It wasn’t pretty, but the BC Lions prevailed in their 2018 season opener Saturday night, defeating the Montreal Alouettes 22-10 at BC Place.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the Leos Week 1 victory.
Shaky Start For The Secondary
The Lions new-look secondary was torched from the get-go.
In the first quarter, Drew Willy was able to complete three passes of 50+ yards.
Luckily, new faces such as Marcell Young, Anthony Orange, and Garry Peters were able to settle in for the remainder of the game.
Peters made a huge interception in the 4th Quarter when the Lions were clinging to a 15-10 lead.
One can’t be surprised that it took a quarter for the chemistry to kick in between the new teammates. If anything, BC is lucky their first opponent of the regular season was the Alouettes. Otherwise, the end result could’ve been much worse.
After the game, I spoke to one of Lions key offseason additions, defensive end Gabe Knapton.
The former Alouette says his new team needs to come out better.
“We can’t give them things. Offsides, stuff like that just kills us, so we just gotta play sound football. I think once we got into the flow of game, I think we settled down and played pretty good.”
The Lions front-four which has been hyped up throughout the preseason, was up to the task Saturday night. Five different players registered a sack, including Knapton.
The Alouettes’ Offensive Line took a hit in the 2nd quarter when right-tackle Ruben Carter left the game with a right-arm injury.
BC’s Offence Struggles
For a team that ranked last in total defence in 2017, Montreal didn’t seem to have a hard time containing Jonathon Jennings and company.
Maybe it was the new conservative system that offensive coordinator Jarious Jackson has implemented, but the Leos were unable to really stretch the field with any big plays.
At the same time, however, maybe this is the way Wally Buono’s team wants to march down the field in 2018. Methodically with little turnover rate; not going for high-risk throws the way they have in previous years.
Remember, Jennings led the CFL in interceptions last season. Maybe it’s time to lay off the high-risk/high-reward throws a little more in 2018.
Best Moment
For the most part, the game was a snoozefest.
BUT, witnessing this did make the night a bit more fun…
Hit of the night and reason not to streak or possibly drink at a BC Lions game! pic.twitter.com/vtnNx8sGWm
— Jaden S (@Jadenfootball21) June 17, 2018
The BC Lions are on a bye for Week 2, and the same probably goes for that fan after getting absolutely rocked.
BC is back in action on June 29 for a divisional matchup with the Edmonton Eskimos.
Main image credit:
Embed from Getty Images
