Are the 2019 Raptors the Real Deal?

By: Adamo Marinelli

November 23rd, 2019

     After shocking the world and bringing joy to millions of fans in Canada and all over the globe by winning their first-ever NBA championship on June 13th, 2019, the Toronto Raptors had some important issues to take care of with free agency around the corner. 

     Their main goal of the offseason was to try and resign superstar small-forward, Kawhi Leonard. The Raptors and the city of Toronto offered him many amenities such as free dining in all Toronto restaurants and a luxurious penthouse worth over $1 million among many others in an attempt to persuade him to stay, but in the end, he simply wanted to go home to Los Angeles, which is where he grew up and where his family is. 

     In his first press conference with the Los Angeles Clippers in late July, he said: 

“Just before I get started on the Clippers, I want to thank the Toronto

 Raptor fans. I don’t have social media so I’m not able to put out a

 paragraph or whatever, … I just want to thank all of Toronto, 

the city, the country. It was a great, amazing season. 

Best parade ever! … I also want to thank the city as far

 as the restaurants, you know, giving up that ‘Ka’wine-and-Dine’

 throughout the playoffs. I took advantage of that,” he said

laughing. The players, they already know what’s up. Text, 

FaceTime me, we’ll talk. The coaching staff as well and the whole

organization really, I just thank the whole city. Thank you.”

     You could tell that even though he only spent one season in Toronto, it meant a lot to him. And it should considering he helped lead the Raptors to their first-ever NBA Championship. With Kawhi gone, that meant Danny Green would leave, and he left to join Lebron’s Lakers.  

     With Kawhi and Green gone, despite all the sadness it caused to Raptors fans, the Raptors were easily able to get out of the luxury tax they were in last season and were also able to dig themselves out of the huge luxury tax hole that they would have found themselves in if they would have succeeded in re-signing both superstars. Before the start of the 2018-19 season, the league-wide salary cap was approximately $101,869 million and there was a tax level of $123.733 million, meaning teams can go up to that amount without paying a luxury tax. The Raptors had an active roster cap-hit sitting around $139.3 million. That is about $15.6 million over the absolute max salary cap which falls into the 4th sector of the NBA luxury tax chart. The Raptors, despite going over the salary cap for many consecutive seasons - having the sixth-highest payroll in the NBA in the 2016-17 season and the fourth-highest in the 2014-15 season - have done a great job avoiding the luxury tax by staying under the tax level amount. Last season, by adding Kawhi and Green, they entered into the luxury tax domain where they paid almost $31 million in luxury tax. 

     However, ahead of the 2019-20 season with Kawhi and Green gone and with players like Kyle Lowry, Marc Gasol, Fred Van Vleet, Pascal Siakam, Normal Powell, O.G Anunoby, Stanley Johnson, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Chris Boucher among others under contract for the Raptors, they are spending about $121 million in committed salaries. That is $12 million over the salary cap of $109 million but is less than the luxury tax threshold of approximately $132.5 million dollars. Raptors fans were sad to see Kawhi and Green go, but it worked out financially. 

     With the salary cap under control, the Raptors needed to focus on talent. They did not need to completely rebuild but may have to in 5-7 years with Lowry and Gasol and Ibaka potentially gone and with many key players like Siakam, Powell, Anunoby all becoming free agents in the next few years. 

     Regarding this season, however, many experts did not consider the Raptors to repeat as NBA champions and I agree with this statement just like many other Raptors fans. But, only very few people slept on them. After all, they had a record of 17-5 without Kawhi and were able to maintain the same core of guys that played around him last offseason. They are almost the same team.

     So far this season, the Raptors are fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 10-4 record, only 1.5 games back of the Milwaukee Bucks, who have possession of first place in the Eastern Conference. The Raptors have played well all season long, even without Ibaka and Lowry, who has been out with injuries since November 8th. Ibaka is ahead of schedule and could be returning tonight against the Atlanta Hawks; Lowry is eyeing a return on December 1st. They have even gotten huge wins over some really talented teams like the Lakers, Trail Blazers, Pelicans, and Magic among others.

