Riders at Lions Nov. 5 postgame comments
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 9:34 pm
It was a game that meant nothing to the Riders, and it showed. Most of them looked like they didn't want to be here. It wasn't until Brandon Bridge came into the game in the fourth quarter that the Rider offence showed any life, and by then it was too late.
Kudos to the Lions for stepping up when victory meant a home playoff game. We've seen past Lions teams choke under that pressure but this team was confident from the beginning, especially on defence. Keynan Parker had a big game at field corner, with a knockdown and several big hits, although he gave up a long catch and run in the fourth quarter to set up the Riders' first touchdown.
Paul McCallum was money, showing there's still life in that 46-year-old leg. He was 4 for 4 on field goals and 2 for 2 on converts.
I thought Khari Jones again added some new wrinkles on offence, including a lot more pre-snap motion and misdirection plays that kept the Rider defence off balance. The Lions rushed for 182 yards but 89 yards of that was by Chris Rainey, including a 35-yard gain. Rolly Lumbala added a 31 yarder in garbage time. Jeremiah Johnson, who left the game briefly with a leg injury, was kept in check, picking up just 40 yards on 8 carries, the longest being an 8 yarder.
The B.C. offence turned the ball over three times in the first half but the Riders managed to score only one point off the turnovers. They can't afford to let that happen next week against the Bombers. In fact, they can't afford to run the passing offence the ran tonight against the Bombers. Manny Arceneaux and Bryan Burnham were the passing offence, even more than normal. Arceneaux had 10 catches on 11 targets for 180 yards. Burnham added 7 catches on 8 targets for 96 yards. (The official scorer incorrectly attributed one of Burnham's target to Adekolu, who inadvertently led his man to Burnham in the end zone, resulting in a collision and an incomplete pass on what should have been an easy Burnham TD grab.)
Behind those great numbers, though is even greater cause for concern. For most of the year, Jennings has focused on three receivers, Arceneaux, Burnham and Shawn Gore. With Gore out of the lineup, Jennings narrowed in on Arceneaux and Burnham almost exclusively, as he did the last time Gore was out. The two main receivers accounted for 77% of the Lions' 22 completions and 82% of the B.C. offence's 31 passing targets. Jennings only looked once at Adekolu, overthrowing him on a deep pass in the end zone in the third quarter. For most of the game, Adekolu was lined up in single coverage on the boundary side of the field. He also ran some combination routes with Arceneaux on the short side. Each time Jennings threw the ball to Arceneaux. Even in the fourth quarter, when Arceneaux was taken out of the game and Adekolu replaced him, with Shaq Johnson taking over for Adekolu, the Lions did not throw the ball to Adekolu.
Here are the B.C. receivers, with their number of catches, targets and yards:
Arceneaux 10-11, 180
Burnham 7-8, 96 (one Burnham target was incorrectly attributed to Adekolu in the official stats)
Sinkfield 2-4, 51
Lumbala, 2-2, 9
Rainey 1-1, 1
J. Johnson 0-2, 0
Adekolu, 0-1, 0
S. Johnson 0-1, 0
O'Neill 0-1, 0 (2 point convert attempt)
TOTALS 24-31, 337
The danger of relying so heavily on a slotback passing attack is that defences have been able to shut Arceneaux and Burnham down by plugging up the middle of the field. Winnipeg's defence is strong down the middle and feasts on turnovers. For the B.C. offence to succeed against the Bombers, Gore (if playing), Adekolu, Sinkfield, Rainey and Jeremiah Johnson have to make more plays. The Lions missed an opportunity to involve those players in the offence. Next week's game will be much tougher than this one. The Lions have not showed that they're up to the task.
Kudos to the Lions for stepping up when victory meant a home playoff game. We've seen past Lions teams choke under that pressure but this team was confident from the beginning, especially on defence. Keynan Parker had a big game at field corner, with a knockdown and several big hits, although he gave up a long catch and run in the fourth quarter to set up the Riders' first touchdown.
Paul McCallum was money, showing there's still life in that 46-year-old leg. He was 4 for 4 on field goals and 2 for 2 on converts.
I thought Khari Jones again added some new wrinkles on offence, including a lot more pre-snap motion and misdirection plays that kept the Rider defence off balance. The Lions rushed for 182 yards but 89 yards of that was by Chris Rainey, including a 35-yard gain. Rolly Lumbala added a 31 yarder in garbage time. Jeremiah Johnson, who left the game briefly with a leg injury, was kept in check, picking up just 40 yards on 8 carries, the longest being an 8 yarder.
The B.C. offence turned the ball over three times in the first half but the Riders managed to score only one point off the turnovers. They can't afford to let that happen next week against the Bombers. In fact, they can't afford to run the passing offence the ran tonight against the Bombers. Manny Arceneaux and Bryan Burnham were the passing offence, even more than normal. Arceneaux had 10 catches on 11 targets for 180 yards. Burnham added 7 catches on 8 targets for 96 yards. (The official scorer incorrectly attributed one of Burnham's target to Adekolu, who inadvertently led his man to Burnham in the end zone, resulting in a collision and an incomplete pass on what should have been an easy Burnham TD grab.)
Behind those great numbers, though is even greater cause for concern. For most of the year, Jennings has focused on three receivers, Arceneaux, Burnham and Shawn Gore. With Gore out of the lineup, Jennings narrowed in on Arceneaux and Burnham almost exclusively, as he did the last time Gore was out. The two main receivers accounted for 77% of the Lions' 22 completions and 82% of the B.C. offence's 31 passing targets. Jennings only looked once at Adekolu, overthrowing him on a deep pass in the end zone in the third quarter. For most of the game, Adekolu was lined up in single coverage on the boundary side of the field. He also ran some combination routes with Arceneaux on the short side. Each time Jennings threw the ball to Arceneaux. Even in the fourth quarter, when Arceneaux was taken out of the game and Adekolu replaced him, with Shaq Johnson taking over for Adekolu, the Lions did not throw the ball to Adekolu.
Here are the B.C. receivers, with their number of catches, targets and yards:
Arceneaux 10-11, 180
Burnham 7-8, 96 (one Burnham target was incorrectly attributed to Adekolu in the official stats)
Sinkfield 2-4, 51
Lumbala, 2-2, 9
Rainey 1-1, 1
J. Johnson 0-2, 0
Adekolu, 0-1, 0
S. Johnson 0-1, 0
O'Neill 0-1, 0 (2 point convert attempt)
TOTALS 24-31, 337
The danger of relying so heavily on a slotback passing attack is that defences have been able to shut Arceneaux and Burnham down by plugging up the middle of the field. Winnipeg's defence is strong down the middle and feasts on turnovers. For the B.C. offence to succeed against the Bombers, Gore (if playing), Adekolu, Sinkfield, Rainey and Jeremiah Johnson have to make more plays. The Lions missed an opportunity to involve those players in the offence. Next week's game will be much tougher than this one. The Lions have not showed that they're up to the task.
The Kid is a special talent, as much with his internal qualities, as with his physical talent.