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Sutureself wrote:I'm a Rider fan. I'm new to Lionbackers; not here to troll, just figured I'd add my two cents about Anthony Allen since I watched him play every game the past two years.
Fumbling has been a major issue both years. Even in 2014 when he finished 2nd in the league in rushing, he got benched in favour of Will Ford and Hugh Charles. Chamblin was way too quick with the hook and may have destroyed his confidence, but it was still a legit problem. Allen is an upright runner, and he got stripped fairly often trying to churn ahead for extra yards. 4 fumbles in 2014, and 4 fumbles last year in limited touches.
Allen is amazing at yards after contract, consistently turning a 3 yard run into a 6 or 7 yard run. But he has bad hands, drops passes out of the backfield, not really a big play threat, doesn't make guys miss. A big reason he fell out of favour last year was because the Riders' ratio was a mess, so we played Messam to keep an extra international receiver in. Plus our defense was awful so we were playing from behind all the time, and Messam was a better receiver. If Allen can overcome his fumbling issue, he could be a great back for you guys since you have an excellent defense and play more of a ball-control offense. He's the type of guy where you look down at the scoresheet and he put up 13 carries for 80 yards, without breaking a single run longer than 10.
Sutureself wrote:I'm a Rider fan. I'm new to Lionbackers; not here to troll, just figured I'd add my two cents about Anthony Allen since I watched him play every game the past two years.
Fumbling has been a major issue both years. Even in 2014 when he finished 2nd in the league in rushing, he got benched in favour of Will Ford and Hugh Charles. Chamblin was way too quick with the hook and may have destroyed his confidence, but it was still a legit problem. Allen is an upright runner, and he got stripped fairly often trying to churn ahead for extra yards. 4 fumbles in 2014, and 4 fumbles last year in limited touches.
Allen is amazing at yards after contract, consistently turning a 3 yard run into a 6 or 7 yard run. But he has bad hands, drops passes out of the backfield, not really a big play threat, doesn't make guys miss. A big reason he fell out of favour last year was because the Riders' ratio was a mess, so we played Messam to keep an extra international receiver in. Plus our defense was awful so we were playing from behind all the time, and Messam was a better receiver. If Allen can overcome his fumbling issue, he could be a great back for you guys since you have an excellent defense and play more of a ball-control offense. He's the type of guy where you look down at the scoresheet and he put up 13 carries for 80 yards, without breaking a single run longer than 10.
Thanks. I appreciate your insights. Allen always struck me as a great power back when he was with the Riders. He's tough to stop between the tackles and makes yards after contact. He may be just what the Lions need behind their big O-line to grind out yards, move the chains and run the clock, keeping the ball out of Ricky Ray's hands.
Blitz wrote:
Looks like our Leos will likely go with Anthony Allen for the game against Toronto. At 228 pounds he is definitely a power back who prefers a smash mouth style of running. The power back went out of vogue when the spread formation came into vogue. Spread offences prefer the cut back style of back who can hit a hole quickly and then beat a linebacker with a move.
Stubler has had some very good defenses over his coaching career. He had excellent defenses in Toronto during his first stint there and his 2012 defense in B.C. led the CFL in most categories and set many records. Hufnagel quickly snapped him up when Wally let him go in B.C. and Dickenson wanted to keep him as his DC. Stublers' defense had an excellent second half in their last victory and should be improving. The addition of Lemon, who is familiar with Stubler's defensive style, should also help and make it more difficult to play against.
The Power Rankings just came out and our Leos are rated fourth, behind Ottawa, Edmonton, and Calgary. Certainly Mike Benevedes defense had better play much better in Edmonton than their first game, when they gave up more than 500 yards.
Brooks didn't practice on Monday but hopefully he will be ready to go by Thursday. He is such a key to our defense.
If Ricky Ray is on his game, he will test our defence. Quick reads. Timely release. Uses the whole field. We need to pressure him.