     The skill of their bench, a key factor in their championship run last season, has deteriorated a little bit this season; only because players like Norman Powell, Fred Van Vleet and O.G Anunoby got upgraded to starters once Leonard and Green left and players like Stanley Johnson, Matt Thomas, Patrick McCaw, and Chris Boucher became players coming in off the bench. The play they get from everyone, especially their starters, has been amazing. In particular, both Fred Van Vleet and Pascal Siakam have been dominating the court and Siakam is showing why he was chosen as Most Improved Player last season.

     Another extremely important piece in their championship run, their immaculate defense, also remained completely intact. Kawhi was able to help the Raptors have the best defense in the league; without him, the Raptors still have one of the best defenses in the league. Head coach Nick Nurse stressed the importance of their stellar defense in the preseason and in training camp and he even called out all the players who he thought were not playing hard enough, including Johnson and Hollis-Jefferson. Nurse said in a press conference: 

“Nope, nope, nope, [t]hose guys have not understood A) how hard

we play [and], B) our schemes [and] that defence is a priority for them. 

... I keep telling [them] show me you’re going to play defence, show me

you’re going to play hard, show me you understand our coverages. Then

whatever you do on the other end you’re going to get opportunities.”

     By continuing to use this defensive-minded play, for the most part, they have been able to shut down high scoring superstars like Lebron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard just like they did all of last season, including during the playoffs. Their strong, physical defence also allows the Raptors to get plenty of takeaways and score points in transition, another one of their many skills on offence. 

     In conclusion, the Raptors are not as good as when they had Kawhi and Green last season. However, they are still a relatively young team, they are very talented and are well-coached. They don’t have a lot of cap space left, they still have some, however. They also have a strong pool of previous draft picks on the team and developing in the G-league, including Dewan Hernandez, their sole pick of the 2019 draft. I do not see them repeating as NBA champs, but I do see a team that will make the playoffs and that will compete for top spot in their division and the Eastern Conference.

The 107th Grey Cup

By: Adamo Marinelli

November 20th, 2019

     On Sunday, November 24th, 2019, the Eastern Division champion Hamilton Tiger-Cats will meet the Western Division champion Winnipeg Blue Bombers for a chance to be CFL champions.

     The Tiger-Cats boasted a league-best 15-3 record, finishing undefeated, 9-0, at home, easily clinching first place in the East division, 5 games ahead of Montreal. The Blue Bombers finished with an 11-7 record, good enough for third place in the West division. 

     In the East final, the Tiger-Cats dominated the Eskimos who snuck by the Alouettes in the East semifinal on a crossover. The Blue Bombers dominated the Stampeders in the West semifinal before edging the West division champion Saskatchewan Roughriders on a huge defensive stop as time expired.

     This matchup will end the longest Grey Cup drought for both teams in the CFL. The last time the Bombers won the Grey Cup was in 1990. The last time the Tiger-Cats won it was in 1999.

     Hamilton comes into this game with the best offense in the CFL, averaging just over 26 points a game and finishing with nearly 394 yards of offense per game and almost 7100 yards of total offense all season. Hamilton’s QB, Dane Evans, finished third in the CFL in passing TDs, with 21 despite only taking over for the injured Jeremiah Masoli on July 26th, in a 23-15 win against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Hamilton would end up sweeping the season series against the Blue Bombers in a blowout 33-13 win. For a little over a half of a season, those numbers are extremely impressive. 

     Their receiving core is scary and the dynamic duo consisting of Brandon Banks and Bralon Addison, who were both in the top 5 list of best receivers this season combining for 20 touchdowns through the air is a nightmare for secondaries. They will beat you with the deep-ball. The reason why their pass game was so good results partially because of the talent they have at running back. David Watford had only 16 carries for 40 yards but 6 TDs, and both Hamilton QBs would run the ball fearlessly. 

