9 and 9 Again is this really a better Team

Same Record as 2009 9 and 9 Is this team really any better ?

Thoughts ??

Yes, stats are a funny thing. 9-9 again. Even the Argos finished 9-9, and B.C. was only 1 win behind us.

But, to answer your question, I think the Tiger-Cats are a better team than last year's only if they win this Sunday. That, and that alone, wil be the deciding fatcor if they are better or not than last year.

.... apparantly they are much better because Mosca is now chief advisor, cook and bottle washer ...... :wink: :wink:

(sorry guys, I just couldn't resist) :lol:

NOPE ... UNLESS THEY WIN ON SUNDAY

I am afraid of the Argos ... if we are the least bit complacent we will not win.

They can win a game on one play. We will need to be razor sharp in every aspect of our effort.

I think we are alot better than last year.
This team can beat anyone if they show up and give it there all.

If I compare this day (the Monday after the final game of the 2010 regular season) to the same day related to the 2009 season, I have to say no. Better talent, yes. Better team, no.

makaveli: I wish I could come up with an original response to you but I can’t. So I will have to repeat Bill Parcells’ comment about this…“you are what your record is.”
Can’t top that one.

Im not telling you were an amazing team…
But I will tell you I think we can beat any team.

The cats problem this year is they have been streaky, they will look great and then fall apart. But when they hold it together for a full 60 minutes it looks great!

Coming from the guy (Bill Parcells, not you) that spent an entire press conference complaining about his team after they won in a blowout after a game. (I can’t recall when it happened, but he was coach of the Cowboys at the time.)

Are the Cats better? That all depends on how they do in the playoffs. A win this weekend is imperative. After years of 4-14 finishes, I am happy to settle for 9-9 in back-to-back seasons. The Cats at least compete with the other teams now. That is not something we could have said two, three, four seasons ago.

I am happy with the trajectory of this team. Perhaps last season the Cats overachieved, and this season they improved in some areas, but not all, but the record stayed the same. I think next season will be key to answering what type of team this is. Another 9-9 year and I might not be as happy. But this year, I’ll take a 9-9, second-place finish with a home date against the Argos on Sunday.

Right on, Cap’n!!

Like the little girl with the curl, 'Cats are either very very good or horrid. Let's hope the very very good team shows up for the next three games.

Toronto and BC seem to be peaking at the right time. Oh to have Wally as our coach. I think we have the horses but not the direction. I still blame coaching for at least three of our losses. I do see some changes for the better, some plays are to our team strengths, unfortunately many are copies of plays from Coles Notes for teams with other strong points.

In the long run I think the Caretaker got took for the coaches pay.

Re: 9 and 9 Again is this really a better Team

Nope, lost to BC again
Are the Arg’s better that B.C ?

If Glen is out , so are the Ti Cats.
Porter is to rusty, Traffalis :oops:

The F.A__ kicker took him for sure!!
What if they need a 45yd or longer f g ???
Swirling wind in I.W. :roll: The wind blows west to east 90% of the time.

As far as the offence goes....how can we expect to be much better than last year when the same offensive co-ordinator is still running the show? We have had a few good offensive games this year but too many that were predictable and unimaginative.
So it should be no surprise that this years record is the same as last year, despite some more talented players. DeAngelis is another story though.
I am afraid with Mike Gibson, we have reached our potential.

Are the Ticats a better team. Tough question but the simple answer would be no. The Cats still look good against mediocre teams and struggle against good teams for the most part. The Ticats faced a team on the brink of elimination this past week and let them steal the game much the same as last year's semi final against the very same team. I think the building blocks to be a better team are there but the fact is we aren't. We still need to find a QB that can win the big game and a coaching staff that can think creatively on offense. On defense we still need to find some consistency in the backfield and on special teams we need to find a single kicker to do both duties if we have to waste an import spot on a punter

I would agree with this. Sunday will be the proof.

Tom: It depends how the Cats do in the playoffs. The team is still wildly inconsistent in results for game to game, month to month. It has reached a ceiling as arguably #1A or #2 of the second tier if you weigh their season against that of Saskatchewan. They simply have not been as consistent as Montreal or Calgary if you examine the season to date as a whole.

Do I think they have the potential to win the Grey Cup? I believe so because if you look at the overall roster, we have the playmakers on both sides of the ball to challenge. However, we are too often out-coached and out-adjusted and when you look at what wins at playoff time, it’s a question of preparation which leads to good execution. Mike Gibson has perhaps the most productive offense for a playcalling liability in the modern history of Canadian football. Apart from the Montreal crushing at IWS, I believe one can look at EVERY OTHER GAME and see whole sections of them – quarters, halves, whole deals – where there is nada, zippo! I’m not discussing execution lapses here. I’m talking about what Caretaker was getting at after the Calgary debacle:

[my emphasis]

[url=http://forums.cfl.ca/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=62249&hilit=Caretaker#p1054175]viewtopic.php?f=5&t=62249&hilit=Caretaker#p1054175[/url]

A well-prepared team can pretty much neutralize what Gibson calls, particularly in the running game. It IS more than Cobb being hesitant before the hole. It’s a predictable shotgun draw running rubric coupled with a predictable everyone stay-in-their-lanes use of pre-snap motion and very static vertical routes.

