1. BC Lions
A little tight in a home win against the Cats, but still getting it done. Lulay still the best quarterback in the league, with the ability to scramble for first downs. Defence not shabby.
2. Saskatchewan Rough Riders
Didn't expect to see them here, but there's always a few surprises in the CFL each year. Durant seems to have returned to being a decent quarterback, and holding a team to a single point is always impressive, even if it is the Edmonton Eskimos.
3. Montreal Alouettes
Smelled the first week, but came back strong against the Blue Bombers this week. Calvillo is still getting it done after all these years. Whittaker (especially) and Green are a potent offensive combination.
4. Toronto Argonauts
Looking better than the previous week and appear now to have a passing offence which they didn't really have last year. Boyd is a solid running back and Durie has turned out to be a good Canadian receiver. Ray still has some skills and is willing to take a hit to complete a pass. And not get injured.
5. Calgary Stampeders
Sure quarterback Drew Tate is now gone for who knows how long with a shoulder injury, but at least the Stampeders have Kevin Glenn as a capable backup. Glenn actually had decent stats against the Argos and the game was certainly tight at the end. Nik Lewis is still impressive as a receiver. If Glenn goes down though, things become problematic.
6. Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Sure they're 0 and 2, but they played a close game against the Lions in Vancouver and limited Geroy Simon. Run defence somewhat sucky. If Henry Burris could be slightly more consistent and get new running back Chevon (don't call me Siobhan) Walker more involved beyond one monster play per game, the Cats could have the best offence in the league.
7. Winnipeg Blue Bombers
What happened to the vaunted Bomber defence. It was sieve like versus the Alouettes. Pierce when he isn't injured is a quality quarterback and the Bombers have some decent receivers, but Winnipeg just isn't that great.
8. Edmonton Eskimos
Sure they have a win, but these power rankings are about what have you done for me lately, especially after only two games. Looks like trading away Ricky Ray and going with Steven Jyles wasn't that great an idea, although sometimes you have to have a rebuilding year.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Monday, July 9, 2012
Weird New Ticats Mascot
What is this weird new mascot the Ticats have? I'm not sure I'm a big fan of its spherical nature. I snapped this at the Ticats Argos preseason game. Does it have a name? Does it scare small children?
Saturday, July 7, 2012
CFL 2012 Predictions, Week 2, Part B
Calgary at Toronto,
The Stamps looked good at home against the Alouettes last week, with Drew Tate playing well at quarterback as did non-import running back Jon Cornish. The Argos didn't look great losing a close one to the Esks at Commonwealth, although they did have a raft of penalties which in theory is fixable. Ricky Ray was respectable with 29 for 39 passes for 298 yards with a TD and no picks. Owens caught 6 passes for 100 yards so at least the Argos look like they have some receivers this year.
This is a winnable game at home for Toronto, with the Stamps favoured by 3.5, but I'm going to go with the safe pick Calgary.
Stampeders 25, Suck People 20
Edmonton at Saskatchewan
I would not have suspected before the season started that the Riders would be favoured by 4.5 points at home. The Riders looked great last week against Hamilton, with Durant returning to pre 2011 form and Dressler have a fabulous day receiving, even if actually dropped a pass.
Edmonton was more meh beating the Argos at home. Jyles had only an OK game and Fred Stamps only had 21 receiving yards, but the Eskimos still won. I'll go with the Riders. Durant right now is a better quarterback.
Riders 30, Eskimos 27
The Stamps looked good at home against the Alouettes last week, with Drew Tate playing well at quarterback as did non-import running back Jon Cornish. The Argos didn't look great losing a close one to the Esks at Commonwealth, although they did have a raft of penalties which in theory is fixable. Ricky Ray was respectable with 29 for 39 passes for 298 yards with a TD and no picks. Owens caught 6 passes for 100 yards so at least the Argos look like they have some receivers this year.
This is a winnable game at home for Toronto, with the Stamps favoured by 3.5, but I'm going to go with the safe pick Calgary.
Stampeders 25, Suck People 20
Edmonton at Saskatchewan
I would not have suspected before the season started that the Riders would be favoured by 4.5 points at home. The Riders looked great last week against Hamilton, with Durant returning to pre 2011 form and Dressler have a fabulous day receiving, even if actually dropped a pass.
Edmonton was more meh beating the Argos at home. Jyles had only an OK game and Fred Stamps only had 21 receiving yards, but the Eskimos still won. I'll go with the Riders. Durant right now is a better quarterback.
Riders 30, Eskimos 27
Friday, July 6, 2012
Ticats at Lions Halftime Report
Well things were looking good until the Ticats managed to totally self-destruct at the end of the half. The defence has looked excellent thought, including the non-import rookie cornerback Bucknor who I predicted the Lions would go after and they did but unsuccessfully. Ryan Hinds may not have a starting job when he comes back from injury.
Burris sort of looked good early, then started sucking, enough so that Quinton Porter had to come in after a Burris pick. I assume Burris is coming back after halftime, especially considering Porter didn't do anything for the few plays he was in. Chevon Walker looked good on the long run for a TD. He has excellent speed.