     Hamilton’s defense isn’t too was pretty amazing as well. They have the best pass defense in the CFL only giving up 102 points or 5.7 per game. They allowed the fewest passing touchdowns in the league with 17 and had 22 interceptions, 3rd most in the league. They also finished with 54 sacks, a league-best. Against the run, they are a little worse off. They are the fifth-best run defense in the league giving up 84 points or 4.7 points a game. They allowed 14 rush TDs, tied for 4th with Calgary and forced 12 fumbles. Overall, they have the best defense in the CFL. But their offense is what they are known for. 

     Winnipeg’s offense is also very good. They finished third in the CFL in total offense, averaging 24.2 points for game which is tied with Montreal for 2nd in the league. They averaged 356 yards a game and finished the season with over 6400 yards of total offense. Their passing attack is mediocre, about right in the middle of the league. Their QB, Matt Nichols had an average campaign with 1936 yards and 15 passing TDs, especially considering he suffered a season-ending injury halfway through the year on August 15th in a win against the BC Lions. Backup QB Chris Streveler finished off the year with 8 TDs and 1564 yards. Zach Collaros, who started the season as Saskatchewan’s QB and got injured early in the season as a result of a hit from Tiger-Cats’ linebacker Simoni Lawrence, will have a chance at revenge when he starts under center on Sunday.  Where the Blue Bombers really dominated on offense was their run game. They had a CFL best 2663 yards on the ground and tied with Hamilton for third-most rush TDs with 20. Their main man, Andrew Harris led the league in rush yards with 1380 yards and 8 TDs. Streveler, a very mobile QB added another 12 rush TDs with 726 yards. They really stuffed the ball down the defense’s throat and it paid off all season long. It also did wonders in opening up option plays and play action plays downfield. On a cold late November night in Calgary, teams will be running the ball a lot more than passing. The team that runs better will win. 

     Winnipeg’s defense also deserves a lot of credit, especially because they might not have had a chance to win the Grey Cup if it weren’t for a crucial 3rd down stop against the Roughriders in the West final. Against the run, they are in a three-way tie with Edmonton and Saskatchewan for the best defense in the CFL only giving up nine rush touchdowns and a mere 54 points on the ground on the season, which equates to 3 points a game. They gave up only 1156 rush yards, with an average of 4.5 yards per carry, the fewest allowed in the league and had a league-high 26 fumbles. Against the pass, they struggled a bit more, finishing 7th overall. They gave up 162 points through the air, equating to 9 points a game. They gave up the 6th most yards with 5690 and the 7th most TD passes with 27. They finished 2nd in interceptions with 24 and had 48 sacks. This defense knows how to cause turnovers and they caused more than the Tiger-Cats did. Overall, they are the 3rd best defense in the CFL. 

     Some significant injuries to note as of today. Hamilton’s best wide receiver, Brandon Banks is questionable for Sunday with a calf injury suffered in the East final win against Edmonton. Also, both defensive back Tevin Mitchell - an important piece in their secondary - and wide receiver David Ungerer is questionable with an undisclosed injury suffered in East Final. 

     For the Blue Bombers, defensive back Jeff Hecht - a talented outside cornerback, wide receiver Lucky Whitehead and linebacker Brandon Calver are all questionable for the Grey Cup with undisclosed injuries suffered in the West final. Overall, Hamilton will be more affected by injuries on Sunday, if the injury list stays the same.

     Both head coaches, Orlondo Steinauer for Hamilton and Mike O’Shea for Winnipeg will be in a Grey Cup game for the first time as head coaches. Both won several Grey Cups as players and were both on the Toronto Argonauts’ 2012 Grey Cup-winning team.  

     As I am writing this article, Hamilton is 4 point favorites to win with an over/under of 52 points scored. This marks the ninth time these two teams will meet in the Grey Cup, Winnipeg leads the series 5-3. In my mind, I believe Winnipeg will win a close game, by a score of 31-27, and that would cover the spread. The reason is, in the cold of winter, whoever runs the ball better will win the game. Winnipeg has a slight edge in the run game, but Hamilton in the pass game. Whatever the outcome is, this a game between the two best teams in the CFL on paper. It will be a good one. Catch it on TSN on November 24th at 6:00 pm EST. The pre-game show starts at 1:00 pm EST. Don’t miss it!

