Am I the only one who believe's this? Everywhere, the stadium, on the streets etc, everyone is blaming Anthony Calvillo on this current slump.
In my opinion, It's not Calvillo's fault that Edwards' drops the ball in key situations, the receivers drop the ball on a regular basis. Of course Calvillo did make mistakes this season, but surely not enough to cause a 4 game losing streak!
The only thing that worries me about Calvillo this year is his inability to keep his players' attitudes up. After that Edwards "fumble" the other night, the team shouldn't have folded so quickly. They didn't get a bounce back in their steps until the deep ball to Watkins. Calvillo needs to produce more of those moments to keep the team up and ready to win games.
I keep trying to remind myself that all four losses have been to very hot teams. I won't truly sweat until the Als drop games to Saskatchewan, Winnipeg, and Edmonton. If that happens, it'll be a tough road to the Cup.
I agree, Also the fact that any adjustments made by the coaching staff has not changed the teams attitude in the second half of the games. In the winning streak the Als played so so football in the first half but came out for the second half and took control of the game. We are not seeing that now. Coaching has something to do with this slump and the receivers have not come to the rescue of their QB at times.
I also agree. I don't blame Anthony at all. In my section, people cuss out Calvillo when he gets sacked :roll: Is it his fault that he doesn't get the time he needs to do his read steps?
Defensively, I understand that they are on the field for the most part, but they have to make an adjustment. They play too deep. So, like usual, the opposing Quarterbacks have all day in the pocket, watches his receivers go deep, then dumps it off 5 yards and theres no one near to make the tackle cause they are all 20 yards deep.
I also agree this is not Cavillio's fault.
My opinon is the deffence is to predictable they are running like chickens with there heads cut off. They cannot contain a mobile QB even Buck Pierce who looked like the next Calvillo and they cant stop the run. They need to get rid og Green ans start using Brady more.
There is a certain amount of this that falls on Calvillo's shoulders. He calls our offensive plays and particularly last game he looked to be stuck in only a small handful of plays. While part of this is because the receivers have not been giving him reason to have enough confidence in them to throw anything deep or run any confusing routes it is up to the coaches to work with calvillo and for popp and matthews to find some receivers that Calvillo feels confident in to throw the deep ball to or work with our current receivers on how to run proper deep routes so the offense isnt as predictable.
The defence has a lot of problems when Strickland isnt there and the best thing for them would be to keep the same group together on the field so that they can learn each others tendencies and work better as a unit with or without strickland
I don't think the Defence is that much more solid even when Strickland is in the lineup.
I think the Defence was so good in the first 7 games is simply, the opponents had a weak attack.
That teams must find a way to play with heart. I would dream to see our guys play like the Stamps do. Calgary fans are treated with some high quality football these days.
It is not Calvillo's fault we lost four in a row. However, he did not help much overturn the slump. Our main problems, according to me, are:
Our o-line is playing really sub-par. It was owned by BC while BC almost never blitzed. If you can't stop the front four, not only is your QB under pressure, but there's still a ton on people dropped in coverage, which makes no real option for the QB.
We are too predictable. We go deep about twice a game, we never give the ball to Vilimek nor Piercy, the QB doesn't run unless its a broken play (and still...), Edwards runs up the middle on about 96 % of his carries, etc. Add to that the lack of execution, and you clearly see why we can't sustain a drive.
On defence, we can't get to the opposing QB in time to make the sack, and most of our cover guys miss tackles. Oh, and we keep allowing short passes in the middle. I really don't know what's with that, but our midfield is constantly opened.
I think our only player we can't blame for anything this season is Damon Duval.
Third, that's a pretty fair estimate. I've been seeing our O-line get beat by four rushing or even THREE rushing all too often this season, and it has to change. I know Mudge's injury changed things a bit, but we have got to be able to give Calvillo time to find targets downfield.
It takes 12 men working together to make things work but some positions bear more responsibility.
Cavillo must bear the greatest responsibility for a number of reasons. He calls his owns plays. He has abandoned the running game in effect creating an unbalanced offense. His current playbook is replete with schemes that have be done to death over the years with little or no creativity or imagination to keep the defense guessing. He has become as predicatable as Tracy Ham had been in the last few years of his career. To be effective, he will need to change up his play calls and get the running game going early. He needs to exhibit more patience by sticking with a shorter passing game until the long ball potential opens up. I also believe that he needs to start seeking more input and direction from the O.C. A pocket passing QB with limited mobility can not produce in this league if he doesn't use all of his weapons. Danny Mac (probably the only QB less mobile than Cavillo) does that by using a balanced offensive approach and having one of the quickest releases ever.
On the offensive line, there is no doubt that their armour has cracked a bit over the last 2 or 3 games and needs to be shored up (Dave Mudge... you are missed!) but this is still the line (for the most part) that has been considered among the best time and time again. As I have mentioned in other posts - I have no doubt that this has mostly resulted from the lack of a running game. O-Linemen love to and are conditioned to run block, even in the pass happy CFL. It is a pure 'attack' mode for them. Pass blocking requires more effort, skill and patience and is more 'defensive' by nature (not as much fun). Running the ball gives the O-Line a chance to punish and wear down the opposition (a good confidence boost particualrly if the running game succeds). When the d-line is less aggressive out of a need to defend a possible run, the QB and receivers will, more often then not, have more time to connect. Likewise, when a running game is being established, linebackers tend to play tighter to the line which also opens up passing lanes/routes. It is a balanced approach that the Alouettes' once lived by and were successful with. They need to return to that idealogy while adding a few new wrinkles to the playbook just as they have been doing on special teams.
The defense is one that is hard to understand. They have all of the tools and weapons and can be absolutely dominant one play, and invisible the next. With the exception of Stewart, rush end is a concern. Someone needs to step up and take over the other end spot and put a stop to this constant shuffling in and out of personel. Truluck can domniate if he stays healthy and disciplined... the lack of the latter being his downfall the previous 2 games or so. The Als' also need to find a way to get Kai Ellis in more regularly and at a set position, be it on the end or at linebacker. The secondary has the talent but lack of pressure up front and by the linebackers will not help them... Karikari has been a flop this year. The Als D is going to need to find itself quickly if they are going to make it to the big game out in Winterpeg!