As a “declared die-hard Tiger-Cats fan? I do declare the following:
(Ahem)
We lost last night because we made more mistakes than the Stampeders.
We lost last night because we played a 40-yard-deep prevent defence with under a minute to play.
We lost last night because our offence couldn’t account for ANY scoring.
We lost last night because Jamie Boreham has proven YET AGAIN that he no longer belongs to wear the uniform of the team that I love.
We lost last night because the ball-control offence, while great for time-of-possession, was totally inadequate in actually getting first downs and extending drives.
We lost last night because we made too many bone-headed penalties (Ralph offside again…).
We lost last night because we gave up too many yards to the Stampeders.
We lost last night because, once again, the officiating was atrocious.
Now, for the flip side:
Craig Yeast had a very good game receiving. He does show, however, that he is inferior when it comes to punt and kick returning. YOU DO NOT let the ball bounce in front of you on a punt. YOU DO run forward immediately after fielding the ball, and not dance around like a puppet on strings. Good job protecting the ball, though.
What can I say about Jason Goss? A 109-yard interception returned for a touchdown. Outstanding!
Tay Cody – this man was all over the field making plays, whether it be on pass coverage, or laying a thunderous hit on a RB. I am liking this guy more and more.
Bobby Brooks – I thought he played very well, a definite improvement over Auggie. He made some big hits, and, if we had any type of pass-rush or run stopping ability on our D-line, would have had much more of an impact. Oh, there is the fact that he made the heads-up play of returning a fumble for a TD.
Josh Ranek – The “little ball of hate? gave us an inkling of what his capabilities are. Excellent hands out of the backfield, and some very smooth running behind and through his blockers.
Julian Radlein – I’m VERY glad he was used more. Again, good hands out of the backfield, and good blocking (can’t make up for the O-line though).
Terry Vaughn also had a great game receiving and getting much needed YAC. A very under-rated trade by Mr. Katz, IMHO.
THE UGLY
Late hit on Maas – no flag. Pass interference in the 4th quarter – the zebra blew it, the Calgary player hauled down our DB and was awarded a defensive penalty for it. Absolutely disgusting. As an “owner? of this team, I demand that the powers-that-be take this up with the League officials and work with them to improve the officiating of these games.
D.J. Flick – I counted 3 ass attempts to him. One was over-thrown, one was picked off, and I can’t remember the third (maybe it was only two). He is a premier WR in this league, and it seems that he is being ignored by our offensive scheme (or “scam?).
Prevent defence – Coach Reed blew that one. Of course, if Boreham had actually shown that he has a pair and made that FG, or the late hit penalty actually being called, or our offence actually scoring some points, we wouldn’t have had to play so passively.
D-line – Where was our vaunted pass rush? Without James Cotton on the field, Cheatwood looks ordinary. We got absolutely NO surge up the middle by Belli and Peterson. Our front four were manhandled all game.
All-in-all, it was a very winnable game. There are some mistakes that have to be corrected, some coaching decisions that must be addressed, and a kicker that should be looking for a day job.
Let’s sort out this mess, and get ready for Montreal.