Stubler's defence will no doubt play better than they have been.
Good test for us. Be interesting to see how Allen does carrying the rock behind our hogs.
In Edmonton ... Benny is a great guy. Not so sure he is a great DC. He used to talk about aggressive defence, but it seems to me we didn't see that from him as DC.
As we noted re Kent Austin, Blitz, coaching is not for the faint of heart. A tough gig. Lots of guys eat too much. Junk food also.
The Argos should have made the transition to Trevor Harris at quarterback this season. In 6 quarters of football so far this season Harris has completed 37 of 45 passes for a 15 yd. pass completion average and he has a 6-0 touchdown to interception ratio.
Last year, Harris led the league with 33 passing touchdowns and finished third with 4,354 passing yards, even though Ricky Ray replaced him at the end of the 2015 season. As much as I like Jennings, I sure would not have been upset if we had bid for Harris in free agency.
Ricky Ray has done it all and he has seen it all but I wonder if his best days are behind him now. Of course that could turn out to be a dangerous thing to say. Ray is difficult to sack, always knows where his dump off receivers are, and he has an accurate arm. The key thing is to get pressure on him as you note WCJ, and force him to throw underneath.
Ray moved Toronto's offence to two opening quarter touchdown in his last game. Our defense can't allow that to happen. We play much better when our offence is balanced, using both the run and the pass. When we do that our big offensive line can wear down a defensive line the longer the game is being played.
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
Took in about 20 minutes of today's final practice in a steady rainfall before Thursday's game. Johnson and Brooks did not participate and were not in pads. Instead they did some light running and turning under the direction of Chris Boyko. Although high ankle sprains can be tricky especially for RBs, both look like a good bet for the Riders 10 days from now. Man, Johnson is a load even without pads. You can see why he would be tough to bring down.
As discussed earlier, Anthony Allen and Bryant Turner were taking first team reps in their place. Chris Rainey was handling all kick returns and looks good to go.
Sutureself wrote:
What is your opinion of Allen as a blocker?
He's a big physical guy, seemed to make the right reads. I don't remember him missing many blocks. He just struggled at times last year with chipping and then rolling out into the flat. He was better as a receiver in 2014 though. Seemed like last year, when he knew he wasn't going to get in for many plays, he'd get antsy and try to turn and run with the ball before he secured the pass, and had some drive-killing drops when he was wide open. I think he thrives as a workhorse, so if he's getting the majority of the reps I think he'll do well.
DanoT wrote:To have new to the Lions vets like Allen and Turner as backups to come in for injured players...well, Wally really did have an outstanding off season.
No question that these two players show the depth we have this season. Allen, while a different style of running back than Johnson has had previous CFL success. He's the type of back that usually plays at his best with a lot of carries, as noted.
Bryant Turner Jr. played 5 seasons with Winnipeg. While his best seasons were in 2012 and 2013, he is 28 years old, and once again we have solid experience coming in, should he be needed. We haven't had this kind of depth in our recent past.
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
Blitz wrote:
Looks like our Leos will likely go with Anthony Allen for the game against Toronto. At 228 pounds he is definitely a power back who prefers a smash mouth style of running. The power back went out of vogue when the spread formation came into vogue. Spread offences prefer the cut back style of back who can hit a hole quickly and then beat a linebacker with a move.
Stubler has had some very good defenses over his coaching career. He had excellent defenses in Toronto during his first stint there and his 2012 defense in B.C. led the CFL in most categories and set many records. Hufnagel quickly snapped him up when Wally let him go in B.C. and Dickenson wanted to keep him as his DC. Stublers' defense had an excellent second half in their last victory and should be improving. The addition of Lemon, who is familiar with Stubler's defensive style, should also help and make it more difficult to play against.
The Power Rankings just came out and our Leos are rated fourth, behind Ottawa, Edmonton, and Calgary. Certainly Mike Benevedes defense had better play much better in Edmonton than their first game, when they gave up more than 500 yards.
