Win Over Hapless Als May be Costly

First the good news. Much improved play by the offensive line and better schemes by Chappy, to get the ball out of Lulay's hand quicker. Great night for the BC defense, who didn't skip a beat without Elimimian. Newcomers Jermaine Reid and Chris Wilson made their presence felt up front and the secondary really played well, especially Dante marsh and Cord parks.. A solid night for the BC special teams, especially Tim Brown, who looked dangerous on most returns and got the Lions great field position on kickoff returns. Another solid performance by Paul McCallum, during his 300th CFL game. What a milestone!

The bad news? According to Lowell Ullrich in the Province the day after the game, Lulay suffered a "shoulder subluxation". In layman's terms, that's a dislocated right shoulder, not just a stinger or a hard shot on the shoulder as we'd hoped. Apparently number 14 let out a world class primal scream, after head athletic trainer Bill Reichelt popped his right shoulder back into its socket. I understand that is very painful, and you could see the strain on Lulay's face, plus some disappointment. Let's hope it is as minor as possible. According to a few medical websites I read before writing this piece, a typical recuperation time for a shoulder subluxation is 12 to 16 weeks for the average human. Probably considerably less for a guy like Lulay, young, very strong, highly motivated and in great shape.

Playoffs start in 8 weeks, so hopefully the Lions' pivot is good to go a couple weeks before then. If the Lions can put on a push in the last two months they might get him an extra week of rest by finishing first. To do so, they'll have to win the season series against Saskatchewan and Calgary and not crap the bed against Edmonton and Winnipeg.

This week could only have gone better if Lulay hadn't got hurt and Edmonton hadn't won. Both the Stamps and Riders got beat in front of their home crowds, leaving BC just one game back in the west. That should give the team plenty of added motivation for Sunday's road game in Mosaic. With 7 wins and winning the season series against the Eskimos, no more than three additional BC wins will clinch them no worse than third in the west, so probably no pressing need to get Travis back before he's healthy.

With Cory Sheets injured, both Saskatchewan and BC will be without their best player next Sunday. So we'll see whether Demarco and/or Buck can finally beat somebody significant on the road. At least they'll only go one time zone east to do it.

Go Leos.

Dooger in Surrey :cowboy:

Yes, injuries I don't like to see no matter what team the player plays for [entertainment is important IMO]. Lulay is a make it happen QB [unfortunate injury] and do hope he has a successful recovery. On the Riders side Rey and Sheets plus a number of players for other teams hurt, however it does give back-up players a chance to make their mark on a learning curve too so to speak. All in all, I wish the Lions well moving forward.

On a positive note, most backup quarterbacks have exceeded expectations in 2013. Perhaps, better talent and training than in the past? Underrated DeMarco looked good in the Montreal game. Also underrated Pierce is an upgrade on Elliott. Since Lulay has been mediocre this season, there might not be a big dropoff in productivity.

Thought I'd add a brief update my post above. Yesterday in the Vancouver Sun they reported the team acknowledged Lulay suffered a shoulder subluxation. They claim he'll miss at least two starts which may prove to be somewhat optimistic, considering the medical websites I read said shoulder subluxations can keep the average person out 12 to 16 weeks. So either Lulay was fortunate to suffer a relatively minor version of the subluxation, or the late season "upper body" injury snow job has begun in earnest. Maybe both.

Playing the last seven minutes is not the same as starting, and I expect to see some nerves early on from Demarco. Hopefully he'll settle in quickly and play well. It will be interesting to see how long a leash Benevides gives Demarco. How many mistakes will he tolerate before pulling the rip cord and going to the more experienced Pierce?

I also wonder which, if any, game plan and blocking changes Demarco's 5' 9" stature will necessitate. A 6' 2" QB can see over the tall linemen ahead of him; not so easy for a shorter guy. The offensive line might have to create alleys for Demarco to see downfield. Or use his speed and get outside, to either throw or run.

Dooger in Surrey :cowboy: