Can we just hit the "re-set" button to this CFL season already??

With apologies to fans whose clubs are 2-0, I would love to go back and erase the start of the 2019 and start over. It has been somewhat of an unmitigated disaster.

  • [b]The Lawrence cheap shot on Collaros[/b] that is sticking around like a bad rash due to appeal instead of manning up and accepting a 2-gamer.
    
  • [b]The poor gate to start the season[/b] in just about every market, save Ottawa. 24K in Edmonton for Mike Reilly’s return following an impressive first game? Sure, nearly 17K is pretty good for the Argos, but how many Ti-Cat fans bumped that number? It looked like huge swaths of seats were occupied by black and gold supporters. True, the Riders haven’t played a home game yet….but neither have the Als.
    
  • [b]The seeming lack of hype by the league.[/b] Did their investment in 2.0 come at the expense of good old-fashioned marketing and promotion? Even TSN just seemed to start televising games without a lot of great, exciting promo clips. Just watched Fox tease out the Women’s World Cup game with a creative promo video and exciting highlight package to the song “These Boots Are Made For Walking.? It’s not rocket science.
    
  • [b]Few compelling games. Take your pick.[/b] 64-14 and a team that looked hopelessly out of shape? 39-23 and an O-coordinator that seemed pathologically incapable of mitigating the pass rush? (the obvious exception being the “bombs away? Sask at Ottawa track meet featuring two emerging QBs).
    
  • [b]The league’s most fragile markets a combined 0-[/b][b]4.[/b] It’s early, I know. Only seven games. I just don’t like what I am seeing and the beating the league is taking on social media. I’m pining for the days of July 1 regular season launches and some hype surrounding it.

Fixed.

Even if repeat offender??

Nope not at all. Repeat offender could get 2 games like Kyries Hebert did.
Simoni isn’t a repeat offender so 1 game would have been enough

At this point it’s all a moot point with opinions of what his discipline will be.

At appeal it will either be up held or set aside or reduced.

It won’t be ZC who has to live with the fall out , rather all the remaining QB’s.

The appeal will determine to a large extent of how serious the cfl can be about head shots and if any real deterrent exists now.

Not suggesting Lawrence made the hit knowing the penalty would be minor In any way shape or form - in any level perceived or imagined ( hope that’s clear enough for those looking for an angle ).

What I’m referring to are the players out there that WOULD play in this manner , and there are some.

They seemingly want to set the bar higher … still likely (?) to be reduced to one game on appeal … starting at one game might be reduced to a max fine … CFL, ideally in consultation with CFLPA, needs to announce the higher standard for player safety reasons and apply it on a go-forward basis.

If this is the bar for 1 game and not 2 games…then it doesn’t leave a lot of room for applying suspensions at all really…first time for someone or not. It essentially says that most things are only a fine. There are a lot of things that happen that deserve a game off that are lesser than this.

I think the CFL laid out exactly why this was a higher penalty and did so pretty well…to set the standard essentially. The PA disagreed…so tough to announce a higher standard. The CFL is trying to show a zero tolerance and set the example moving forward. Unfortunately, they also shot themselves in the foot with the Rose thing. That should have been a game. A minor but totally inappropriate contact to the official…1 game. a late and dangerous hit to the helmet 2 games. IMO those penalties, in comparison, are appropriate…but if this is one game, then an instance of that first one should be scaleable to it…so a fine…and IMO it warranted a game.

That said…the PA is not wrong in lashing out at the CFL encouraging no appeal…that is not cool. They could have said a lot of what they did and not went there…but they were setting up future potential litigation IMO…Well documented escalations of punishment for dangerous plays and the PA backlashing it bodes well for potential litigation in the future…‘we tried’

I’ve found most of the games so far very entertaining.

As far as the three largest markets going 0-4, well, who’s fault is that? So a season should only count when the biggest markets are competitive?

Frankly, I’m sick and tired of the largest market being catered to by the league “because they’re too big to fail.” I’ve seen enough of Rocket Ismail, Doug Flutie, the sham Ricky Ray trade, etc.

Exactly… the 2012 Argos 100th Grey Cup fix. Ricky Ray to Toronto for a sack of potatoes

Gee maybe Ambrosie can implement a new ruling that states that while 6 teams still make the play-offs that regardless of W/L record Montreal , Toronto and BC automatically qualify for the post season and all of them get home play-off dates as well . Just because , well ya know , they are large and all and of course special needs and they can’t seem to help themselves and they do need our help and…::slight_smile: ::slight_smile: ::).

It’s kinda funny but no one was concerned or gave a damn when the Cats were banging out anywhere from 1 to 5 win seasons from 03 to 08 or the Bombers when they were dreadful a few years back from 2012 to 2015 . But then again they’re not what one would consider “Big Market” teams so I guess in the grand scale of things they’re somewhere in the middle of the pecking order when it comes to importance in this league .

He’ll no!

Who’s he?

???

I think the CFL is trying to set the minimum for head shots at 2 games for non “repeat offenders” … the appeal apparently is based on that being at odds with precedent and that no notice of the “new standard” was provided to players.

I kind of like how this season has started - other than the Simoni thing. (For clarity, it’s the dirty hit I didn’t like, not the league’s punishment or Burris’ reaction.)

Fleeting as it may be, I can’t remember the last time my team (HAM) was 4 points ahead of CAL in the standings. It was probably 2004.

You’re completely missing the point. Of course 0-4 is their own doing. Nobody is saying Tor, Mtl and BC deserve any kind of favoritism. None has been given (at least, not to the Lions that I am even remotely aware of). Simply stating that for the biggest media markets, business centres, and population bases the league is trying to attract, it is not great for the overall health of the league for them to be winless.

If you deny that then respectfully, you’re completely myopic.

yes, not exactly a rip roaring start to the season is it now?

Oh, I understand exactly what you’re saying. However, it’s no reason to wish to restart the season. The league is solid in other markets. This league has bent over backwards for ONE market in particular and it has gotten them nowhere.
Let the sponsors and business opportunities come to the league because it is strong nationwide not because the local team playing two skyscrapers away is pummelling the Podunks and Backwaters of the league.

So far we have a new Qb playing well in Ottawa ( Davis ) and the Stamps have shown some vulnerability .

One of the best games I have seen in awhile with Ottawa and Sask .

Cats and Esks are doing well . Bombers played well .

Depends on your team .

Argos have time with MLSE .

lions have time with Braley or whoever comes calling .

Als have suitors so to me it’s all good .

Can’t agree.

Out of the 7 games played, I have enjoyed watching 5 of them.

Even the Hamilton and Toronto game though a train wreck, was worth watching just to see how many different ways hamilton was going to score.

CFL could be dealing with a Raptor hangover from sport fans. With all the marketing and promos on both sports network, not to mention news shows, you couldn’t get away from it if you tried.

Agreed, but we have a few here that will crap on the CFL no matter what they do. Ottawa has 500 under a sell-out and they are about to fold etc.