Brooks didn't practice on Monday but hopefully he will be ready to go by Thursday. He is such a key to our defense.
If Ricky Ray is on his game, he will test our defence. Quick reads. Timely release. Uses the whole field. We need to pressure him.
Stubler's defence will no doubt play better than they have been.
Good test for us. Be interesting to see how Allen does carrying the rock behind our hogs.
In Edmonton ... Benny is a great guy. Not so sure he is a great DC. He used to talk about aggressive defence, but it seems to me we didn't see that from him as DC.
As we noted re Kent Austin, Blitz, coaching is not for the faint of heart. A tough gig. Lots of guys eat too much. Junk food also.
Mike Benevides was our DC in 2011 . Our Defence was the top ranked defence that year and we did win the Grey Cup with Benny as our DC . That was the last time he was a DC , the next year he was our HC . His gig now in Edmonton , is his next DC job. So he has had some success at DC . We will see how he does in his return to Edmonton .
Blitz wrote:
Looks like our Leos will likely go with Anthony Allen for the game against Toronto. At 228 pounds he is definitely a power back who prefers a smash mouth style of running. The power back went out of vogue when the spread formation came into vogue. Spread offences prefer the cut back style of back who can hit a hole quickly and then beat a linebacker with a move.
Stubler has had some very good defenses over his coaching career. He had excellent defenses in Toronto during his first stint there and his 2012 defense in B.C. led the CFL in most categories and set many records. Hufnagel quickly snapped him up when Wally let him go in B.C. and Dickenson wanted to keep him as his DC. Stublers' defense had an excellent second half in their last victory and should be improving. The addition of Lemon, who is familiar with Stubler's defensive style, should also help and make it more difficult to play against.
The Power Rankings just came out and our Leos are rated fourth, behind Ottawa, Edmonton, and Calgary. Certainly Mike Benevedes defense had better play much better in Edmonton than their first game, when they gave up more than 500 yards.
Brooks didn't practice on Monday but hopefully he will be ready to go by Thursday. He is such a key to our defense.
If Ricky Ray is on his game, he will test our defence. Quick reads. Timely release. Uses the whole field. We need to pressure him.
Stubler's defence will no doubt play better than they have been.
Good test for us. Be interesting to see how Allen does carrying the rock behind our hogs.
In Edmonton ... Benny is a great guy. Not so sure he is a great DC. He used to talk about aggressive defence, but it seems to me we didn't see that from him as DC.
As we noted re Kent Austin, Blitz, coaching is not for the faint of heart. A tough gig. Lots of guys eat too much. Junk food also.
Mike Benevides was our DC in 2011 . Our Defence was the top ranked defence that year and we did win the Grey Cup with Benny as our DC . That was the last time he was a DC , the next year he was our HC . His gig now in Edmonton , is his next DC job. So he has had some success at DC . We will see how he does in his return to Edmonton .
In Edmonton ... Benny is a great guy. Not so sure he is a great DC. He used to talk about aggressive defence, but it seems to me we didn't see that from him as DC. -- WestCoastJoe
Just looking at the points for and against, one can see that we did have a very effective defence in 2011, with the fewest points allowed in the league. My recollection of his time here was different.
In 2008, 2009 and 2010, our defensive points allowed were more middling. #4 in 2008. Tied at #5 in 2009. #4 in 2010.
Great DC? Aggressive defence? Still not so sure about that. We will see how his defence stacks up this year. All the win/loss results, statistics, fan reactions and perceptions go with the territory of pro sports coaching. I wish Benny all the good.
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John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.
Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.
Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
SammyGreene wrote:Took in about 20 minutes of today's final practice in a steady rainfall before Thursday's game. Johnson and Brooks did not participate and were not in pads. Instead they did some light running and turning under the direction of Chris Boyko. Although high ankle sprains can be tricky especially for RBs, both look like a good bet for the Riders 10 days from now. Man, Johnson is a load even without pads. You can see why he would be tough to bring down.