What game displayed the power of this offense? The Montreal “statement” game of course. Thigpen running loose in the secondary running crossing routes, Cobb catching balls DOWNFIELD…effective draw plays going against Gibson’s tendencies and the two-headed monster look of Cobb and Thiggy in the backfield. In short, a masterpiece.

Since then? CRICKETS. If I do not see that kind of imagination and guile from Mike Gibson this playoff run, we will be done. Maybe as early as Sunday. If we do not win the EDSF, Gibson’s tenure as OC in Hamilton has to be seriously evaluated by Obie and Marcel going forward. Being counter-intuitive to your successes in crunch time is an endorsement of mediocrity. We get too clever for ourselves too often and you see it in how the approach goes back to the same old, same-old-time-to-Google-what-a-crossing-pattern-is-again deal we get from Gibson.

I won’t even dwell on the Thiggy scorching Montreal and then…"sit down son, they aren’t punting yet’ garbage for two games. IF HE ISN’T HURT, IT’S GARBAGE FOLKS! :wink:

It’s Greg Marshall’s soft zone vanilla fests too – it’s a safety-first “easy reads for Glenn” system on offense meeting a safety-first “easy to dissect” defensive approach that our secondary plays. Look, I know we are banged up in the back end. BUT…you do not play ten yards off a receiver…okay Bo Smith does that…but you know what I mean! When you have a GREAT front seven, you find ways to mix more man coverage and combination zones that just some “we surrender, bend and don’t break until we break” style defence. I remember what Stubler ran here in the 80s and what Sudsy did with Ron. You challenge the opposing quarterback. You take away his easy hot options as the front four exerts pressure. You mix in jamming of receivers at the line. Confusion, a steamboat’s extra hesitancy. Meet Mr. Baggs…

YOU DO NOT HAVE YOUR SAFETY COME UP TWELVE YARDS, STOP AND STUTTER STEP “HERE I AM, MR. BLITZER!” Anthony Calvillo and Henry Burris will KILL YOU DEEP. It’s static and so anti-tendency that even I can pick the gap Dylan goes to! I’m a fan FFS!

Execution breakdowns have crept into many of the games. A lot of drops by receivers (Cobb last game was poor) at key times cost us. Sandro’s kicking issues at the beginning of the season were a problem. Defensively, times where form tackling was a memory when guys are too far out of position to lay out a killshot, so we got arm tackling nightmares. Too many times where DBs and CBs lose track of the ball on deep passes. Again, if you are not engaging the opponent, playing it too safe, you do not put your playmakers in a position to make plays. You get receivers in wrong spots adding to Glenn’s errant throws, you see corners and DBs in chase mode in gaping zones where miscommunication contributes to breakdowns, etc. etc. etc.

Be clear: this team CAN win what the coaching element of this team puts the right guys in the right position to play. What you see with Trestman and Hufnagel most weeks. Our offense can blow the doors off any team in the league if we show originality and utilize our weapons (calling THE weapon Mr. Thigpen) well. Our front seven is arguably in the best-in-the-league convo on paper after the Baggs acquisition. Our special team units have been solid practically the whole year.

Folks, we are this – >< – close if the team is prepared to win these next three games. I eagerly await to see whether our coach and coordinators can distill and process the lessons of this season, gameplan with cunning, and TAKE A FREAKING CHANCE once in a while. I’m not referring to Glenn chucking it to Bruce by the Cadillac wayyyy dowwwwn therrrre. Simply deciding to pressure the opponent and changing the culture that has hung over this franchise since the 1999 championship season.

Let the lads play and we can win on November 28th.

Oski Wee Wee,

Russ

5,100 passing yards, nearly 3 1,000 yard WR's, fewest sacks allowed league wide, we swept the Arblows to hang onto the ballard cup, we finished with a higher sack total than last year and made a massive addition to the team in Stevie Baggs and we finally found our return game.So to answer the threads question, YES this is a better team than last years.

I agree, better team with average coaching, reason for the 9-9 record. Lets see if Marcel has an imagination this game. Frankly I think there is a very good chance we will have our hands full with Barker and his crew this sunday.

8)

We have a better team but our coaches are neutralizing our talent with bonehead calls and an inability to make adjustments. I am slowly preparing myself for the inevitable outcoaching that will surely take place Sunday and result in an early exit by one of the most talented teams in the CFL this year.