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Discuss.

Well, he is certainly what I would think of as a scat back, small, Stephan Logan like, seems to have a lot of emotion and desire. Seems to have some gifts physically as well. I kind of wonder how Fred Reid kept his spot and this guy was sent home?

I think he is a threat. However, having seen the film on him, I think the Lions should be able to counter him. It all starts with the DLine. Control that and the lanes that Garrett might run through are going to get clogged up . We have a good linebacking core too so in the end, I think he merits the same attention that all RB's get.

Any back that runs over 150 yards in a game is a definite threat.

TheLionKing wrote:Any back that runs over 150 yards in a game is a definite threat.

Gotta shut him down...a real key because Winnipeg's defense will be tough!

Didn't Ricky Ray run for about 150 yds on BC once ? They gotta be prepared to shut Garret down like they did to Messam last time they faced him when he was tearing it up on most every one . Messam ran for 17 yds when he was trying to break that 1000 yd mark and fell short because our D was able to shut him down . When we've had big yds ran on us , it's been as though our DC couldn't be bothered with any effort to stop it like it was a secondary consideration and not a threat . Seems like we now take run stopping seriously , as it should be .
For the Bombers , the run is a big thing, so it is key to stop it . Then get after the QB .

Bomber offence has not been that great other than that . I like our chances in a shoot out with them . Our QB vs theirs , we come out on top .

pennw wrote:Didn't Ricky Ray run for about 150 yds on BC once ? They gotta be prepared to shut Garret down like they did to Messam last time they faced him when he was tearing it up on most every one . Messam ran for 17 yds when he was trying to break that 1000 yd mark and fell short because our D was able to shut him down . When we've had big yds ran on us , it's been as though our DC couldn't be bothered with any effort to stop it like it was a secondary consideration and not a threat . Seems like we now take run stopping seriously , as it should be .
For the Bombers , the run is a big thing, so it is key to stop it . Then get after the QB .

Bomber offence has not been that great other than that . I like our chances in a shoot out with them . Our QB vs theirs , we come out on top .

BC's offensive line is the key difference and more important than the QB. Lulay is not getting shots like happen to Buck far, far too often and that hurts the Bomber offense. Given how the BC plays are schemed and the quality of the O line and the blocking Travis Lulay can drop back (unlike Dickinson and Pierce could before in BC) and make the reads or scramble knowing pretty well with certainty that he is not going to be blindsided. If Lulay wins MOP and thanks his line and blocking and coaches - it will be more than just the right thing to say it will be true as without all that working for him he'd not be the player he has become. Buck is not getting the protection like the Lions are giving. Hey we know what Lulay was like in the 0 and 5 run as he was often running for his life much like Buck has to do most games in the Peg.

Garrett looks to be better than Reid had been this season (although Reid played during the bombers winning times).

The way Benevides has stepped up is another remarkable turnaround and he seems now to be doing a lot of good things to help his talent be successful than ever before. They'll worry about any running incl. by Buck and be prepared.

The Bombers will give the ball to Garrett until the Lions stop him. He's never had fewer than 11 carries, and he's only once been held to an average of less than 5 yards a carry. The key is to limit his production on first down and force the Bombers into a passing situation on second down. Winnipeg's offence is ranked last in average yards gained on first down and second last in second-down conversion rate.

Garrett's 29 carries for 190 yards in the East final are career highs but they came against Hamilton, which has a terrible run defence. Of Garrett's three 100-yard games, two came against Hamilton and one against Toronto, which is the only team worse than Hamilton against the run.

As always, though, the real key to the game is turnovers. Like Edmonton, the Bombers were undefeated this year when they won the turnover battle and winless when they had the same number or more turnovers than their opponents. With Jovon Johnson and Jonathan Hefney leading the way, the Bombers led the league in interceptions. The Bombers' hopes for this game rest on their DBs intercepting Lulay. If the Lions play a cautious ball-control game, they should come out on top.