As discussed earlier, Anthony Allen and Bryant Turner were taking first team reps in their place. Chris Rainey was handling all kick returns and looks good to go.
I'll be interested in seeing Turner in action if he dresses. In person, he does not look like a defensive lineman, certainly not a defensive tackle. He's listed as 6 ft. 2, 279 pounds, but looks much lighter. The Lions dressed four defensive ends and two tackles in the first two games of the season with Brooks in the lineup. I'd like to see a bigger body in the rotation.
They mentioned on 3rd Down Radio tonight Charles Valliancourt did not practice today as he went through concussion protocol after having dizziness on Monday. He is questionable for Thursday with Fabian stepping if needed. Three starters down who have made significant contributions so far would be that much greater of a concern even with solid replacements available.
As expected, the Lions have made three big roster moves for the Argo game due to injuries. RB Jermiah Johnson, RG Charles Vaillancourt and DT Mic'hael Brooks have been placed on the one-game injured list. Anthony Allen is activated from the injured list and starts at running back, Kirby Fabien starts at right guard (with Jas Dhillon added to the roster as backup) and Bryant Turner is activated from the injured list and starts at DT for Brooks. There are no other changes to the roster or depth chart. Chris Rainey is expected to be the primary kick returner.
B.C.FAN wrote:As expected, the Lions have made three big roster moves for the Argo game due to injuries. RB Jermiah Johnson, RG Charles Vaillancourt and DT Mic'hael Brooks have been placed on the one-game injured list. Anthony Allen is activated from the injured list and starts at running back, Kirby Fabien starts at right guard (with Jas Dhillon added to the roster as backup) and Bryant Turner is activated from the injured list and starts at DT for Brooks. There are no other changes to the roster or depth chart. Chris Rainey is expected to be the primary kick returner.
These are three key starters that will be missing from our lineup B.C. Fan.
The positives from this scenario is that Fabian was a starter for us last season, Allen has been a starter and a solid tailback when he played for the Riders and Bryant Turner was a 5 year starter in Winnipeg.
The player that we will probably miss the most if Brooks. However, Johnson has had a very good start to the season and Vaillancourt was so good in training camp that he has started right out of the gate in his rookie season.
Ryan Phillips is now our B.C. Lions interception yardage record holder. His interception last game broke Larry Crawford's interception yardage record. Phillips is now only 4 pick offs away from becoming our B.C. Lions interception record holder.
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
One thing I've noticed and am going to watch more conscientiously in this game against the Argos is the various defensive packages our Lions are using this season.
On the defensive line, with Bryant Turner Junior starting his first game is that our depth rotation at defensive tackle will be Westerman, Turner, and Forde inside. On the outside It will be Roh/Menard at one defensive end spot and Bazzie, Allen, and Palacio at the wide side rush end spot, if all three dress. Both Menard and Allen can also shift inside.
We'll also get to see the linebacker packages that are being used, which can utilize Eliminian, Bighill, Purifoy, Lokombo, Clarke and even Arakgi.
I really haven't watched the defensive backfield packages and want to see if we are using other defensive backs other than our staring five package of Yell, Lee, Edem, Phillips, and Stewart.
Our defense is different this season and being able to determine in more detail what scheme changes we've made for 2016 will be interesting.
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
As we prepare for our game tonite against the Argos, our 2-0 start has provided a lot of hope for this season. If we were 0-2 the questions that were asked during the off-season would be prominent Instead its been good news stories about Wally's return, the play of our defense, the shining start of Gore, and the poise of Jennings. But mostly the story has been about Buono so far, with our unexpected excellent start out of the game.
Of course a 2-0 start does not necessarily mean a successful season. We started 11-1 in 2005 but lost 6 of our last 7 games, including the the WDF. In 2011, we were 1-6 and then went 12-1 to win the Grey Cup.
