Our CFL on CBC commentator talked to Sports Online about the strengths and weaknesses of the Grey Cup competitors.
MONTREAL OFFENCE
|
What makes them tick is the
time Anthony Calvillo get to pass. If you look, he takes one
of the deepest drops of any quarterback in the CFL. He'll
take a shotgun snap at seven yards and drop another three
or four yards back and that gives him time to get his reads.
His offensive line is also key -- four or five of them were
East Division all-stars this year. Calvillo has time from
his offensive line and he's probably got the best slotback
combinations in the league in (Jeremaine) Copeland and (Ben)
Cahoon. The CFL game is always an inside-out game, QBs like
to look at their slots first, then their wideouts. The other
thing is Calvillo calls his own plays. When you're a quarterback
and you're able to think ahead and plan, quite often you can
call a better game than one sent in from the sideline or the
spotter's box.
Impact player:
Calvillo. He hasn't had great Novembers and his playoff numbers
drop off considerably as opposed to his regular season numbers.
Last week he probably had his best (post-season) game, but
it was still mediocre by his standards. So with all the weapons
the Als have - they haven't got a running game, but they have
speedy backs who can get them the yards when they call on
it - when you have all these weapons and you can't pull the
trigger, it's useless. It all depends on Anthony. |
EDMONTON OFFENCE
|
They've got a young quarterback
in Ricky Ray who seems to have figured it all out in his sophomore
year. It's phenomenal. Look at Calvillo, he's in his 10th
year. It's only been in the last few that's he's started to
click. Edmonton has one of the best passing attacks in the
league. That's what makes them go. (Mike) Pringle had 1300
yards rushing this year, but if you look at it, he's a finisher,
he's the guy they need to get the second down or the goal-line
plunges. They have probably the fastest receiver in the league
in Ed Hervey. And of course, they've got Terry Vaughn who
is small and underestimated. He's like a bowling ball who
runs like a chicken - he's hard to catch. The Eskimos' passing
game will determine where they go in this game.
Impact player(s):
Ed Hervey and Terry Vaughn. Hervey is big, he's fast and it's
what he does when he catches the ball that makes people nervous
on defence. And Vaughn, once he gets the ball, his yards after
the catch are what make him so phenomenal. Those two guys
are their keys. |
MONTREAL DEFENCE
|
The Alouettes are the pressure defence.
They're the team that brings the heat and tries to make the
quarterback feel uncomfortable. The theory is that an uncomfortable
quarterback won't think clearly or won't perform at his best.
They like to blitz, they led the league in blitzing and it's
a high-risk defence. Now, this game there could be some interesting
chinks in that armour in that they're going to start two rookies
at cornerback. They've decided to take Wayne Shaw and Omar
Evans out and put DJ Johnson on one corner and Brandon Williams
on the other. It will be Williams' second start and he's never
played against Edmonton. So, I think we're looking at a secondary
that's shaken up, where chemistry might be questionable and
I think it might be a track meet between Hervey and Vaughn
against these young guys.
Impact player:
The spotlight will be on the two rookies. They have so
many key guys, but I would have to say that Kevin Johnson,
their veteran middle linebacker, will be their impact player.
|
EDMONTON DEFENCE
|
Edmonton has a real solid, big defence.
Their front four are all really big. You have Kelvin Kinney
who's six-foot-seven. You're looking at Calvillo having to
throw through a forest. If he can get his passing lanes that
will help, but he still has that big, powerful front to get
through. Also, the Eskimos have a secondary that is known
to be very aggressive. (Alouettes coach) Don Matthews has
already tried to advise the officials of all the holding and
interference that goes on there. He's already trying to soften
up the secondary because he knows that's where the game will
be won or lost. Shannon Garrett is probably the best cover
man in the CFL. Most quarterbacks will say that and most QBs
won't test him.
Impact player:
Garrett is their key guy to shut down the Als passing game.
Rahim Abdullah, the defensive end, is key. He's fast, he's
got great hands and he's the kind of guy that can get into
Calvillo's face. |
MONTREAL SPECIAL TEAMS
|
Montreal has Keith Stokes and he's pretty dangerous. He's returned one punt this year for a touchdown and last year he had three. The last two years he's started fast and tapered off. In recent weeks, Matthews has advised him not to get too fancy. Stokes can be a gamebreaker. Matthews is a smart guy when it comes to special teams - he spends a lot of time on it. Last week, the Als shut down Bashir Levingston. They punted to him, kicked to him, didn't try to keep the ball away from him and ultimately they shut him down.
Impact player:
Stokes. He is a live wire. |
EDMONTON SPECIAL TEAMS
|
Winston October is interesting because one
year ago he cleared out his locker the day before the game
because he was told he wasn't going to be starting, that there
had been a roster change. He's been their kick return threat
and now he gets a chance to play in the Grey Cup. I think
he'll be awfully motivated to make an impact. The other guy
is Mike Bradley who ran a kickoff back for a touchdown this
year, he's a Canadian kid. He could be the dark horse.
Impact player:
October. The motivation is there. |
WHAT DO THE ALS NEED TO DO TO REPEAT AS CHAMPS?
|
| They need to capitalize on their big plays. Last year, Calvillo was 11-of-31 in passing. The Als need to hold onto the ball to keep Ricky Ray off the field and they need to generate a consistent offence. They can't rely on a couple big plays here and there to bail themselves out. |
WHAT DO THE ESK NEED TO DO TO BECOME CHAMPS?
|
| The Eskimos need to beat the blitz. They
need to take Montreal out of their blitz package and start
dictating the terms on offence. Montreal's defence has always
thrived on setting the agenda and making other teams make
adjustments. The teams that have been successful are teams
that have been able to get the ball in behind the blitz and
into the secondary. The Eskimos believe that the Alouettes
don't tackle well in the secondary, so the intermediate passing
game for Edmonton will be huge. |
MARK LEE'S PREDICTION
|
| What's interesting is that everyone is favouring
Edmonton. I'm going to pick Montreal by a field goal, 27-24. |
| |
