February 5, 2018

Steinberg’s MMQB: Title game déjà vu

The Canadian Press

For a second straight year, I couldn’t help but be struck with a little déjà vu while watching the Super Bowl. I swear I’m not being lazy and copying an idea from last year at this time, either!

The truth is, Super Bowl 52 made me think a lot about November’s 105th Grey Cup, which just means one thing: football fans were treated to two incredible title games this season.

Striking similarities

The parallels between the two games are easy to pick out, starting with the underdog storyline. Much like Toronto wasn’t given much of a chance to knock off the Stampeders in November, there weren’t a lot of people loving Philadelphia’s chances against the Patriots on Sunday night. We all know how that went, in both cases.

It certainly goes much deeper than that, though. When we look back on Grey Cup 105, I think we can point to two plays that ended up crucial to an Argos victory. Had it not been for DeVier Posey’s 100-yard touchdown reception and Cassius Vaughn’s 109-yard fumble return, we’re probably not talking about a Toronto triumph.

Well, two key plays stick out from Super Bowl 52, too, one on offence and one on defence. First there was Philly’s bold fourth down call that resulted in quarterback Nick Foles reeling in a one-yard touchdown pass from tight end Trey Burton late in the second half.

DeVier Posey’s record-setting 100-yard touchdown helped him win Grey Cup MVP (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)

Then, late in the fourth quarter, Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett delivered the biggest defensive play of the game. With just over two minutes remaining, Barnett recovered a Tom Brady fumble to put the Eagles in range for an all-important late field goal, extending their lead to eight. Had it not been for those two key moments, we’re almost certainly looking at a different result.

Finally, in both title games, the upset wasn’t complete until the favourite had one final shot. Down by three, Bo Levi Mitchell drove Calgary into field goal range before making his only mistake of the evening. Looking to exploit a potential mismatch, Mitchell’s pass intended for Marken Michel in the end zone was picked off by Toronto’s Matt Black to seal the win.

Fast forward to Sunday night and there was Brady with 65 seconds on the clock and 91 yards in front of him with an opportunity to tie the game. Now, New England didn’t end up driving as deep as the Stamps did, but did get into Hail Mary territory thanks to a few completed passes and took a shot.

Knowing that final pass was earmarked for Rob Gronkowski, I guarantee you there wasn’t an easy breath taken by Eagles fans until that ball landed on the ground with double zeroes on the clock.

Comparing the 105th Grey Cup and Super Bowl 52 isn’t a perfect juxtaposition, of course. For instance, the winning quarterbacks couldn’t be more different in terms of their back-stories. Ricky Ray is one of the CFL’s best ever while Foles was a backup until Week 15 of Philadelphia’s season.

In the end, though, there were too many similarities not to lead this week’s MMQB this way. More than anything else, football fans were treated to two incredible title games for a second straight year. I’d have no problem if I were writing something very similar next February.

New but familiar homes

It was significant enough to see two of the league’s elite defensive ends traded in the same day. The fact that both those players arrived in their new homes in almost identical ways just made Friday’s moves even more stunning. When it was all said and done, Charleston Hughes and Odell Willis had new homes, albeit only had to move one province either way.

Calgary started things off when making the extremely difficult decision to part ways with Charleston Hughes after 10 seasons. With a salary cap crunch looming, the Stamps sent Hughes to Hamilton for a 2019 fourth round pick; the two teams also swapped fourth rounders in 2018. About an hour later, the Tiger-Cats then flipped Hughes to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in exchange for quarterback Vernon Adams, keeping Hughes in the West Division.

MORE ON FRIDAY’S ACTION
» Recapping a frantic Friday in the CFL
» The Snap: Friday’s best reactions on social
» Ray set to play in 2018 after one-year deal
» Hughes traded twice in one day

Charleston Hughes (left) and Odell Willis (right) both found new teams on Friday (CFL.ca)

While I’m sure the Stamps would have loved to keep Hughes out of the hands of the arch-rival Riders, I love the fact the opposite happened. After being a vocal member of one side, Hughes now has the opportunity to experience one of the CFL’s fiercest rivalries in new colours, starting in Week 7.

It was a tough, but understandable, call from Calgary’s standpoint. They’ve got a ton of important, and younger, players they need to try and retain before free agency opens next week. At 33, general manager John Hufnagel felt it was time to part ways with Hughes in a characteristically pragmatic move.

But I don’t think Saskatchewan is acquiring diminishing returns just yet. Hughes has led the CFL in sacks the last two seasons and looked as fresh as ever in 2017. The fact he’s joining a defensive line with newly re-signed Willie Jefferson on the other edge leads me to believe Hughes is in line for another impactful season.

Not to be outdone were the BC Lions, who acquired Willis from Edmonton via Ottawa. The Eskimos initially flipped Willis to the REDBLACKS in exchange for defensive lineman Jake Ceresna. Moments later, Ottawa would send Willis to the Lions in exchange for a 2018 fourth round pick and a neg list player. Talk about a familiar script!

Much like Hughes, Willis is 33 and you can understand why Edmonton general manager Brock Sunderland went the direction he did. But, even though he’s now clearly a CFL veteran, Willis still has plenty to give his new team.

BC is getting a dominant edge rusher who averaged more than nine sacks in each of his five seasons with the Eskimos. Willis also gives the Lions a little insurance with uncertainty surrounding a pair of pending free agent defensive ends in Alex Bazzie and Craig Roh.

It’s not every off-season you see two mainstay, dominant defensive linemen traded within the same division. The fact we saw it happen on the same day, in almost identical fashion, is one of the craziest coincidences I can remember.

The drive for five

You can tell we’ve had an eventful last week in the football world when Ricky Ray’s return to the Argos comes at the end of the MMQB! After a few months of deliberation, Ray added to Friday’s insane news rundown by electing to come back for a 16th CFL season and taking a shot at a fifth Grey Cup title.

I won’t lie; I’m a sucker for a sentimental story. As such, seeing Ray go out on top would have been awesome. But I’m certainly not going to criticize one of the league’s best ever quarterbacks if he wants to keep playing, especially knowing how good Ray was in 2017.

Ray threw for more than 5,550 yards and 28 touchdowns last season en route to being named the East Division’s Most Outstanding Player. Sure, he’s 38 years old, but Ray showed he could still be one of the CFL’s best when healthy, which he was for the vast majority of 2017.

Ricky Ray became the first quarterback to win four Grey Cups as a starter last November (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)

Furthermore, the allure of returning for another season with Marc Trestman at the helm was likely too hard to pass up. All Trestman does is thrive with veteran pivots, and this year he gets an entire winter to prepare for the season. After all, the Argos didn’t bring Trestman and General Manager Jim Popp into the fold until February of 2017.

Sure, Ray’s return adds a bit of complication in Toronto after the team went out and acquired quarterback James Franklin from Edmonton early in the off-season. From an Argos perspective, though, having those two on the depth chart is a good problem to have this season. For Franklin, nothing changes in the big picture, either; he’s still Toronto’s long-term starter.

It’s clear Ray still has the desire to play at the highest level, which is a scary proposition for opposing defences. Whether he finishes his 16th CFL season with a fifth Grey Cup or not, I’m happy to see Ray back in the fold. I promise I’ll get over it if my storybook ending doesn’t come true.