Where was Fantuz? From what I saw all he did was drop one pass, that would have been called back on a penalty anyways.
I think the turning point was Stala unfortunately fumbling after gaining a first down. Stala has had a few catches at least and shows that he still knows where the first down yard marker is.
Rey Williams has looked good again on defence as has Markeith Knowlton back as a starter. The front four has looked good too. Too bad the offence's incompetence at the end of the half ruined a good defensive effort.
Burris sort of looked good early, then started sucking, enough so that Quinton Porter had to come in after a Burris pick. I assume Burris is coming back after halftime, especially considering Porter didn't do anything for the few plays he was in. Chevon Walker looked good on the long run for a TD. He has excellent speed.
Where was Fantuz? From what I saw all he did was drop one pass, that would have been called back on a penalty anyways.
I think the turning point was Stala unfortunately fumbling after gaining a first down. Stala has had a few catches at least and shows that he still knows where the first down yard marker is.
Rey Williams has looked good again on defence as has Markeith Knowlton back as a starter. The front four has looked good too. Too bad the offence's incompetence at the end of the half ruined a good defensive effort.
Hamilton at BC, Quick Preview
A few changes from last week's Ticat lineup. Hage is in on the offensive line. On the lineup chart, the receivers are the same as last week and Walker is listed over Cobourne as the running back. Walker had a decent week last week, with seven runs for 132 yards and a TD and three catches for 36 yards. Williams had a great game with nine catches for 109 yards.
Changes on the defensive line. Boudreaux is gone as a defensive end, McElveen moves from the inside to one of the end spots with Crable back as the other end. Rose is still listed as starting in the middle with Brown elevated to starter as well. The line got OK pressure last week, but Durant seemed to slip away multiple times when a sack would have really helped. Lions quarterback Lulay isn't quite as elusive as Durant (although he certainly isn't Danny Mac running either), but is a better passer.
For the linebackers, import Knowlton is back with non-import Eiben as a reserve. Williams had a monster game last week with nine tackles and one sack.
The secondary is the same, with non-import rookie Bucknor still one of the corners. Will BC go after him? Maybe.
Bartel and Congi are back as punter and kicker. Conger was three for three, but Bartel's punting average was only 34.4 yards, which isn't very good.
Lulay didn't have a great week passing against the Bombers last week, going 17 for 24 for 33 yards with a TD and one pick. He did run for 44 yards on 8 attempts with 2 TDs. That will be problematic on the Cats. Hopefully the linebackers will do something about that. Non-import Harris had a big day with 8 runs for 44 yards combined with 7 reception for 69 yards. Simon had yet another good day in the CFL, setting the receiving record with five catches for 105 yards.
Cats are in tough and will need some breaks to go their way (ie turnovers).
Changes on the defensive line. Boudreaux is gone as a defensive end, McElveen moves from the inside to one of the end spots with Crable back as the other end. Rose is still listed as starting in the middle with Brown elevated to starter as well. The line got OK pressure last week, but Durant seemed to slip away multiple times when a sack would have really helped. Lions quarterback Lulay isn't quite as elusive as Durant (although he certainly isn't Danny Mac running either), but is a better passer.
For the linebackers, import Knowlton is back with non-import Eiben as a reserve. Williams had a monster game last week with nine tackles and one sack.
The secondary is the same, with non-import rookie Bucknor still one of the corners. Will BC go after him? Maybe.
Bartel and Congi are back as punter and kicker. Conger was three for three, but Bartel's punting average was only 34.4 yards, which isn't very good.
Lulay didn't have a great week passing against the Bombers last week, going 17 for 24 for 33 yards with a TD and one pick. He did run for 44 yards on 8 attempts with 2 TDs. That will be problematic on the Cats. Hopefully the linebackers will do something about that. Non-import Harris had a big day with 8 runs for 44 yards combined with 7 reception for 69 yards. Simon had yet another good day in the CFL, setting the receiving record with five catches for 105 yards.
Cats are in tough and will need some breaks to go their way (ie turnovers).
CFL 2012 Predictions, Week 2, Part A
Winnipeg at Montreal
Battle of the winless teams! Last I checked, the Alouettes are favoured by 7 at home, which seems a bit large considered they got their asses handed to them in Calgary last week. I assume Buck Pierce isn't playing for the Bombers this week due to yet another injury. Alex Brink isn't bad, but he isn't Anthony Calvillo.
The Bomber defence is still decent and looked OK against BC last week. The Alouette defence is rebuilding. I'll take Montreal, but they won't make the spread.
Alouettes 25, Bombers 20
Hamilton at BC
Oh Hamilton. Going into the season, things seemed so positive. Now you're 0 and 1 and heading into Vancouver as 8 point underdogs. The Cats looked OK in the first half last week and then as the game got away from them looked worse and worse versus the Riders. BC looked good last week from the parts I watched. Hamilton has bizarrely had success playing on the west coast the past few years, but I wouldn't bet on it in this case.
Adding veteran non-import receiver Dave Stala to the starting lineup and removing veteran non-import linebacker Kevin Eiben and replacing him with import Markeith Knowlton could help, but it probably won't be enough. Expect it to be close at the half and then the Lions to pull away.
