Canadian Football League

[GordonH]

Heading into week 9 of the season (19 weeks to regular season).

Will this be a better week for eastern clubs:
Fri Aug 22 Montreal @ Winnipeg 5:30 pm on TSN
Sat Aug 23 Toronto @ Edmonton 1:00 pm on TSN
Sun Aug 24 Calgary @ Ottawa 12:00 pm on TSN
Sun Aug 24 Saskatchewan @ BC 4:00 pm on TSN

Maybe not

[my5cents]

I'm surprised there are no comments about the Sask RR new uniforms, worn last week for the first time.

I realize it's some type of promo for Reebok. But...

Lizard men from flat land.

Great marketing for the Lions "guaranteed win". They have a whole upper bowl they can easily give away if they (God forbid) did loose.

Not sure about Lulay, next few games will be like exhibition games for him (meaning that early in the season for him).

[HP]

The 'signature' uniform thing is weird to me. The Winnipeg uniforms look like they should be Toronto uniforms. I think what makes the Sask uniforms look strange is the green facemasks. I just saw Montreal's new uni's on FB. They look OK I guess. I think if I'm a player I don't like them for a few reasons (they look like they constrict and limit range of motion).

As for the guaranteed win - BC came out absolutely flat in the second half and Sunseri played extremely well for somebody with as limited experience as he has. I can't remember with certainty but I thought Sunseri played preseason in Sask in 2013 and I seem to remember thinking that that time he should have been playing. The Sask defense is very good as a unit and can be disruptive to timing plays.

Why on earth does BC go away from the run as soon as it looks hard? Sask has a mean front 4 but that's all the more reason to pound the ball up the middle... if you quit running the ball or if you try stringing the plays out to the sideline, you don't give those animals a reason to stay home to plug gaps so they feast on your QB (precisely what happened). BC has the right weapons to engineer some plays to stress those D-Linemen out... make the beasts run even if it means a few 2-and-outs to wear them down running. BC has the better secondary (still, today) so I'm also confused about why they were sitting in soft zone for so much of the second half. You KNOW with an unseasoned QB in the lineup that Sask is going to have to go to even more running and high percentage passing plays. Man up and confuse him...

Can we talk about Ottawa? What has to be done there? My opinion is that their defense is actually very adequate and well-coached. From behind my TV set it looks like the O-Line is letting them down in a big way and that on any given play, about 1/2 of their receivers take the play off. Burris is too old to be running like he used to and I've always thought that he doesn't have amazing downfield vision and his age precludes him from getting out of trouble on the run ... the play is either there at the snap or everything goes bad in a hurry. I think if I'm coaching Ottawa, I've giving Chevon Walker 15 carries per game at a minimum instead of using him to help contain opposing D-Lines (he's averaging a little better than 11 right now).

[GordonH]

It appears that most North American professional sport teams have a 3 uniform, now CFL calls them signature.

As for the guaranteed it was just a PR thing that appears to have cost Lions organization a bunch of free tickets.
Oh yes the billboard outside BC Place saying green is the new orange. This just good old trash talk which makes games just a little more interesting.

What I see being BC Lions biggest issue is getting a handle on the penalties, far to many really foolish ones. Mike Benevides and coaching staff have to address this right away. Plus the 2 injuries in yesterdays game, 1 is more costly then the other. Hopefully Solomon Elimimian injury is minor and won't be out to long if at all, as for Kevin Glenn with Travis ready this one is not as big an issue plus BC does not play again for 12 days.

Ottawa Redblacks is expansion team 8 games into there first season, give them time. Henry Burris is coming to end of his career at 39, the future of this club is in Thomas DeMarco & Danny O'Brien.

As for the other eastern teams if they done get going they will lose one of the play-off spot to western team in a crossover.

Over the weekend Henry Burris pasted Danny McManus to be third all time passing yards, now first & second place are very safe for now.
1) Anthony Calvillo 79,816 yards
2) Damon Allen 72,381 yards

[GordonH]

This past weekend marked halfway point of the season, week 10 of 20.

East total points add up to same as Calgary alone.

West is very much the dominating Conference this season, and most likely will be sending 4 place to play in eastern play-off. That will either be Winnipeg or BC, based on current standings.

Thursday will be start of NFL season.

[GordonH]

Tonight the worst team in the West vs Worst team overall in the CFL.

Of course I'm rooting for Lions

[my5cents]

Pretty bad. Neither team deserved to win.

[GordonH]

Pretty bad. Neither team deserved to win.

So very true, BC maybe without Lulay depending how bad the injury is.

[my5cents]

So very true, BC maybe without Lulay depending how bad the injury is.

I could be worse, we could be Lion's season ticket holders.

[Bpeep]

Not NFL but La Kiss seriously has the wrong name.
Leave it to Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley to name their team that.
Sounds like a girls team.
We'll see how the season goes. It probably is a girls team.

[GordonH]

Who ever ends up being in 3rd place in West will need to pull rabbit out of there hats to make it to the Grey Cup in Vancouver.
To beat both Calgary & Edmonton in western semi then the finals, I can't see it happening for either Riders (not without healthy Darian Durant) or BC Lions (even thought I've been life time fan of BC).

Best changes of making the Grey Cup outside of either Calgary or Edmonton is to crossover to the Eastern conference.

[GordonH]

BC Lions have an interesting QB in there practice roster, Jordan Rodgers his older brother is the QB for the Greenbay Packers.

[jaz301]

Who ever ends up being in 3rd place in West will need to pull rabbit out of there hats to make it to the Grey Cup in Vancouver.
To beat both Calgary & Edmonton in western semi then the finals, I can't see it happening for either Riders (not without healthy Darian Durant) or BC Lions (even thought I've been life time fan of BC).

Best changes of making the Grey Cup outside of either Calgary or Edmonton is to crossover to the Eastern conference.

3rd place team may be able to get through Edmonton, but would be a miracle if they got through Calgary also. Think it would be a smart move for BC to lose there last few games and get the crossover?

There has never been a west west or east east Grey Cup. Beginning of the year looked like it would be for sure (west vs west), but now with Montreal on a roll wouldn't be so easy now.

[my5cents]

3rd place team may be able to get through Edmonton, but would be a miracle if they got through Calgary also. Think it would be a smart move for BC to lose there last few games and get the crossover?

There has never been a west west or east east Grey Cup. Beginning of the year looked like it would be for sure (west vs west), but now with Montreal on a roll wouldn't be so easy now.

Calgary doesn't want what happened last year to happen this year. Injuries at the end of the regular season. That'd be the only chance for their opponents.

I see they sat out Cornish last night. One game injury list. I doubt there is much if anything wrong with him, just wanted to keep him healthy. If it had been a must win game he'd have been playing.

Did anyone else find it frustrating watching (and hearing) the Calgary / Saskachewan game that the crowd noise was just about drowning out the play by play ? Not the first time TSN has had the sound levels screwed up. If they can't do it correctly maybe the sound guy should phone his brother in law a few minutes into the game and get an idea what it's sounding like for the viewers at home.

I'm all for the "feeling of being at the game", but you shouldn't have to strain to hear play by play over the crowd.

[GordonH]

Crossover can only happen if 4th place has more points/wins in conference "A" then 3rd place in conference "B", a tie still goes to 3rd place team in "B".