A big question of the off-season was whether Buono, at 66 years old, was the answer to turn our ailing Leos around. Some focused on Buono's last season, in 2011, with a Grey Cup win, as proof that our Leos needed his stature to return to the 'good old days'. Others noted that Buono's Leos had declined each season after 2007, that there were a lot of calls for Buono to step down in 2010 and early 2011, and the magical 2011 season was an aberration.
Another focus was on Buono's choices as assistants. He went into this 2016 season remaining loyal to DC Mark Washington. Our defense finished 6th in the CFL in 2015 and had experienced struggles during Washington's coordination. George Cortez quit our Leos and Khari Jones, demoted to receivers coach in 2015, and only retained due to salary considerations, was given the keys back to our offence, in spite his struggles in 2014. Dan Darazio, whose record as an offensive line coach in B.C. was inconsistent, while giving up the most sacks in the CFL during his first long tenure here, was hired, after being let go in Riderville. Linebacker coach Johnny Holland left for the NFL and his departure was considered a real loss. Chuck McMann faded into the sunset, providing new hope for special teams play but there was not a lot of excitement regarding our assistant coaching staff as we entered 2016.
Thirdly, we went into the 2016 season determined to be bigger and stronger on the offensive line. However, with a new center in Cody Husband (pushing O'Neil to a depth postion), a new right guard in Vaillencourt, two lineman playing different spots (Steward to guard and Olafioye to left tackle) and the injury to Adcock (a new rookie right tackle in Johnson) our offensive line was anticipated to be a work in progress to begin the season as offensive lines take time to gel.
Another question was how would our offence and our team be impacted by the departure of Andrew Harris, who we did not choose to sign again. Would we miss the dual threat of Harris, who had been a major weapon in our passing attack during his time in B.C. as a starting tailback. Would Johnson or Allen get the job done. Had Harris been a distraction and a chemistry problem that had been a negative?
Well, at least early this season, there has been a positive response to those questions.
Wally's return to the sidelines so far has been a positive. There is an accountability, a standard. a fear, and a confidence that was needed. Buono also did the unexpected and went out and signed a lot of free agents....an area of struggle in the past. Players like Mike Edem, Brandon Stewart, Jerimiah Johnson, and Nick Moore have made an immediate impact. O'Neil, Bryant Turner Jr., Anthony Allen, and Price have brought needed experienced depth.
The draft brought us a starter in Vaillancourt, who has been impressive in his first two games before missing this game due to the concussion protocol. Kirby Fabian, an experienced starter, is backing him up and starts against the Argos.
The off-season also brought us a new starter in nickel back Purifoy, who has looked very good as a rookie playing a challenging spot.
But what has impressed so far has been the work of Washington, Jones, and Dorazio. Washington has brought in a different defensive system, using a variety of packages, reminiscent of Dave Ritchie using different personell packages. Khari Jones has utilized a different style of offence than he did in 2014, where he mostly went with the five pack or empty backfield sets. This season he has used a lot of two back and tight end packages, especially on first down. Darazio, working with an offensive line with little experience in the positions they are playing, has done a good job of getting his unit to gel enough to lead the CFL in rushing and adequately protecting the quarterback outside of the first half of our first game.
Jennings has played like a quarterback who has had less than half a season in the starters role while possessing poise, talent, a quick release, and a very good arm. He has been inconsistent, taken chances with too many passes, but he has also shown pois under pressure, aggressiveness, confidence in himself, and made some excellent throws.
How this B.C. Lions team will perform over the length of an 18 game schedule is still to be determined. Injuries are always a factor over a long season. Some teams adjust better than others over a long schedule. How one finishes a season is more important than how one starts a season - 2011 showed us that.
But there is no question that a positive start to this season was very important for our B.C. Lions. Our vets are in a positive frame of mind, there is discipline and expectation, and a mind set that we can be a very good team.
Lets hope that we can make it 3-0 tonite.
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
