Jason Halstead/CFL.ca
Hello, headline writers, the ones that keep writing “Don’t Call It a Crumback.” Really? When, then, are we allowed to call it a Crumback? At what point, exactly, does that become alright by you that we call it a Crumback? Never mind. I’m just gonna go ahead and call it a Crumback whenever I want. Don’t tell me how to live my life, ya bunch of Crumbums.
Here are this week’s takeaways. No. This week’s Crumbacks. Yeah, that’s right. This week’s Crumbacks.
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SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES
Two in a row, Ottawa. Two in a row.
Remember those early season disappointments? With an offence that could not, for the life of it, locate the “on” switch? Nah, me neither.
Something is brewing with this team. Really, really brewing. Young Dustin Crum has breathed new life into that offence, showing off a superb skill set powered by remarkable rookie poise.
Other things are happening, too, like Nate Behar channelling his inner Anton Chigurh. He’s always been one of the toughest hombres there is over the middle but now he’s added remorseless, clutch-time killer to his services-for-hire sheet.
That offence has… possibilities. Khari Jones, I’ll bet, dance-walked his way into the office this morning, visions of exotic formations and fancy permutations jolting the synapses in his brain. Wait ’til he gets Bralon Addison out there.
The defence? It’s been very good from the get-go. And they haven’t even yet had Jovan Santos-Knox in the line-up, y’all.
The REDBLACKS look like a team on the rise. All of a sudden, I am really looking forward to August 13th. Ottawa at Toronto. That is not something I’d have said, a mere two weeks ago.
THE REFRIGERATOR GOES OVER THERE, FELLAS
I want Brady Oliveira and AJ Ouellette on my crew on moving day. And, let’s see, who else?
No one. Nobody else. Just those two.
A few seasons ago, I wrote that it “takes a village to tackle Andrew Harris.” And the same can be said of the man who replaced him, in Winnipeg, as well as the man who is currently Harris’ backfield mate in Toronto. Both Ouellette and Oliveira displayed their brute strength and undying determination during Week 7.
Oliveira turned on the juice in the fourth quarter against Edmonton, pushing and pulling piles of Elks downfield along with him, and bouncing up after the play like he was just hopping out of the pool after a quick dip. Ouellette pulled the same sort of stunt against Hamilton during the third quarter, gaining an extra ten yards on one rush while Ticats’ defender Stavros Katsantonis was riding on his back. “Freight Train Mode,” cried TSN play-by-play man Rod Smith.
These are the only two men you need on moving day. Maybe not even both of them. Just one of them and a truck.
Truck optional.
THEY’RE ALL GROWN UP NOW
We have a definitive answer as to why the BC Lions’ defence is so relentless, so efficient, so ruthless, so brutal. They’re family men!
The league’s elite unit has allowed just five touchdowns all season and that number did not change against Saskatchewan on Saturday night.
Against the ‘Riders, the Lions’ defence was at its snarling best, in control up front, forcing quick, short throws so their defensive backs could close like owls on unsuspecting field mice.
Veteran DB Garry Peters – who had one interception and almost another – has a theory about why that defence is so good and it goes beyond just coaching, talent and execution. Although those are pretty good too.
“A lot of guys on our defence, they’ve been on this team for so long,” said Peters after a 19-9 win. “You’ve got a lot more to play for. People got kids, now, families, wives that you’ve gotta step up and take care. You’re not little boys no more.
“In your first couple of years in the league you’re considered a man but you’ve still kind of got that little boy mindset. You don’t have any real responsibilities. But when life hits you, and it’s that much (more) serious, you can’t come out and take the job for granted because there’s somebody else lookin’ to take your job.
“With that being said, look across the board. There’s all those types of players on our defence. And everybody’s hungry.”
HAVE TO KICK AT THE DARKNESS ’TIL IT BLEEDS DAYLIGHT
What choice do the Edmonton Elks have, really? Just one foot in front of the other, again and again and again until they finally break through.
But they absolutely, positively have to stop tripping themselves up as they take those steps.
“It’s just kinda same song, next verse,” a glum head coach Chris Jones told CHED radio after Thursday’s loss in Winnipeg. He then went on to list some of the avoidable mistakes his team had made on both offence and defence.
“Every one of our games this year, we’ve been in the game at halftime,” said defensive lineman Jake Ceresna. “It really seems like the end of the third quarter, start of the fourth quarter that games go bad, so we’ve just got to look at ourselves in the mirror and fix that.”
The Edmonton defence gets my sympathy, though. That unit has been doing most of the heavy lifting this year in keeping games close as long as humanly possible. “Defence played great,” said a downcast Taylor Cornelius. “As usual.”
“No one imagined, in a million years, this start to this season,” added Cornelius, who then kind of marvelled at how well the Elks are managing to stay positive through it all.
“You wouldn’t expect this team to be oh and seven if you walked into the locker room after a practice,” he said of the collective attitude.
They must feel that nothing worth having comes without some kind of fight.
TAKEAWAYS CAN BE HARD, Y’ALL
Hey, I’m not looking for sympathy here. (MID-TAKEAWAY BONUS TAKEAWAY: Yes I am)
But Hamilton quarterback Taylor Powell and head coach Orlondo Steinauer perfectly personified those moments where I stare at my keyboard, praying for some kind of inspiration. Like… right now.
Powell was asked what he might take away from his first start in the CFL. He scrunched up his face a bit, and then drummed his fingers on the post-game podium. Then he scratched his chin. Then he let out a big ol’ sigh.
“Maybe taking off more? I don’t know,” he replied. “I’m sure (offensive coordinator Tommy Condell) gonna have a bunch of stuff for me to improve on. Which I want. I wanna be great in this league.”
When asked if he could put his finger on why his Ticats struggle to stay in games during the first half, Steinauer had a succinct reply.
“We’re not scoring and we’re not stopping anybody,” he said, turning his palms to the heavens.
See? Takeaways are hard. Hang on a sec, hold up. *Light Bulb Moment* No, no, no. Takeaways are are EASY. So…
BONUS TAKEAWAYS: Toronto is cruising, Hamilton is struggling. Taylor Cornelius needs to be more accurate on some of his throws. Evan Holm is good at defensive backing. “Every defence is good when you’re in second and eighteen.” – Dane Evans. Mason Fine needs to tighten that chin strap of his. Injuries are a problem for Saskatchewan. Qwan’tez Stiggers is a pretty decent rookie. Mike O’Shea likes tan shorts. Marken Michel can make excellent ball flight adjustments. The opposition should avoid Brandon Dandridge at all costs. Manny Rugamba has skills. Mike Rose went to Hogwarts. So he says.
AND FINALLY… “I don’t believe we feel like we’re the team that’s gonna make the play. How do you solve that? You make the play!” – Dave Dickenson.
