Leos Take On the Als!
Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2016 3:18 pm
Our B.C Lions travel East to play the Montreal Als in a West-East matchup on Thursday night. Our 3-2 Leos, coming off a devastating overtime loss to Calgary will face a more confident 2-3 Als team who thrashed Saskatchewan 41-3 in their last outing.
Our Leos had only two practices to prepare for the Als and also had to make a number of lineup changes due to injury for this contest.
Lets have a closer look at this week's matchup:
OFFENCE
Our Leos come into this contest with the 2nd best rushing attack in the CFL, after struggling with our run game against Calgary. Anthony Allen, who had looked impressive in his first two starts as a Leo only gained 26 yards on 11 carries against Calgary. Calgary shut down our run game as our offensive line struggled to open holes and Allen had to grind out yardage. Jeremiah Johnson, who started the season at tailback, was sat for our last game and should be motivated.
Jonathan Jennings leads all CFL quarterbacks in rushing, with 138 yards in his first 5 games.
Another potential change for this contest will be at left guard. Buono singled out Hunter Steward this week at practice and O'Neil may get the nod. Steward, a first round draft choice is an offensive lineman who is very athletic and talented. Playing a new position this season at left guard is a different challenge for the 6'6", 315 pound lineman. But Steward was not the only one to make mistakes against Calgary. Buono himself could be faulted for going into the contest with only two defensive tackles (only one International) while dressing four defensive ends, including 3 Internationals.
Buono also threw the challenge flag twice on dubious calls that cost us a couple of time outs that would have been invaluable late in the 4th quarter and overtime. Our coaches did not give Jennings guidance in the situations he was in late in the game and Jennings made two critical mistakes. The third and one jet sweep call, on the goal line, was very questionable, when a quarterback sneak or a blast play to Allen would have made more sense. Bazzie took an offside call, with Calgary 2nd and 20, late in the 4th quarter, that negated a possible Phillips interception. Enough blame to go around.
Jennings had an excellent passing game against Calgary, making some impressive throws. Bryan Burnham, moved to the outside slot position to replace Nick Moore, had his best game as a Leo, hauling in some incredible catches along with some great YAC. We now have three receivers in the CFL 'Top 20' in receving yards. Shawn Gore is 11th (395 yds), Bryan Burnham is 12th (368 yds.) and Manny Arsenault is 13th (365 yds.)
Boldewijn gets his second start at slot. He had 2 catches last week, including a touchdown reception, and should feel more at ease in this contest.
There will be two keys to beating Montreal's defense, led by Chip Cox, Bear Woods, and John Bowman. We will need to run the football better and we will need to account for Montreal's blitzing, attacking style of defense. Noel Thorpe, Montreal's defensive coordinator likes to dial up the heat and pressure. Montreal's John Bowman is second in CFL sacks and Jevon Johnson has three sacks from his short side half position. Obviously, cutting down on turnovers is essential as well. The Als defence is aggressive and not to be taken lightly.
Jonathan Jennings excellent game overall last week improved his passing stats. Jennings has passed for 425 yds. and 374 yards in his last two games. Jennings made some incredible throws against Calgary. One example was a long, very accurate, throw behind to Shawn Gore for a touchdown. He is now 5th in CFL receiving, his passing percentage has improved to 60.7 % and his quarterback efficiency average is now 94.1. Jennings will need to continue to be a gunslinger while also learning from his experience last week.
DEFENCE
Our Leos defence goes into this game decimated by injuries. The biggest loss is Mic'hael Brooks, who is almost impossible to block one on one and gets penetration. Also lost for this contest are Craig Roh, David Menard, Brandon Stewart, and Mike Edem.
Our Leos will possibly use Purifoy at safety and Thompson at nickel.
Thompson was drafted 12th by our Leos in this year's CFL draft. He played four seasons at Southern Illinois. He has good size for a defensive back at 6'0" and 205 pounds. It will be tough for Fraser, who returned an interception to the one yard line, if he does not get the nod to start at safety with Edem out. Fraser had a critical pass interference call late in the fourth quarter but played solid in relief of Edem. It must also be tough to be Kenyan Parker, who was second on the depth chart to Stewart at field corner and be replaced by an International with only a week of practice. Our Leos will activate Anthony Gaitor to replace Stewart. Gaitor was a 7th round draft choice of Tampa Bay in 2011.
