The Good, the Bad and the So-So

Hamilton Tiger-Cats
1

I guess the question that alot of fans might want to ask is 'Which Ticat Team is Going to Show up on Thursday?"

-The 'good" team that walked over the A***s?

-The 'bad' team that got steamrollered in the season opener?

-The so -so that basically had the injured Riders on the ropes, but thru missed tackles and dumb penalties allowed a home win to get away?

Are the Cat's as good as they were in week 2? Probably not. Are they as bad as they were in week 1? Certainly not.

I think the Cats are a team were a very bad football team in 2007 but have made huge strides in players and attitude over the off-season and will continue to do so over the course of the next 15 games. Of course, they should continue to evaluate the playing an coaching staff, because even with all the new names on the roster, there are still quite a few players from last year's roster that may be "weaker links".

High points so far:

Jesse, Jesse and Jesse. Looked tentative and nervous in game one. Logical enough cause he was rusty and coming off major shoulder surgery. A physical back like him needs to run with reckless abandon. Week 2 and 3 showed us what he can do when he does.

Woodcock and Bauman. These guys have been nice surprises, specially Pat. Woodcock has been making tough catches over the middle, something that he has been unable to do even in his so called "best years' in Montreal. Bauman is starting to live up to his potential. Good for him.

Low points

If the Cats D doesn't improve pronto, Jesse's heroics won't matter. So-so againts the run, ranked last in most pass defense categories. not all of the secondary's fault either...the DLine hasn't been able to get in the face of too many QBs so far. Take a Ray or a Calvillo or a Burris and give him that extra second and well....you see what a rookie third stringer can do. McKay Loesher and Moreno, two mainstays of the 2007 D have been having problems out there. I think they miss Armour more than they are letting on.

In general, the weakness of the D has been the result of a team effort, LBs, Lineman and Secondary, specially at safety.

Pass protection from the Oline has been brutal. Printers has taken a lot of big hits.

The So-So

Casy Printers rode into town on a white stallion promising to lead the Cats into respectability. So far, the results have been mixed, but it's not all his fault. its hard to be effective when you are running for your life. Casey isn't a great pocket passer, his strength is improvising and throwing on the run, but he is being hit hard 3-4 times a game and it's starting to show. The Cats still havent thrown a TD pass this year. You can get away from this every once in a while when you have a Jesse, but as we saw in game one, even JL can be shut down every once in a while. In my opinion, Printers isn't nearly as quick as he was in his BC days.

Tony Miles isn't a go to guy...never was never will be. He can be a valuable asset when used correctly but he wont make that clutch grab with a LB on his back like Cahoon, or break a game open like Geroy or Milt. Watkins for Giguere maybe???? You GOTTA give a QB like Casey some tools to work with.

Setta.....well we have all heard the laces out/ we want Chang back stories...who knows, maybe there true. Ask the kicker from the A***s about what happens when a kicker loses his confidence.

So where does this leave the Cats as they head into Calgary. Galgary squeaked out a win in Montreal after giving up 400 yds in the first half. Burris, whens he's on is just as good as Casey when it comes to manufacturing and improvising. The Calgary D shut down the best offense in the league in the second half. They will be a tough team to beat if they repeat their week 3 performance.

I guess it all depends on which Ticat team shows up.....

2

ok you you have certainly put a lot of thought into this. I agree with some and disagree with others. But one point I disagree with the most is that Lumsden was shut down in the game against the Als. He wasn't shut down, they just, once again, failed to go to him enough. The Cats fell into the trap of falling behind and thinking the only way they can get back in the game is by going to the air. They seem to have learned their lesson and hopefully the Cat OC now knows that they can win on the ground.

3

No, he was shut down.

He had about 9 rushes at an average that is about half of what it was for the next two games.

4

Yea and after the first half of Saturday's game Lumsden had the same yardage with a similar touch count. It wasn't until the second half when they started going to him more that he broke it open. it's just a matter of time with JL but you have to give him the ball to give him a chance to break them open.

5

That's a good point.

6

Actually I agree with you.

7

Some good analysis and a lot of blah, blah, blah. Printers is the real deal. You'll see.

8

Printers is the real deal. He is just getting back into form. it is only game, 4 coming up. So he overthrew a couple passes. He also looked great on a couple plays. That scramble and pass to Woodcock(of course he made an excellent grab) Also, I think it was a misread on that pass to Tre Smith. He would have been gone for sure. Printers has got a great arm. The way the receivers are coming along. You will definately see some td passes from Printers very soon.

9

Never said Printers wasnt the real deal..

Just can't do it all by himself, specially if he can't generate offence with his legs as well as he used to

10

Right. They were terrible last year and have made some good strides this year but still have weaknesses, which is fine. I'm not expecting a Grey Cup team. I expect 8 or 9 wins and to be competitive every game like they were last game. If they do that, nobody can be disappointed.

Yes, they are missing Armour. The D-line was not improved by that move, which was the stated reason for not signing him: ratio. Knowlton may have been a great addition IF we had kept Armour. However, the front seven is weaker than last year, making it tough on the improved secondary.

It's gonna take another year, maybe two for this team to be championship contenders but I like what I have seen so far.

11

Lumsden is most efficient in a second half, where the opposing D starts to tire. But agreed he must see action in the first half, it would be best to see some plays with both him and Smith in the backfield.
Different game in Game #3 if the receivers had been on the same page as Casey, and/or if Jesse doesn’t fumble, which keeps the D on the pine a lot more. I grant you the D isn’t as good as it would be with Armour, but they are not “that” bad!
Lifter

12

I don't think the D are that bad ... I agree they are missing Armour ... esp Moreno. Zeke needs some help out there other O Lines are keyed on Zeke knowing that he runs the D and if he's free he's tackling. (Not just tackling but TAKING DOWN not just hitting and rolling off ... that seemed to be the biggest problem I saw in Sat's game)

13

The Good: We looked competitive.

The Bad: We lost.

The So so: I admit I can't really do so-so.