The Canadian Press
Hamilton’s decisive 40-10 victory over the BC Lions on Saturday afternoon was exactly what the doctor ordered, for so many different reasons. The Tiger-Cats lost a heart-breaker one week prior in the first half of a home-and-home set, but they left no doubt in the return meeting at Tim Hortons Field.
Hamilton head coach June Jones faced a fair amount of criticism following his team’s 35-32 overtime loss in BC last weekend. Up by seven points late, Jones elected to punt through the end zone for a single instead of attempt a 44-yard field goal. That opened the door for Jonathon Jennings and the Lions to march down the field and eventually tie the game with a two-point conversion.
I actually didn’t mind the decision, to be perfectly honest; he left the game in the hands of his team’s league-best pass defence and they couldn’t stop Jennings in a vintage performance. Sometimes you tip your hat to the better man, and Jennings was electric that evening. But I liked how Hamilton rallied around their coach and came out with an emphatic effort one week later.
The Tiger-Cats set the tone early on Saturday. Jeremiah Masoli, Luke Tasker, and John White helped move the ball 88 yards for the game’s opening major. Then, with their first defensive series, Hamilton picked off Jennings’s first pass of the game and took it 30 yards to the house for a lightning quick two-score lead. They never looked back from there.
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While watching on Saturday, I got the feeling the Ticats were out to send a message, mostly to themselves. At 6-7, it was safe to say Hamilton had underachieved entering this weekend and that overtime loss in BC was a perfect example. They found a way to lose that night but didn’t even allow that to be a possibility in the rematch.
I know they currently trail Ottawa for top spot in the East Division by a game and a half, but this battle is far from over. With a crucial home-and-home set for Weeks 19 and 20, we could still see the fight between the REDBLACKS and Ticats come right down the wire. And I’m honestly not sure who has the better team right now.
I look at Hamilton and see Masoli within striking distance of Edmonton’s Mike Reilly for the league lead in passing yards. They boast the league’s top ranked pass defence and they’re coming off a three-interception effort against the Lions; two of those picks went for touchdowns. This is a very well-rounded team when they’re not shooting themselves in the foot.
But then I look at Ottawa and see just as many things to like. The REDBLACKS entered Week 16 as a top three team defending both the pass and the run. And while their offence has been a little more boom and bust than they’d like, we know how dangerous Ottawa can be when Trevor Harris, William Powell, Greg Ellingson, and Brad Sinopoli are all rolling.
Because they have the better record, you still have to give the edge to the REDBLACKS in the battle for top spot in the East. But Saturday put the rest of the CFL on notice: you can’t sleep on the Tiger-Cats.
Next man up…again
At some point you’d think all these injuries at receiver would catch up to the Calgary Stampeders. You can add Reggie Begelton to the long list of banged up pass-catchers for the Stamps after he went down in Friday’s 38-16 win over the Toronto Argonauts.
A broken arm will sideline Begelton the rest of the season, which is too bad. Begelton had broken out in a huge way stepping in for the sidelined Kamar Jorden and Calgary’s offence hadn’t missed a beat. So, you can add another slot receiver to the injury list, as Begelton joins Jorden, Eric Rogers, and DaVaris Daniels in that same category. And yet the Stampeders don’t seem overly worried.
Personally, I keep wondering when Calgary is going to start struggling as a result of all these injuries. As natural a reaction as that is, maybe I shouldn’t be wondering; this team’s track record suggests they’ll just keep trucking along as per usual.
Buy Week 17 Tickets
» Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET: Winnipeg at Ottawa
» Saturday, 7:00 p.m. ET: Toronto at BC
» Monday, 1:00 p.m. ET: Calgary at Montreal
» Monday, 4:00 p.m. ET: Edmonton at Saskatchewan
Part of that is having a top tier quarterback. Bo Levi Mitchell is one of the two or three pivots in this league who can help turn a relatively unknown receiver into a consistent threat in the snap of a finger. We’ve seen it numerous times and it’s why players like Juwan Brescasin, Markeith Ambles, Julan Lynch, and Richard Sandani are all on CFL Fantasy radars right now. Along with Marken Michel, of course.
In saying all that, the timing couldn’t be better for Rogers’s return to health, even if there’s no rush to get him back onto the depth chart. There was buzz Rogers was going to return for Friday night, but the team elected to hold him out for another week. If they were to do the same Monday in Montreal, it would be easy to understand, too.
If I’m the Stamps right now, I’m ensuring Rogers is 100 per cent upon his return, or at the very least in absolutely no danger of re-injuring himself. Getting a dominant player back into the middle of the field is crucial for Calgary as they head towards the playoffs and would be a nice mental boost after so many bad news items in recent weeks.
Regardless, though, you can understand why there’s no sense of panic emanating from southern Alberta right now. The Stamps have been withstanding injuries at receiver all year long, after all. While Begelton going down isn’t ideal, it’s not like Calgary isn’t prepared for the next man up.
Quick hits
I’m starting to worry about the Edmonton Eskimos. Not only are they in danger of falling out of a playoff spot, but the Esks are also struggling in an area we all expect them to exceed. All of a sudden Edmonton is having a ton of difficulty moving the ball and scoring points.
The Eskimos have lost four of their last five games and have scored 24 or fewer points in all of those setbacks, including a 30-3 defeat at home to Winnipeg on Saturday night. The hallmark of this team is a dynamic, mutli-dimensional offence and right now we’re just not seeing that. With remaining games against Saskatchewan, Ottawa, BC, and Winnipeg, the Esks are without an easy mark to try and get things back on track.
Finally, while I’m not tattooing his likeness on my back like our own Jeff Krever, I certainly had all kinds of fun watching Johnny Manziel go to work on Sunday afternoon. Yes, the Alouettes ended up falling 34-29 to the Riders, but Manziel took another step in his progression and finally his first (and second) CFL passing touchdown.
Manziel still needs to work on consistency, but I appreciate the way he’s really cut down on mistakes after his first start. Manziel has thrown just one interception in his last three appearances, which is notable knowing how he likes to enter gunslinger mode. There’s still along way to go, but Johnny Football is on the right track.