Euro Qualifiers - Perfection for Italy

     After falling 1-0 to Sweden in an aggregate playoff match on November 13th, 2017, Italy’s international squad failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time in 60 years. Immediately following Italy’s devastating loss, veterans Giorgio Chiellini, Andrea Barzagli, Daniele De Rossi and captain Gianluigi Buffon announced their retirement. All of a sudden, the roster became a lot younger. 

     For manager Gian Piero Ventura, who took over for Antonio Conte after Euro 2016, and finished with a record of 7-3-1 in World Cup qualifiers, finishing five points behind Spain, the winner of Group G, leading to the aggregate loss against Sweden; not qualifying for the World Cup with an elite lineup did not meet Italy’s high standards. Two days after the loss, Ventura was let go of his responsibility as Italy’s manager. A week after the loss, Carlo Tavecchio stepped down as president of the Italian Football Federation. 

     Following continuing struggles and more losses in friendly matches, in April of 2018, Italy dropped to 20th place on the FIFA world ranking list, their lowest spot. On May 14th, 2018, Roberto Mancini took over as the new manager.  

     Mancini took advantage of the youth on the roster. With Italy’s iconic 4-3-3 formation, he focused on having a strong, physical defence that limits shots and forces turnovers. He also focused on building a balanced midfield that consistently runs at an accelerated pace, helps force turnovers on defence to send the ball up the field to generate a strong counter-attack, which Italy has always been known for. Using their defensive physicality in the backfield and midfield to generate odd-man rushes, mismatches and scoring chances in opposing territory.

     Under Mancini’s rule, before the 2020 Euro qualifiers, Italy won a friendly against Saudia Arabia by a score of 2-1 and then proceded to finish the UEFA nations league with a mere record of 1-2-1, finishing with 5 points. In this time, Mancini took time to develop chemistry with the players, build a reputation in the locker room. He developed a winning formula, the one above, and by the time the Euro qualifiers came around, he was ready to dominate. 

     And he did. Italy won all 10 games with Mancini as coach, scoring 37 goals, only surrendering 4. They finished first in Group J, 12 points ahead of Finland, the 2nd place team. They dominated possession time in every game, thanks to a strong defence, takeaways, excellent passing and ball control. Italy’s young defence and midfield played very well and controlled the game, helping dramatically improve goal production. Their young goalie, Gianluigi Donnarumma also had a stellar qualifiers. Italy qualified for the Euros after a 2-0 home win against Greece, with three matches left, but still played hard in the last 3 games, winning them all.

     Italy became only the 6th team to qualify for a major European Championship with a 100% record, and have done it for the first time in their history. 

     One might say that Italy had an easy group which helped them finish 10-0-0.  While Italy’s group had a few underwhelming teams like Lichenstein and Armenia, their group had a few strong teams like Finland, Greece and even Bosnia and Herzegovina, who exceeded their expectations. All groups were like that. Two or three powerhouses, one or two mediocre teams, and two or three inferior teams. Italy’s talent, youth and gameplans gave them their success. 

     Knowing this, they will be able to compete against any powerhouse in the upcoming tournament this coming summer, like France, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Croatia or England. A few teams are still playing qualifiers, and the groups for the Euros are yet to be made, but I do believe with Italy’s management and talent, they have a chance of winning their group; regardless of who they are in a group with and will definitely make it to the elimination round. 

Panda Game 2019

     For the second consecutive year, the Panda Game sold out with over 24,000 people in 

attendance at TD Place.  

     Several Carleton Ravens’ turnovers and a strong defence from the Gee-Gees which had two touchdowns in the second half led the way in a 32-10 win, keeping Pedro the Panda downtown for at least another season. 

     The Ravens controlled the game early and had lots of success moving the ball up and down the field, meanwhile the Gee Gees couldn’t seem to find any rhythm on offence in the first half. Getting into the opponent’s territory was a rarity.  