Pot People 35, Ticats 21
Battle of the winless teams! Last I checked, the Alouettes are favoured by 7 at home, which seems a bit large considered they got their asses handed to them in Calgary last week. I assume Buck Pierce isn't playing for the Bombers this week due to yet another injury. Alex Brink isn't bad, but he isn't Anthony Calvillo.
The Bomber defence is still decent and looked OK against BC last week. The Alouette defence is rebuilding. I'll take Montreal, but they won't make the spread.
Alouettes 25, Bombers 20
Hamilton at BC
Oh Hamilton. Going into the season, things seemed so positive. Now you're 0 and 1 and heading into Vancouver as 8 point underdogs. The Cats looked OK in the first half last week and then as the game got away from them looked worse and worse versus the Riders. BC looked good last week from the parts I watched. Hamilton has bizarrely had success playing on the west coast the past few years, but I wouldn't bet on it in this case.
Adding veteran non-import receiver Dave Stala to the starting lineup and removing veteran non-import linebacker Kevin Eiben and replacing him with import Markeith Knowlton could help, but it probably won't be enough. Expect it to be close at the half and then the Lions to pull away.
Pot People 35, Ticats 21
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
CFL Week 1, 2012 Power Rankings
1. BC Lions
Beat the Bombers handily at home, despite the Winnipeggers losing Buck Pierce in the first half (shocking!). The Bombers still have a good defence though and the Lions were able to score 33 against them.
2. Calgary Stampeders
Drew Tate is for real apparently. I doubted it going into the season, but there you go. Alouettes quarterback Anthony Calvillo wasn't just his usual self. I'm not sure if that's a one game thing or not, but the Montreal offense was quite meh in Calgary. Their defence wasn't so hot either.
3. Saskatchewan Roughriders
Darian Durant seems to have rebounded from his suckage as the Riders shocked the Ticats at home (with the help of a Dressler reception that actually hit the ground, but I digress). Both offense and defence look good and Dressler was a force. Durant received some pressure, but managed to scramble away multiple times. Four sacks. I don't know if this will continue, but the Riders looked good at Ivor Wynne.
4. Edmonton Eskimos
Beat the Argos at home by a small margin, although the Argos did have about a billion penalties. Steven Jyles played OK, better than I thought he would, but nothing to write home about. Defence not bad. Still have Fred Stamps.
5. Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Sure they lost by a good number of points to the Lions, but it was on the road and BC is the class of the league. The Bombers still have a good defence. Buck Pierce still gets injured with stunning regularity. Not much more to say.
6. Toronto Argonauts
Lots of penalties, but didn't lose by much. Receiving lots of penalties in the first game is fixable. Ray didn't look bad. Defence still decent.
7. Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Played OK in the first half. Result may have been different if Dressler incompletion actually detected by refs or the Cats actually challenged. Team seemed to give up in second half. Burris mediocre. Front four not great, only registering a sack, despite Durant hanging on to the ball a lot. Ratio problems.
8. Montreal Alouettes
Is this the beginning of the end for Calvillo? How bad is the Alouette offense? The Alouettes probably won't stay here, but they didn't look good in week one.
Beat the Bombers handily at home, despite the Winnipeggers losing Buck Pierce in the first half (shocking!). The Bombers still have a good defence though and the Lions were able to score 33 against them.
2. Calgary Stampeders
Drew Tate is for real apparently. I doubted it going into the season, but there you go. Alouettes quarterback Anthony Calvillo wasn't just his usual self. I'm not sure if that's a one game thing or not, but the Montreal offense was quite meh in Calgary. Their defence wasn't so hot either.
3. Saskatchewan Roughriders
Darian Durant seems to have rebounded from his suckage as the Riders shocked the Ticats at home (with the help of a Dressler reception that actually hit the ground, but I digress). Both offense and defence look good and Dressler was a force. Durant received some pressure, but managed to scramble away multiple times. Four sacks. I don't know if this will continue, but the Riders looked good at Ivor Wynne.
4. Edmonton Eskimos
Beat the Argos at home by a small margin, although the Argos did have about a billion penalties. Steven Jyles played OK, better than I thought he would, but nothing to write home about. Defence not bad. Still have Fred Stamps.
5. Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Sure they lost by a good number of points to the Lions, but it was on the road and BC is the class of the league. The Bombers still have a good defence. Buck Pierce still gets injured with stunning regularity. Not much more to say.
6. Toronto Argonauts
Lots of penalties, but didn't lose by much. Receiving lots of penalties in the first game is fixable. Ray didn't look bad. Defence still decent.
7. Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Played OK in the first half. Result may have been different if Dressler incompletion actually detected by refs or the Cats actually challenged. Team seemed to give up in second half. Burris mediocre. Front four not great, only registering a sack, despite Durant hanging on to the ball a lot. Ratio problems.
8. Montreal Alouettes
Is this the beginning of the end for Calvillo? How bad is the Alouette offense? The Alouettes probably won't stay here, but they didn't look good in week one.
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