have been the biggest disappointment of the 2016 season. I don’t usually like to dabble in absolutes but after watching them lose a wildly entertaining 30-29 contest to Ottawa REDBLACKS, I can’t really think of any other team or player to give this dubious distinction to.
Now, before anyone with a 905 area code gets angry, just think about what your own expectations were for this team back in the summer and then compare it with how you are feeling right now. Even with the prospect of Zach Collaros missing the first two months of the season, most people felt the Tiger-Cats would be able to compete for the Eastern Division crown or, at the very least, finish the year with a winning record. Instead, all this talent both on the field and in the coaching staff has produced a 6-9 record. The team brought in veteran help in Justin Capicciotti, Xavier Fulton and Keon Raymond last week in hopes of making a push for the East; now those dreams have pretty much been dashed.
The first half against Ottawa was a microcosm for the Ticats’ entire season. We saw flashes of brilliance with Terrence Toliver using his height to overwhelm Jerrell Gavins for an early score, only to have it all derailed by mistakes in the form of an Andy Fantuz fumble and two interceptions by Jeremiah Masoli — the second of which he had a wide open Brandon Banks for what should have been an easy touchdown. Instead, Masoli hung the ball up long enough for Forrest Hightower to catch up to Banks and make a brilliant leaping interception. This play was the perfect definition of a wasted opportunity, an expression that I think encapsulates the entire year for Hamilton. Rather than cutting the deficit to three, Kent Austin’s team found itself in an all too familiar position: trailing at the half, this time by 13.
Terrence Toliver hauls in a first-half touchdown grab vs. Ottawa (Adam Gagnon/CFL.ca)
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You can tell who the great teams are (cliché alert!): they’re the ones exerting their will early on their opponent. The best teams in the league dictate the action from the onset and force the other team to play catch-up. In those glorious days when Collaros was healthy in 2015, the Tiger-Cats often raced out to double digit leads and then went out and teed off on the opposing quarterbacks. This year has been the exact opposite, with the team being outscored by more than 50 points in first quarters and by 105 in the first half. I give the Ticats credit for some of the remarkable comeback wins this team has managed to pull off; but miracle wins, while fun to watch, are unsustainable and usually don’t occur against the better teams in the league.
Of course, there is an easy push back on this narrative. If officials had ruled that Greg Ellingson fumbled the ball away or if Brett Maher (making over 84 per cent of his kicks coming into this game) had made that 47-yard field goal late then we would be talking about the Tiger-Cats as a legitimate contender to win the East. Ultimately, Hamilton lost as a result of a defence that had far too many missed tackles, giving up almost 500 yards, and because of an offence that in the first half produced more punts and interceptions than points after that early Toliver score.
Let’s get off this game for a moment and go to the larger picture. Yes, being without Collaros was going to be a major hindrance. But even after his return the team went 3-5 with Collaros throwing six interceptions to just three touchdowns in his last four games before getting re-injured. Losses to the Lions and Stampeders have proved this team cannot be considered “elite” while defeats to Toronto and Saskatchewan have made me wonder if their destiny is a quick playoff exit.
The Ticats’ first-place hopes rest on the throwing shoulder of Jeremiah Masoli (Adam Gagnon/CFL.ca)
That post-season fate is why I look at Hamilton as such a disappointment. Not because I wanted to write an easy rip job on a team that is suffering, but rather because I viewed Hamilton as a team that had a chance to do something special. Masoli showed more than enough last year to be a capable starter until Collaros was ready. C.J. Gable was healthy, the team was loaded with talent at receiver and with Ted Laurent, Simoni Lawrence, John Chick and Emanuel Davis, the defence had play makers at every level. Hamilton seemed poised to be able to overtake Ottawa and even challenge Calgary. Instead, turnovers, injuries, slow starts and a general lack of the holy grail of sports adjectives — consistency — have turned the Tiger-Cats’ season from a potentially great one to one where they need to win out just to hit .500.
Coming out of a first quarter commercial break after that Terrence Toliver touchdown, you could hear Toliver saying to the camera that the team is getting back on track and that the Ticats were “rejuvenated”. Clearly this team is not on track and is far away from being rejuvenated. Here’s hoping this team proves me wrong by the time the playoffs come round.
