Leos/Als Post Game Thoughts

[pennw]

Anyone notice a player on the sideline wearing the #1 jersey? I thought I saw that a few times but could not figure out who it was .

Adekolu's #83 jersey ripped or became damaged in some way so the equipment guys took it to the locker room and gave him a spare jersey, which happened to be #1.

Thanks BCfan , always the guy in the know.

[cromartie]

On Ianuzzi, let's not kid ourselves, he has the position he has because of his passport. Jackson was better, Thelwell before him was better, heck, I'm still of the opinion that, given the opportunity, which he wasn't, SJ Haidara would have been better.

But in light of the last three offensive schemes, the outside wide receiver position isn't really a priority so he is good enough to help out with the ratio and isn't expensive, so it is what it is.

As for Leone, at this point he too is what he is; a streaky field goal kicker who remains a game changer when it counts as it relates to field position, and that trade off manifests itself with significant improvements to our special teams and after too many years of Chuck McMann I'll willingly make that trade off. For now.

[Alputt]

I waded in there with an "Ianuzzi Sucks" comment and it seems to have got some feedback. I LIKE Ianuzzi, I have been rooting for him to have a breakout year for a long time, it's not surprising he gets overshadowed by more "go to" receivers in the scheme... I just haven't seen him to make that much of a difference even though I think it would be great if he did.

I agree his passport is key to his longevity here, and he is decent at returning kicks. Just don't see a scheme where he gets a whole lot of balls thrown his way and he deserves to be a Lion he is just a sort of a middling National one...

[CardiacKid]

I for one would like to see Adekolu get an opportunity for some serious game time. I think I have seen a few posters express the same sentiment.

Of course with the way the receiving corps is playing, any opportunity that comes knocking for current backups or PR guys will likely come due to injury to our regulars. Not really something I wish for but still wishing Adekolu gets a chance all the same. When he has played, the guy has shown some really enticing flashes of talent and a real hunger for the ball with some hard fought catches in preseason action. Unfortunately he hasn't been targeted very often so a very small sample but an intriguing talent all the same.

We might be spoiled for choice in the future when it comes to young Canadian receivers with Shaq Johnson's speed and Blazsko's size. Hopefully their time on the PR is aiding their development.

[Blitz]

On Ianuzzi, let's not kid ourselves, he has the position he has because of his passport. Jackson was better, Thelwell before him was better, heck, I'm still of the opinion that, given the opportunity, which he wasn't, SJ Haidara would have been better.

But in light of the last three offensive schemes, the outside wide receiver position isn't really a priority so he is good enough to help out with the ratio and isn't expensive, so it is what it is.

As for Leone, at this point he too is what he is; a streaky field goal kicker who remains a game changer when it counts as it relates to field position, and that trade off manifests itself with significant improvements to our special teams and after too many years of Chuck McMann I'll willingly make that trade off. For now.

I totally agree with you Cromartie that Jackson was better than Iannuzzi and should have been playing ahead of Iannuzzi when he was here, Thelwell was better, etc.etc.

The pocket passing spread offence tends to be a slot back passing offence, as well as an offence that throws much more to the boundary wide receiver. Howeever, I really think the reason that we don't throw much to the field wide receiver is more than just scheme. We were in the spread offence when Thelwell played that spot and we also threw more to Jackson when he came in at that spot as a rotational receiver, during the time that Iannuzzi was injured.

Just watch the first pass of the 2011 Grey Cup game as Lulay hits Paris Jackson, over the middle, playing for an injured Iannuzzi. Then watch Paris Jackson outjump a defender on a deep ball from Lulay to set up our second touchdown of that game. His reward: the bench again next season for Iannuzzi.

for one would like to see Adekolu get an opportunity for some serious game time. I think I have seen a few posters express the same sentiment.

Of course with the way the receiving corps is playing, any opportunity that comes knocking for current backups or PR guys will likely come due to injury to our regulars. Not really something I wish for but still wishing Adekolu gets a chance all the same. When he has played, the guy has shown some really enticing flashes of talent and a real hunger for the ball with some hard fought catches in preseason action. Unfortunately he hasn't been targeted very often so a very small sample but an intriguing talent all the same.

We might be spoiled for choice in the future when it comes to young Canadian receivers with Shaq Johnson's speed and Blazsko's size. Hopefully their time on the PR is aiding their development. Cardiac Kid

Even if our Leos are stuck on Iannuzzi as the field wide receiver, there are good reasons to give Adekolu some game reps. First of all, our Leos philosophy is to get others playing time. We rotate in all of our defensive line. We insert Lokombo.Parker and Thompson on defense in packages. We use our extra offensive linemen in jumbo packages and have also used two as starters. We play Lumbala and also insert Shaq Murray Lawrence as a rotational back in some games.

By rotating in Adekolu it would give him some game reps. If Gore or Iannuzzi was injured he would be' next man up' while having little game experience. It would also keep Adekolu more motivated. Heck, use him for a couple of rep to give Gore or Iannuzzi a breather.

We're using Iannuzzi more as a punt returner so that would also be a reason to give Adekolu some reps. Iannuzzi should also be used on the kick return team for Shaq. He is a much better return man.

agree with you on Ianuzzi vs Shaq.
As far as our RB situation is concerned , the way we are doing it now vs last year with Harris , I think we are way better off . No knock on Harris' ability but the guys we have now are IMO just as good or better . But the real advantage is as you say in the fact that with Harris there is a problem should he get injured . But that is the lesser of two situations where we are hugely advantaged and that is in the attitude factor. Harris played very hard and all but his opinion of himself and his role left a lot to be desired , he pouted when evr things did not go well and had a me-first attitude that came through even to the point of many times venting in the media against the team . That was inexcusable. The two we got now, are so far superior in that regard , that now I'm glad Harris is gone seeing how much better our situation is . penw

I have very mixed feelings with regard to Andrew Harris penw. From a performance perspective, he brought two big advantages. Firstly, he is an excellent receiver out of the backfield and a decent runner (we often did not open holes for him) and his combined yards for Winnipeg are better than the combined yards for both of our tailbacks. With Harris as our tailback, we could have played a fourth International receiver.

I have never bought into the "What if Harris got injured" scenario. If he got injured, we would have to use an International backup tailback and insert a National receiver instead for that circumstance. Winnipeg isn't worried about it nor has Calgary ever worried about it with Cornish or Messam now as their tailback. They like the two advantages a quality National tailback brings.

Howver, I agree penw that Harris attitude was a problem. Said so in 2013 and was in the minority on Lionbackers. Most liked Harris speaking out publically. He complained about his use even though our offence mostly revolved around him. I believed it would hurt him if he wanted to continue to be a Leo and eventually it did.

The two International back system this season has worked well for us with Jeremiah Johnson and Anthony Allen, two quality tailbacks with different styles who both have the talent to be starters. It's kept them motivated and fresh. However, it may not be a scenario that we can always have in the longer term future - two high quality International tailbacks.