     Both teams had a rough day on special teams. The Ravens’ kicker missed a field goal and had another blocked. The Gee Gee’s kicker missed three field goals. Both teams kept their offences on the field several times on third down due to the inconsistent performances from both kickers. Lots of points were left on the board by both teams.

     The Ravens took a controlling 10-1 lead into halftime after an amazing touchdown throw by Tanner Dejong to the corner of the endzone. Their defence shut the Gee Gee’s down in the first half on the ground and through the air.

     However, the Gee Gee’s started rolling in the second half and did not look back. Their defence took forced two fumbles in Ravens’ territory to the house for two crucial touchdowns. Those two TDs and a safety made the game 18-10 for Ottawa U. 

     Even after the 17 consecutive points from the Gee Gee’s, the game was still close. Two bad interceptions by Dejong gave the ball back to the Gee Gees and took critical points off the board for Carleton. He had three interceptions in the game. The Gee Gee's QB had only two interceptions in the game. Despite this, the Ravens’ defence kept it a one score game, being aided by a few missed field goals by Ottawa in the second half, but in the final three minutes, the Gee Gee’s run game which had been consistent all game long put two touchdowns on the board to seal the victory. 

     Ottawa U scored 31 unanswered points in their incredible comeback victory. The Gee Gee's win streak is now two years and they lead the all time series 34-17. 

An Appalling Start in the Mile High

     Offensive turnovers, especially on their own side of the field, and the lack of impact plays on defence by Broncos among many other things are big factors in their ugly 0-3 start. This is the first time since 1999, the year after their back-to-back Super Bowl wins, that the Broncos have started 0-3.

     Denver boasts a defensive-minded bench boss in Vic Fangio, two dominant edge rushers in Von Miller and Bradley Chubb, a good inside pass rush and a mid-tier secondary; yet has still found themselves playing from behind in all three games so far this season. This in turn has prevented the pass rush from getting going, which is why the Broncos have zero sacks and zero interceptions through three games, dead last in the league. Playing from behind has also caused the Broncos to move away from the run and rely more on the pass game, which explains Flacco’s many touches. But Lindsay and Freeman still had a great game in week 3.

     It can be argued that all three the Broncos’ games were very winnable. They were one drive short in Oakland but multiple penalties, holding in particular, took them out of field goal range several times and red-zone struggles kept them out of the endzone on multiple occasions. They were outplayed on special teams as well, getting a better average field position to start each drive and they two good kick returns on special teams that led to points. The Raiders’ defence also caused more quarterback pressure than the Broncos’ defence. 

     In Chicago, Denver again struggled to really move the ball effectively until the last few minutes of the game when they took the lead 14-13. Penalties continued to taunt the Broncos, a lack of pass protection from the injured offensive line disrupted Flacco’s rhythm and led to several key sacks that took points off the board for Denver. Playing from behind again, the Broncos moved away from the run game to try to get big pass plays downfield. Good coverage by the Bears secondary allowed their pass rushers to unleash fury on Flacco. Flacco has not been the problem for the Broncos but has not been excellent either, throwing only two touchdowns and two interceptions this season, being sacked 11 times. Of course, after the Broncos took the lead, there was a controversial ‘roughing the passer’ call on Bradley Chubb that gave Chicago a first down close to midfield. On fourth down with seconds left, they got a completion downfield and were able to call a timeout with 1 second left despite the clock clearly hitting 0:00. However, the Broncos shouldn’t have left the receiver wide open. 

