Home opener: Lions vs. Stampeders June 15, 2024

[almo89]

Stanback hasn't had a monster game yet, but has already proven to be more effective than Mizzell. Those 2nd and 3 ish yards seem to be good for Stanback. Last season when they ran it in those situations, it mostly got snuffed out. Stanback so far is showing that he's a much better blocker too. A big one I noticed was when there was 2 minutes left in the game. Calgary is sending the house on a blitz and Suitor even says "Here it comes". Stanback makes a really good block on the left side allowing VA just enough time to throw a deep ball to Mcinnis. The pass was later deemed incomplete by the command centre, but still shows Stanback can block. Last season we saw Mizzell miss so many blocks and often looked confused when the opposing defences were blitzing. So far so good. I want to see them use him more as the season moves on.

[DanoT]

I watched the game on TSN, so as expected when Cottoy got injured there was no mention as to who replaced him. Instead I had to learn it was Mackie from Lionbackers. I have really grown to dislike TSN.

[TheLionKing]

Glen Suitor is a joke. I yearn for the days of Chris Walby

[David]

Stanback hasn't had a monster game yet, but has already proven to be more effective than Mizzell. Those 2nd and 3 ish yards seem to be good for Stanback. Last season when they ran it in those situations, it mostly got snuffed out.

I said something similar yesterday. We're not likely to see a big difference in rushing average. Mizzell rushed for a 4.9 yard average last season. Stanback rushed for a 4.6 yard average Saturday. The difference is that Stanback's heavy frame is going to wear down defenders trying to bring him down, especially in the 4th quarter if we have a lead and commit to the run.

Completely different style backs. Mizzell's strength was his speed in the open field (he tended to juke and jive too much though instead of turning on the jets and heading north). Stanback will hopefully get us the first down on 2nd (or 3rd) and short, something we were deficient at last season. As you say, too, Stanback is adept at blocking. I believe he fits in very well in the locker room as well. A great FA signing (although the Als don't seem to miss him much with the emergence of Walter Fletcher as an elite back).



DH

[Qman]

I watched the game on TSN, so as expected when Cottoy got injured their was no mentioned as to who replaced him. Instead I had to learn it was Mackie from Lionbackers. I have really grown to dislike TSN.

Mackie cottoy split reps a lot

[DanoT]

Glen Suitor is a joke. I yearn for the days of Chris Walby

I am not a fan of Suitor or Walby who had too repetitive of a vocabulary. I PVR CFL games and most often I fast forward between plays as well as commercials and half time.

[Hambone]

Emailed Fanservices about Sasha. Will be interesting if the Lions mute her for the next week. I encourage fans to email Fanservices with your complaints.

Until my buddy mentioned it I hadn't noticed. Maybe a bit shrill for some but I'm not complaining. That's because I understand and accept that, much like the choice of 50 Cent, her persona is there to generate interest from the younger sect being kids, teenagers and twentysomethings, not geezers like me.

[Hambone]

Glen Suitor is a joke. I yearn for the days of Chris Walby

Very good Grey Cup friends of mine from Edmonton created their own Chris Walby Drinking Game from his Walby-esqe butchering of the English language. For them games on CBC were great for getting a good buzz.

[Gridiron Ernie]

Hambone, during the telecast I caught a very brief glimpse of Campbell giving Nelson a stern/irritated look and some words, but don't know if he was benched thereafter.
Also, you mention GameTracker; any time I've ever clicked on it I get nothing (a blank screen). What's the trick to access it?

Strange. It looks to be that way (blank) now if I click on Game Tracker for games this weekend from the scoreboard at the top of the CFL.ca home page. However if I go into the schedule tab and call up Game Tracker for any of the games it works fine. I was following the Rider/Ticat game along on it in what seemed like real time while I was sitting at YVR waiting for my flight home this afternoon. I've had no problems with it this season. Sometimes when I open it for a specific game I first get something that says "not available" or something to that effect. But if I just give it 3 or 4 seconds everything comes thru. It was sketchy in BC Place during the game but I chalk that up to a big crowd playing hell with the bandwidth. It was painful trying to pick up the score in the hockey game too.

Unfortunately my experience continues to be and has always been, without exception, a BLANK white page, when attempting to access Game Tracker, no matter which entry point I choose, be it via the Schedule or via the Scoreboard. Initially I wondered if it was my "cookies" setting, but even when I accept them all it makes zero difference. Still the blank white page. Ah well, win some / lose some.

