Redblacks at Lions Oct. 7, 2017
Posted: Fri Oct 06, 2017 9:13 am
The Lions badly need a win this week to break their slump and keep their playoff hopes alive. A win would improve their record to 7-7 and could tie Edmonton or Saskatchewan in the standings if either of those teams loses.
Coming off a bye week, the Lions have made no changes to their starting lineup. The only roster moves are the addition of Charles Vaillancourt from the injured list as a backup O-lineman and Josh Shirley from the practice roster as a backup defensive end, replacing Ken Boatright, who was released. Andrew Jones moves to the 1-game injured list.
The coaching staff has talked about changing practice routines and tweaking the offence and defence. We'll see what they have in store. The key to the game will be the play of Jonathon Jennings, whose inconsistencies this year have been well documented. Jennings' quarterback rating of 55.4 is the lowest of the league's nine regular starting QBs. Only Drew Willy in Montreal at 49.5 is lower among current starters. Travis Lulay's rating of 94.8 is higher than any current or previous starter. Jennings played well against Hamilton but the Lions scored only one touchdown on four trips in the red zone. They'll have to return to their league-leading form in that department (31 of 44, 70.5%) to beat the high-scoring Redblacks.
Trevor Harris, whose own inconsistencies and league-high 7 fumbles have directly led to several Ottawa losses, is expected to return to the starting lineup after missing three games with a shoulder injury.
Defensively, Wally has talked about needing to shut down Ottawa's rushing attack with William Powell, but the key to stopping the Redblacks is to prevent deep passes to Greg Ellingson, who leads the league with 14 receptions of 30 yards or more. B.C. and Ottawa defences are both vulnerable to the deep pass. The Redblacks have given up a league-high 29 passes of 30 yards or more. The Lions are right behind at 27.
Here's are links to the Lions' depth chart and roster and the Redblacks' depth chart and roster.
Ed Willes sets up the game, focusing on the play of Jennings, with comments from Lulay, Jennings and Khari Jones.
Ed Willes: Lions' quarterback of the future trying to save this season
Coming off a bye week, the Lions have made no changes to their starting lineup. The only roster moves are the addition of Charles Vaillancourt from the injured list as a backup O-lineman and Josh Shirley from the practice roster as a backup defensive end, replacing Ken Boatright, who was released. Andrew Jones moves to the 1-game injured list.
The coaching staff has talked about changing practice routines and tweaking the offence and defence. We'll see what they have in store. The key to the game will be the play of Jonathon Jennings, whose inconsistencies this year have been well documented. Jennings' quarterback rating of 55.4 is the lowest of the league's nine regular starting QBs. Only Drew Willy in Montreal at 49.5 is lower among current starters. Travis Lulay's rating of 94.8 is higher than any current or previous starter. Jennings played well against Hamilton but the Lions scored only one touchdown on four trips in the red zone. They'll have to return to their league-leading form in that department (31 of 44, 70.5%) to beat the high-scoring Redblacks.
Trevor Harris, whose own inconsistencies and league-high 7 fumbles have directly led to several Ottawa losses, is expected to return to the starting lineup after missing three games with a shoulder injury.
Defensively, Wally has talked about needing to shut down Ottawa's rushing attack with William Powell, but the key to stopping the Redblacks is to prevent deep passes to Greg Ellingson, who leads the league with 14 receptions of 30 yards or more. B.C. and Ottawa defences are both vulnerable to the deep pass. The Redblacks have given up a league-high 29 passes of 30 yards or more. The Lions are right behind at 27.
Here's are links to the Lions' depth chart and roster and the Redblacks' depth chart and roster.
Ed Willes sets up the game, focusing on the play of Jennings, with comments from Lulay, Jennings and Khari Jones.
Ed Willes: Lions' quarterback of the future trying to save this season