     The Broncos played their best defensive game against Green Bay at Lambeau. However, turnovers killed the Broncos. Turnovers, especially on your own side of the field goes against Vic Fangio’s ‘death by inches’ mantra. The Broncos had a fumble inside their own 5 yard line and inside their own 40 yard line, both lead to Green Bay touchdowns. Both of these fumbles happened on consecutive drives, right before and after half time. This would give the Packers a two score lead early in the third quarter. Another terrible holding call against Denver, this time on Emmanuel Sanders, prevented a touchdown and quite possibly a 14-10 halftime lead for Denver. Instead it was 24-10 for Green Bay midway through the third quarter. The Broncos’ offence moved the ball very well up and down the field all game long, unlike in their first two games; and their defence did a great job containing the run and limiting Aaron Rodgers to only one TD and 235 passing yards but the two fumbles, Green Bay’s six sacks and an interception from Flacco on a poorly thrown ball when Denver was driving late in the third quarter with a chance to tie the game 24-24 sealed Green Bay’s victory. You can’t expect a defence to stop a good offence when they start at your own 5 yard line. The Broncos shot themselves in the foot again and again and the refs made some questionable calls (holding on Sanders) which resulted in them falling to 0-3 and the Packers improving to 3-0.

     Since 1980, a team that has started 0-3 has only a 3.4 percent chance to make the postseason. Only 6 of 176 teams since 1980 have rallied to make the playoffs after starting 0-3, including the 2018 Houston Texans who started 0-3 and won 9 straight games to finish 11-5. So the Broncos’ playoff chances seem dull but it is not impossible. 

     To start their comeback, they will have to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars and their star rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew, the leader of ‘mustache mania’. This is a daunting task because Minshew has posted a 73.8% completion percentage and a QBR of 110.6 the best performance of any rookie’s first three games in the Super Bowl era. He has 5 TDs, 1 INT and nearly 700 pass yards but he doesn’t make mistakes or cause turnovers. He puts his offence in a position to score and lets his defence take care of everything else. They had nine sacks in their week three win over the Titans and won the line of scrimmage which is a bit intimidating for a Denver offensive line that has been much better at run than pass protection and that is short a few starters in particular, right tackle Ja’Wuan James. The Broncos will have to hold off the Jaguars’ edge rushers and strong inside rush from players like Calais Campbell, an ex Bronco. Hopefully, the Broncos generate some pressure on Minshew and force him to make a mistake as that could be the difference between a 1-3 vs a 0-4 season. As well as generating pressure on Minshew (which might be a little difficult on the inside with Jewell and Wolfe questionable), the secondary needs to keep playing well even with injuries to safety Kareem Jackson who his questionable and Bryce Callahan who is listed as out for this game. As they say, ‘next man up’. Hopefully Bausby and Yiadom can be the next men up. Not to mention Denver needs to have a balanced attack between the run and the pass and Flacco needs to get the ball out quickly so the offensive line doesn’t have to block all day. It will be a tough task, but Denver can get the job done if they make no mistakes. Essentially it is a must win game for the Broncos. 

Offensive Ineptitude

By: Adamo Marinelli

August 25th, 2019

     Ottawa, Ontario: Dominique Davis proves once again, he is incapable of leading an offence at the starting QB role for the Ottawa Redblacks. He threw three interceptions; two of which occurred inside his own 15-yard line, both leading to touchdowns for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. 

     So far this season, he has thrown for 1846 yards, completing 169/271 passes but only has five passing TDs compared to 14 INTs. He also has five rushing TDs. He leads the league in picks, being three ahead of BC Lions QB Mike Rielly who has nine INTs and 11 TDs in a subpar season for the Lions where everyone is struggling and five ahead of Toronto Argonauts QB McLeod Bethel Thompson who has nine interceptions but also 14 TD passes, one less than Matt Nichols for best in the league. No other QB has more than seven INTs. 

     Recurrent turnovers by the offence told the story of this game, like several others and the Roughriders took advantage of the Redblacks’ five turnovers (three interceptions and two fumbles lost), scoring 24 points off turnovers directly. This helped the Roughriders cruise to a comfortable 40-18 victory after they started the game with a quick 17-0 lead in the first quarter. Turnovers killed Ottawa in this game and have in several others, always losing the turnover battle and gibving up too many points off of turnovers. 

     Not only do these turnovers help the Roughriders score points, but they eliminate potential scoring drives for the Redblacks and they take all the momentum away from the offence. Too many turnovers will also put the defence out on the field for too long, which isn’t good either.