I don't know what the stats are on Buck taking off for a dash but I think its often. So the D-line needs to stop Garrett for sure. But one of the few things Ray did on Sunday was extend a few drives with some long runs himself. Nothing in the Lulay-61y area, but those 8-11 yard scampers on 2nd long. I'm going to be just as frustrated if Buck takes off and is able to extend drives. Even if the Lions do have success stopping the run, I don't think the Bombers will go completely away from it like some CFL teams do (certainly the Lions did this earlier in the season- "We tried the run and it wasn't working").

Anytime the Lions face a scat back or mobile QB, it seems to pose a problem for our D. With 6 DL dressed, that should reduce the ability for Garrett to get out of the backfield which is the key to stopping him. Our DL has a great push, and that will be the difference maker, but if Garrett gets past the front 4, he is going to gain some yards. The other factor is to get the Lions O to rack up some early points, taking the run game away from the Bombers game plan. Both are doable, but either or both could also be exploited by the Bombers. I like the Lions chances though, as both D's are strength that got them into the GC, but the Lions O has been good since the last time around with the Bombers.

CatsEyes wrote:Discuss.

Nope. Will ave 3.5 yards (approx) per carry for a total of 64 yards.

I have to say that he's the only element that I'd be concerned about. Nothing else about the Bombers really worries me.

sure he had tons of yards but he also had 29 carries! That is a ton of carries!! They will certainly need to score more than the 19 points they scored against Hamilton to beat BC. Garrett will also need to average more the the 5 yards he was getting against Hamilton, if they want an impactful running game.

I don't see BC scoring 40 points but I certainly don't see Garrett getting that many carries and that many yards against the Lions. Winnipeg better get themselves accustomed to the loud dome as well, it's been awhile since they've played in such a hostile environment that is completely foreign to a few of their players as well.

The Lions defence is out to prove something, the Lions offence is revitalized, the new stadium will be rockin for the first time in years ... Winnipeg, watch out!!!

Buonosjanet69 wrote:sure he had tons of yards but he also had 29 carries! That is a ton of carries!! They will certainly need to score more than the 19 points they scored against Hamilton to beat BC. Garrett will also need to average more the the 5 yards he was getting against Hamilton, if they want an impactful running game.

I don't see BC scoring 40 points but I certainly don't see Garrett getting that many carries and that many yards against the Lions. Winnipeg better get themselves accustomed to the loud dome as well, it's been awhile since they've played in such a hostile environment that is completely foreign to a few of their players as well.

The Lions defence is out to prove something, the Lions offence is revitalized, the new stadium will be rockin for the first time in years ... Winnipeg, watch out!!!

He still averaged over 6 yards a carry and Pierce ran for 60+ himself.

Blue In BC wrote:

Buonosjanet69 wrote:sure he had tons of yards but he also had 29 carries! That is a ton of carries!! They will certainly need to score more than the 19 points they scored against Hamilton to beat BC. Garrett will also need to average more the the 5 yards he was getting against Hamilton, if they want an impactful running game.

I don't see BC scoring 40 points but I certainly don't see Garrett getting that many carries and that many yards against the Lions. Winnipeg better get themselves accustomed to the loud dome as well, it's been awhile since they've played in such a hostile environment that is completely foreign to a few of their players as well.

The Lions defence is out to prove something, the Lions offence is revitalized, the new stadium will be rockin for the first time in years ... Winnipeg, watch out!!!

He still averaged over 6 yards a carry and Pierce ran for 60+ himself.

How can you negate 190 yards in a single game - rushing and 6 yards average? That's insane. He helped his team to victory in frigid conditions!

Let's hope the Lions OC and D don't use this type of thinking and diminish the threat or he might get another 190 on fewer carries. His performance is a career highlight for a player.

You may be right they might not give him that many shots at running but give some credit to the player.

This logic is like Lulay winning MOP and someone saying - he really isn't that good. He just has good play calling now and a good pass protection. Without that he'd be nothing. All very true as we know the first five losses but as coaches like Wally says - stats don't always tell the story.

Buonosjanet69 wrote:I don't see BC scoring 40 points

That's actually not much of a stretch, WADR. Only 11 of the 196 teams to have contested the previous 98 Grey Cups have reached that plateau. But the interesting part to me is, only three of these 11 teams did so indoors. Among the 24 indoor Grey Cup teams so far, the average point production is 31.7 for the winners, 21.7 for the losers and 26.7 overall.