Welcome to the latest edition of Three Downs, the Last Word on Sports roundup of what’s to come in CFL Week 5. This week, we’ll look at the Game of the Week, the Player to Watch, and as the Countdown to Kickoff topic: Toronto’s home field disadvantage.
Contributions from Darren Popowich, Casey Dulson, and Thomas Gunther.
Three Downs – CFL Week 5
Game to Watch: Ottawa Redblacks at Saskatchewan Roughriders
At first glance this week in the CFL seems to have a lot of mismatches with struggling teams attempting to right the ship against stronger opponents. From previous CFL scripts this is usually where the CFL flips everything on its head and desperate teams come out swinging.
As Kelly Bale noted on the Saskatchewan Roughriders, “Above all, don’t even think to yourself (let alone utter) that this team can’t win without Darian Durant. They can, they will, and you’ve given up if you think otherwise.”
Rider fans should fully expect the Riders defence to come out swinging at home against the Trevor Harris-led, undefeated Ottawa Redblacks. It is the high octane offense’s force against the immovable object in the Riders’ defence led by defensive mastermind Chris Jones. Expect the Riders to rally and also expect the Redblacks to attempt to dominate once again. Whose will wins out?
Player to Watch: Mitchell Gale
Last Saturday night, Saskatchewan Roughriders fans saw a familiar sight when Darian Durant went down in the second quarter with a sprained ankle. In came the former Toronto Argonauts quarterback, Mitchell Gale. Gale was acquired by the team as part of the Shawn Lemon trade earlier this month.
Gale went 17/30 and threw for 247 yards along with one touchdown in the Riders’ 40-27 loss to the British Colombia Lions. He was at his best in the second quarter, when he led the Riders to two Tyler Crapigna field goals and threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to receiver Nic Demski.
The Roughriders are currently winless and will play the undefeated Ottawa Redblacks on Friday night. If the Riders want to pull off the upset, Gale will need big games from his receivers, Naaman Roosevelt and Ricky Collins. The offensive line will also need to protect Gale in the pocket.
Countdown to Kickoff: Home Field Advantage?
With the Argos yet to claim a home field victory this season, Monday’s game looms large for the Boatmen. With concerns already brewing about falling attendance and fan engagement Toronto must make this game against the Montreal Alouettes count. On the flip side, the Als enter this match-up needing a win just as badly as the Argos after an outright beat-down by the Tiger-Cats last week.
Looking at the stat sheet, the teams are equally matched, especially if the recent injured Kevin Glenn makes a return to game action. If not, keep an eye on Brandon Bridge as a potential factor in this game after Rakeem Cato and Vernon Adams Jr disappointed last week.
With so much riding on this game for both teams, will Montreal steal a win in the not-so-friendly confines of BMO Field? Or will Toronto defend its turf and send a message to both opponents and their own fans that this is their house?
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