Our Leos will activate Bryant Turner for Brooks and also dress Max Forde. If they are smart they will also activate Uko as well, (Turner can play end and tackle) rather than Hudson but look for Hudson to get the nod.
Alex Bazzie leads all CFL defenders with 5 sacks so far this season. Eliminian is tied for 4th in sacks with a bunch of other defenders. Our Leos are third in the CFL so far this season in quarterback sacks. Last week they sacked Bo Levi Mitchell four times, even though he came into the game as the least sacked quarterback in the CFL.
Our Leos will need to get pressure on the quarterback again. Kevin Glenn has completed over 72% of his passes this season and has a better quarterback efficiency average than Jennings. Give Glenn too much time to throw and he can hurt you. Pressure up the middle is the best recipe to negate his lack of height. Glenn also tends to throw interceptions when heavily pressured.
Despite key offensive losses in Green, Stafford and Sutton, the Als have offensive talent. Their offensive line is very good, Brandon Rutley, like Sutton, can be dangerous out of the backfield in the passing attack, Nik Lewis can still get it done (7th in the CFL in receiving) and Duron Carter is one of the most explosive long ball threats in the CFL.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Montreal's Stegan Logan is second in punt return yardage this season. Our Leos Chris Rainey has the best average punt return yardage and is a threat to break one on every punt if he can get some open field to run to. Rainey has returned two punts for touchdowns this season, including last week's 95 yarder.
WRAP
Our Leos could easily be 5-0 this season, had they shut down Toronto's running game in the second half of that contest and played a little smarter against Calgary. This is very much an improved team from last season. Jennings is an important part of our winning equation this season along with our revamped offensive line, some key free agent acquisitions, and the progress of our younger players.
We improved our depth in the off-season and this contest will provide some answers to how good that depth is.
If we can cut down our turnovers and penalties, play smarter when we need to, and use last week's game to motivate us, rather than demoralize us, we should win this game.
This game will show what residency this team has.
Go Leos!!!!
Our Leos had only two practices to prepare for the Als and also had to make a number of lineup changes due to injury for this contest.
Lets have a closer look at this week's matchup:
OFFENCE
Our Leos come into this contest with the 2nd best rushing attack in the CFL, after struggling with our run game against Calgary. Anthony Allen, who had looked impressive in his first two starts as a Leo only gained 26 yards on 11 carries against Calgary. Calgary shut down our run game as our offensive line struggled to open holes and Allen had to grind out yardage. Jeremiah Johnson, who started the season at tailback, was sat for our last game and should be motivated.
Jonathan Jennings leads all CFL quarterbacks in rushing, with 138 yards in his first 5 games.
Another potential change for this contest will be at left guard. Buono singled out Hunter Steward this week at practice and O'Neil may get the nod. Steward, a first round draft choice is an offensive lineman who is very athletic and talented. Playing a new position this season at left guard is a different challenge for the 6'6", 315 pound lineman. But Steward was not the only one to make mistakes against Calgary. Buono himself could be faulted for going into the contest with only two defensive tackles (only one International) while dressing four defensive ends, including 3 Internationals.
Buono also threw the challenge flag twice on dubious calls that cost us a couple of time outs that would have been invaluable late in the 4th quarter and overtime. Our coaches did not give Jennings guidance in the situations he was in late in the game and Jennings made two critical mistakes. The third and one jet sweep call, on the goal line, was very questionable, when a quarterback sneak or a blast play to Allen would have made more sense. Bazzie took an offside call, with Calgary 2nd and 20, late in the 4th quarter, that negated a possible Phillips interception. Enough blame to go around.
Jennings had an excellent passing game against Calgary, making some impressive throws. Bryan Burnham, moved to the outside slot position to replace Nick Moore, had his best game as a Leo, hauling in some incredible catches along with some great YAC. We now have three receivers in the CFL 'Top 20' in receving yards. Shawn Gore is 11th (395 yds), Bryan Burnham is 12th (368 yds.) and Manny Arsenault is 13th (365 yds.)
