Continuing with the CFL Talking Points series, Last Word On Sports CFL writers Thomas Gunther and Kelly Bale are back with the second in the back-to-back series for the Calgary Stampeders and Saskatchewan Roughriders. After the Stamp’s 19-10 hard fought victory Thomas and Kelly address the big questions raised by the game as well as their overall impressions of each team. For last week’s recap of the first game, you can click here. Let’s get start with the key takeaways in the CFL Week 8 Talking Points.
CFL Week 8 Talking Points
Saskatchewan Roughriders
1) The Riders crumbled yet again in the face of adversity and fans are rightly worried. Where are the Riders as a team? Where are they going with the season nearly half over?
Kelly Bale: It’s a pessimistic outlook to have when you consider the bigger picture for the Roughriders this year. This season’s main focus is to identify the players that the team can win a championship within the next two to three years. The Riders are right where they should be and are still hanging around in games most nights. The Riders provided stiff opposition again tonight and it should be expected that they’ll do the same every week down the stretch.
Thomas Gunther: The Riders are at a critical point in their season amidst all the turmoil both on, and off, the field. While it is too early to count the Green and White out of a playoff berth there doesn’t seem to be much evidence to indicate that the team will rebound in time. In all honesty, the Roughriders are approaching this season like an 18 game preseason; it will be ugly and frustrating to watch, but the team will be all the better for it.
2) Kendial Lawrence has easily been the Riders most effective running back so far. What took the Riders so long to properly utilize Lawrence and will it continue?
KB: Lawrence was a high profile signing and rightly so based on past play under Chris Jones in Edmonton. Lawrence has played a big role in these past two games due to improvements in the play of the offensive line. The running back position seems to be Lawrence’s job going forward and one should expect he’ll reach another level at some point this season with the increased workload.
TG: Putting aside Lawrence’s success running the ball for a moment, there has to be some real concern amongst fans and coaches that he has done absolutely nothing for the team in the return game. While a part of this is likely poor blocking by the Riders special teams unit, Lawrence shoulders the majority of the blame. Saskatchewan needs better field position to start drives. That may have to come at the expense of Lawrence’s role there.
3) A positive for Riders fans was the improvement of the defence which generated pressure and kept the score close. Was this just a blip on the radar or have the Riders finally started to fix their team?
KB: It really seems like things are finally clicking for the beleaguered Roughriders defence. The defensive backs played well enough to allow the defensive line to apply pressure and that makes all the difference. At times the Saskatchewan defense looked completely turned around from how they played earlier this season. Riders fans should count on their defense coming together, especially after the gutsy performance by rookie corner Justin Cox.
TG: Jones finally listened to seemingly every Riders fan crying out for him to send pressure on passing downs and brought the heat. The Riders were able to get Bo Levi Mitchel off balance and uncomfortable for most of the night and it paid dividends defensively. It’s anyone’s guess why it has taken this long for Jones to make these changes, but Saskatchewan has to hope he sticks with it going forward.
Top Performers
KB: The defense was the strongest unit for the Riders tonight by far. If a single player stood out more than most it should be defensive back Buddy Jackson who made big plays throughout the night for the Riders. The defense seemed to feed off Jackson’s energy after some early deflections and big hits. Sometimes actions like that are all that is needed to ignite a team’s spirit.
TG: Darian Durant gets the nod for best performer on the Roughriders. While the stats wont show much in the passing categories, Durant’s 74 yards on the ground displayed his drive and hunger to get his team back on track. The fumble in the third quarter hurt. However, the Riders are a better team when DD is able to move the ball on the ground and through the air. The rest of the Riders offence should take Durant’s efforts to heart when the team comes out against Hamilton next week.
Calgary Stampeders
1) What was the Stampeder’s biggest motive for victory coming into this contest?
TG: The Stampeders came into this game knowing they had earned the ire of an entire province from Mitchell’s tweeting accusations earlier this week, a win was necessary to allow them to move on heads held high. Head coach Dave Dickenson called a conservative game, knowing his team was better from top to bottom, and grinded out an ugly win. The Stamps needed to not only win to keep their hold on the West Division lead but also to prove a point. They are the model to follow for winning in the CFL, not the Riders.
KB: It’s hard to argue that point. The Stampeders biggest motive for victory was to assert dominance and put the Riders back in their place. Keeping pace with the B.C. Lions was another big victory as a loss would have had major implications.
2) Which unit leads the Stampeders and why?
TG: The Stampeders secondary has been lights out for two weeks in a row. However, Calgary special teams deserves the credit for tonight’s win. Return man Roy Finch gave the Stamps incredible field position seemingly every time he touched the ball. Kicker Rene Paredes was automatic on every kick. To cap it all off the Stamps coverage team gave the Riders no room to maneuver. Punter Rob Maver frequently pinned the Riders deep. That’s a game winning performance for sure.
KB: Without a doubt special teams take it for the Stamps. Between Paredes, Maver, the return team’s blocking, and Finch, the special teams won a game where the offence was mostly foiled by a bend-don’t-break Riders defence. Even without a major through the air Calgary was able to control the game until the end.
3) Why did the Stamps struggle on offense, especially passing plays?
TG: For two weeks in a row the Stampeders receivers were stricken with a case of the drops. Mitchell looked ready to blow his top as Greg Wilson, Simon Charbonneau-Campeau, and Lemar Durant all dropped easy catches in the early stages of the game. While Calgary weathered the storm and got the W, this should have stamps fans worried. Outside of the highly underrated Marqauy McDaniel, Mitchell can’t count on the Stamps young cadre of receivers to reliably bring down easy throws.
KB: It was clear that the setting sun played a factor more than a few times down the stretch. This could be an advantage the Riders lose heading over to the new Mosaic Stadium next year. It is something to think about. That said, Riders fans will likely get over it quickly, just like this loss. Onwards!
Top Performers
TG: It’s not sexy, but Parades takes the cake here without question. As mentioned before, Calgary’s ace kicker didn’t have to make any overly difficult or pressure packed kicks. Instead, Paredes simply did his job and scored every time he went out. It sounds simple, but the Stampeders never have to worry when Paredes lines up and that is a huge advantage.
KB: McDaniel was the hero of this game. With over 100 yards receiving for the second game in a row, McDaniel just catches the ball and gets smartly up-field without a fuss. McDaniel also has a knack for coming up with difficult receptions at key times no matter what, a talent that makes him invaluable to Stampeders offence.
