MontrealAlouettes.com
MONTREAL — It’s still too early for the Montreal Alouettes to make a decision on who will be the team’s starting quarterback once the 2018 season rolls around.
“With shorts on, without a pass rush, without all the other nuances that come with the game of football, it’s hard to evaluate until the lights are on and it’s real,” Alouettes head coach Mike Sherman said during the team’s season preview call on Monday.
“Yes, I do think it (mini-camp) was very productive. Yes, I do think guys did step up but at the same time, playing football in shorts with no pads, no pass rush is a little bit different than it’ll be in (training) camp and then the pre-season. We will know more once we get into the pre-season on who our starter will be for 2018.”
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Josh Freeman had his first taste of a CFL mini-camp last week (MontrealAlouettes.com)
Although all of the off-season chatter has been around former NFL quarterback Josh Freeman, the Alouettes have yet to name him as the team’s starting pivot. Drew Willy and Matthew Shiltz are two other options as both started games for Montreal last season.
Willy, who re-signed with the Als in Febraury, played in 12 games last season and started two. He tossed 547 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 66 yards and a major score.
Shiltz played in four games last season, completing 35 of 61 passes for 385 yards, a touchdown and four interceptions.
After evaluating Willy, Freeman and Shiltz at mini-camp last week, Sherman is confident he can make the right decision, a decision that he hopes to make soon, on who will be under centre for his new team even if they have little or no CFL experience.
“Would we prefer to have a returning starter who’s a star player that we’d expect to play every game? Absolutely,” said Sherman. “But I do think from watching them down in Florida at the mini-camp, we’re going to have a very competitive camp. We’re going to have to make a decision fairly early in order to get that player, who’s going to be our starter, the reps he needs to get ready for the season.”
One aspect of the Alouettes that the team made a priority to overhaul this off-season was the defence.
During free agency, Montreal beefed up their secondary adding Tommie Campbell, Dominique Ellis, Tevaughn Campbell, Joe Burnett and Mitchell White. More recently, they also inked two Canadians in Jamaal Westerman on the defensive line and linebacker Henoc Muamba.
“We lost games a lot of ways last year,” Sherman said. “I’m hopeful and confident that we’ve plugged some holes, particularly on the defence side, special teams side and offensively, the offence has to do their job as well. I don’t think all the pressure is on the quarterback. I think it’s on all of us to play the best ball we can play, coach the best ball we can coach and I’m excited to work with the guys that we have.”
Will Drew Willy start for the Alouettes in 2018? (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)
Montreal ended the 2017 season at the basement of the East Division with a 3-15 record. Without a true No. 1 quarterback, the team struggled to generate offence, sitting at the bottom of the league in almost all offensive categories. The bright spot for the Alouettes was in their ground game with Tyrell Sutton, who helped the Als sit third in rushing yards (1,718) just behind Edmonton (1,734) and Winnipeg (1,824).
Even with the recent struggles, Sherman is optimistic that his team is on its way to becoming more competitive in the East as he gets ready for his first taste of a Canadian football season.
“Are we going to win a Grey Cup? Are we going to win a championship or be fighting for a championship? That remains to be seen,” admitted the Als bench boss. “My goal is simply, very simple, one step at a time and we’re going to get better every day. Making strides on the team that Montreal deserves to have in its city.”