BTW, a very belated thank-you to B.C.FAN and Hambone for the TC reports from Kamloops. Once again, so very much appreciated. Given what you fellows offer, a fan like myself enters the season well-acquainted with the roster including the new talent. Cheers!

[OV:54-40]

I guess not much faith in rookie draft pick Tiede? OTOH - Riders rookie draft pick Ajou Ajou was forced into today's game with an injury to a starting receiver and responded with a bunch of nice catches.

In this instance the similarities between the two situations start and end with them being the same size and 2024 draft picks. Ajou was brought in to replace Bane, the Riders starting weakside wide receiver. Tieide would have been asked to fill in for the strong side slotback who has a lot of pass block responsibility. That is something of which neither Bane nor his replacement Ajou would deal with much, if at all, from the outside receiver spot. Maybe if Calgary wasn't sending extra rushers right from the start of the game they would have put Tieide in at least for some reps. Monson would have had a field day calling stunts and blitzes from his LBs and secondary against a rookie in that situation. Having the seasoned veteran Mackie fill in was the prudent move for the sake of Adams' health.

The Riders could have brought in a fullback to replace Bane, just for extra blocking help, but maybe they wanted run their main 5 pack look and lots of pass plays for the offence to produce still. And a prime back-up receiver should have training to learn all the receiver spots if he has to go in to replace any starting receiver who gets knocked out of the game.; and Tiede is hardly some little smurf receiver who would be afraid to block or get killed trying. Having just Mackie - with pretty well zero faith in him to get the ball - in the game, eliminates one of your offensive targets / it's one less. IF max. protection was the over-riding principle for the rest of the game, that's one thing; the Riders did not show zero respect/ use for a draft pick receiver and the kid produced lots when given the chance.

[DanoT]

I use to get a kick out of Geroy Simon's WR method of blocking: don't try to knock anyone to the turf but instead get in the pass rusher/tackler's way and make him go around you and thus defeat the would be tackler's direct line to the ball carrier.

[B.C.FAN]

I use to get a kick out of Geroy Simon's WR method of blocking: don't try to knock anyone to the turf but instead get in the pass rusher/tackler's way and make him go around you and thus defeat the would be tackler's direct line to the ball carrier.

I didn't like Geroy being asked to pick up the blitz in Jacques Chapdelaine's offence. At least now that responsibility mainly falls to Cottoy or Mackie, and sometimes Fulgham.

[cromartie]

One should never wish for Chris Walby under any circumstances.

A win is a win, but there's some really, really terrible Tackle play going on here and if it doesn't improve, and if we don't solve the sneak situation, VA is going to miss time with injury.

This defensive game plan is roughly the same one we had for the latter two thirds of last season and it involves heavy zone and an over reliance on a front four that isn't quite yet up to the task of getting home quickly. The linebacking play isn't awful, per se but it's pass coverage oriented and as such it is left flat footed on run plays. We're asking too many players to over think in the back eight and you can only get away with that against the bad teams.

On the plus side, offensively, at least there are more designed rollouts and sprints to accommodate the matador like line play. So we have that going for us. So we're halfway to adjusting to our inherent deficiencies.

[Toppy Vann]

I think fans should cut the young in-game broadcaster some slack. I'm sure it's not an easy job with a noisy crowd and limited time to get their messages over. She no doubt reports to someone who is either telling her to perform that way or who can coach her to do it differently. I think it's not a good things for fans piling on when these people are just trying to do their best.

[Dusty]

I think fans should cut the young in-game broadcaster some slack. I'm sure it's not an easy job with a noisy crowd and limited time to get their messages over. She no doubt reports to someone who is either telling her to perform that way or who can coach her to do it differently. I think it's not a good things for fans piling on when these people are just trying to do their best.

As much as I can appreciate that she is just "doing her job" and in among that job is to keep the crowd pumped up, I don't think that her voice is having the desired effect. It certainly isn't among the group of fans near to me.

I was watching the game replay "on demand" and when the half time panel started up, they quite visably flinched when she started up. Now maybe it was loud and they were not ready to talk over her background, but it seemed to me that what she was doing grated on them, as it does me.

They must be a way for her to get her message across without "shreiking".