Peter Power/CFL.ca
‘Don’t forget about us!’
Welcome to the life of the special teams units across all of football. We can break down how the Alouettes defence matches up against the Blue Bombers offence and vice versa for days.
But do I need to remind you how the 109th Grey Cup last year was decided? Yes, it was special teams.
There were two blocked kicks in the final two minutes to be exact for the Argonauts to potentially take control and then the final play of the game was Toronto getting a hand on a Marc Liegghio kick to win.
So how do the two teams in the 110th Grey Cup matchup on special teams?
110th GREY CUP
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» Head to Head: Who has the edge in the 110th Grey Cup
» Costabile: Five Alouettes to watch in the 110th Grey Cup
Well, let’s start off with the player on every team who scores the most points and can come down to the wire for a game winning field goal.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have the advantage, though may not be as large when you break down the numbers.
Sergio Castillo comes in with a 90% success rate in the regular season, though last week in the Western Final he was a bit off, missing two field goals. David Coté of the Alouettes has struggled this year with just 75%.
However, beyond 40 yards both kickers are no where near automatic. Coté is a touch below 66% with Castillo not much better with a 75% success rate from beyond 40 yards.
This is where it gets interesting for coaches facing a third-and-three at the opponent’s 42-yard line. Do you attempt a field goal? Do you go for it or punt, knowing if that ball goes into the end zone the team is getting the ball at the 40 yard line anyway?
But now, let’s dig into the punters.
First off, I’ll be fully transparent. I believe Joseph Zema is taking over as the most under-appreciated player in the Canadian Football League. Zema is third in punt distance, first in net, and second in punts inside the 10 yard line with only two singles given up all year.
Sorry, Richie Leone, you were not my All-Star punter in 2023, it was Joseph Zema (and when you do some of the adjusted numbers, Zema is even better).
So, you know where I’m giving the edge for punting.
Not to say Jamieson Sheahan was bad, most of the punters were all around the same ballpark, but Zema was the guy I appreciate.
But of course, you can’t have a great punter without a great coverage team to get down the field and clean up some tackles. This is where the advantage becomes even clearer for the Alouettes. They are No. 1 in the CFL in punt return average.
They’re the only team where the punt returner was kept to a sub 10-yard per return average and last week, they kept All-Star returner Javon Leake to an average bang on 10 yards.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers, meanwhile, were eighth in the league in opposition punt return average and last week gave up an average of 18 yards per punt return, including one over 20.
It’s those little field position battles that can make a big difference in what I believe will be a tight Grey Cup game again.
Which brings us to last but not least… the returners.
We’ve seen Rocket, Gizmo, and last year Janarion Grant take it to the house with electrifying returns in the Grey Cup.
Even look at last week’s Eastern Final when James Letcher Jr. took the kick return for a touchdown right when the Argonauts started to show signs of life on offence.
Letcher leads the league in punt return average and has already returned three kicks for touchdowns, including last week’s return, in limited duty after replacing Chandler Worthy.
The young man can flip the field for the Alouettes. But so too can All-Star returner Janarion Grant.
While the Bombers return man has missed time this season, Grant can still score on any given return. But there are times when Grant will do it differently than just run by people like Letcher.
Grant is such a determined return man that he’ll run through tackles and throw people off of him to gain some extra yards or break through a hole.
Overall, I give the ever so slight edge to the Montreal Alouettes due to their ability to contain some of the best return men in the league and punter Joseph Zema able to place the ball so well to pin the opponents back inside the 20 or even deeper.
The big question is if comes down to a clutch field goal.
Coté has missed some game winning kicks in his career, while Castillo has been there done that, going five for five in the 2021 Grey Cup on the way to the Bombers’ victory.