Boldewijn gets his second start at slot. He had 2 catches last week, including a touchdown reception, and should feel more at ease in this contest.
There will be two keys to beating Montreal's defense, led by Chip Cox, Bear Woods, and John Bowman. We will need to run the football better and we will need to account for Montreal's blitzing, attacking style of defense. Noel Thorpe, Montreal's defensive coordinator likes to dial up the heat and pressure. Montreal's John Bowman is second in CFL sacks and Jevon Johnson has three sacks from his short side half position. Obviously, cutting down on turnovers is essential as well. The Als defence is aggressive and not to be taken lightly.
Jonathan Jennings excellent game overall last week improved his passing stats. Jennings has passed for 425 yds. and 374 yards in his last two games. Jennings made some incredible throws against Calgary. One example was a long, very accurate, throw behind to Shawn Gore for a touchdown. He is now 5th in CFL receiving, his passing percentage has improved to 60.7 % and his quarterback efficiency average is now 94.1. Jennings will need to continue to be a gunslinger while also learning from his experience last week.
DEFENCE
Our Leos defence goes into this game decimated by injuries. The biggest loss is Mic'hael Brooks, who is almost impossible to block one on one and gets penetration. Also lost for this contest are Craig Roh, David Menard, Brandon Stewart, and Mike Edem.
Our Leos will possibly use Purifoy at safety and Thompson at nickel.
Thompson was drafted 12th by our Leos in this year's CFL draft. He played four seasons at Southern Illinois. He has good size for a defensive back at 6'0" and 205 pounds. It will be tough for Fraser, who returned an interception to the one yard line, if he does not get the nod to start at safety with Edem out. Fraser had a critical pass interference call late in the fourth quarter but played solid in relief of Edem. It must also be tough to be Kenyan Parker, who was second on the depth chart to Stewart at field corner and be replaced by an International with only a week of practice. Our Leos will activate Anthony Gaitor to replace Stewart. Gaitor was a 7th round draft choice of Tampa Bay in 2011.
Our Leos will activate Bryant Turner for Brooks and also dress Max Forde. If they are smart they will also activate Uko as well, (Turner can play end and tackle) rather than Hudson but look for Hudson to get the nod.
Alex Bazzie leads all CFL defenders with 5 sacks so far this season. Eliminian is tied for 4th in sacks with a bunch of other defenders. Our Leos are third in the CFL so far this season in quarterback sacks. Last week they sacked Bo Levi Mitchell four times, even though he came into the game as the least sacked quarterback in the CFL.
Our Leos will need to get pressure on the quarterback again. Kevin Glenn has completed over 72% of his passes this season and has a better quarterback efficiency average than Jennings. Give Glenn too much time to throw and he can hurt you. Pressure up the middle is the best recipe to negate his lack of height. Glenn also tends to throw interceptions when heavily pressured.
Despite key offensive losses in Green, Stafford and Sutton, the Als have offensive talent. Their offensive line is very good, Brandon Rutley, like Sutton, can be dangerous out of the backfield in the passing attack, Nik Lewis can still get it done (7th in the CFL in receiving) and Duron Carter is one of the most explosive long ball threats in the CFL.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Montreal's Stegan Logan is second in punt return yardage this season. Our Leos Chris Rainey has the best average punt return yardage and is a threat to break one on every punt if he can get some open field to run to. Rainey has returned two punts for touchdowns this season, including last week's 95 yarder.
WRAP
Our Leos could easily be 5-0 this season, had they shut down Toronto's running game in the second half of that contest and played a little smarter against Calgary. This is very much an improved team from last season. Jennings is an important part of our winning equation this season along with our revamped offensive line, some key free agent acquisitions, and the progress of our younger players.
We improved our depth in the off-season and this contest will provide some answers to how good that depth is.
If we can cut down our turnovers and penalties, play smarter when we need to, and use last week's game to motivate us, rather than demoralize us, we should win this game.
This game will show what residency this team has.
Go Leos!!!!