     Despite losing 40-18, the Redblacks' defence played a decent game. Ottawa’s defence did not fail to make a few key plays to keep themselves in the game and give their offence opportunities to score some points. They didn’t cause any turnovers or get any sacks but they did keep the game close enough for a long stretch in the first half, but the offence was unable to generate a comeback. The QB switch from Davis to Jonathan Jennings which led to a 75-yard strike to Dominique Rhymes gave some momentum but it wasn’t enough to amount to a comeback. 

     As a result, most of the points the Redblacks gave up cannot be directly pinned on the defence. All of the turnovers gave the Roughriders excellent field position -- multiple times they started drives in the red-zone too -- which gave them several chances to take and maintain a lead thanks to easy, close-yardage touchdowns. Also, due to the inefficiency on offence, the Redblacks’ defence has been on the field for the majority of the past five or six games; in this game they were on the field for 33 minutes, less than some other games but still more than half.

     However, at some points, the Redblacks’ missed or didn’t finish key tackles or weren’t able to bring down a scrambling QB which led to many points for the Roughriders. A key moment that came to mind was a missed sack which led to Cody Fajardo spinning around a Redblacks’ defender before scrambling and throwing a TD pass to veteran receiver Emmanuel Arcenneaux. 

    Despite losing a lot of talent on offence in free agency at the end of last season like Greg Ellingson, William Powell, Trevor Harris and Sir Vincent Rogers amongst others, there is still a lot of young talent on the roster, both on offence and defence, such as: Dominique Rhymes, Devonte Dedmon, John Crockett, J.C Beaulieu, Brad Sinopoli and R.J Harris on offence, Lewis Ward and Richie Leone on special teams and Antoine Pruneau, Anthony Cioffi, J.R Tavai, Avery Williams and Jonathan Rose on defence, to name a few. The defence and special teams have a lot of talent and it shows week in and week out. On the other hand, offensively, the Redblacks have loads of youth and talent, they just need to have a competent QB at the helm who doesn’t turn the ball over a lot to lead this offence to success, to be able to keep drives alive and to be able to score TDs, not just field goals. Whether that QB be Jonathan Jennings, William Arndt or another free agent QB, it doesn’t matter. Davis simply doesn’t cut it as a starter. He definitely hasn’t shown that he is this season.

What happened to the Redblacks and will they improve?

August 8th, 2019

     After starting the season 2-0 with incredible wins over the Calgary Stampeders, the defending Grey Cup Champions, on the road and against the red-hot Saskatchewan Roughriders - in both games their offence and defence proved to be excellent despite the fact that both games were settled by four points or fewer - the Ottawa Redblacks have proceeded to lose four consecutive games. In all of those games, they’ve showed many signs of offensive incompetence, particularly not being able to string together more than a few first downs, let alone a drive down the field to score a touchdown. Also, in this string of losses, the Redblacks have demonstrated a lack of aggressiveness on defence, especially in their secondary. This was evident in all four games, particularly in their blowout 31-1 loss to the Blue Bombers in which Matt Nichols threw for nearly 300 yards and two touchdowns, completing 25/29 passes. The majority of their yards came because the opposition always had at least one open receiver downfield. 

     In this article, I will take a closer look at all four games in the Redblacks losing streak and figure out how the Redblacks went from a potential Grey Cup contender to possibly not even making the playoffs for the first time since their inaugural 2014 season. 

     In their 29-14 loss against the Blue Bombers, their offence really started to show signs of struggling in which they were able to hide in the first two weeks of the season; by putting up 76 points. Their QB, Dominique Davis completed 21-36 of his passes for 234 yards, zero TDs, and two interceptions. It wasn’t all Davis’ fault, however. Granted, some of his throws were off target but the young receiving core, led by veteran Brad Sinopoli made some mistakes while running their routes and there was no shortage of miscommunication between QB and WR too. Their running game wasn’t able to get anything going either, totalling only 24 yards on the ground with three backs. The Bombers shut down the passing game with their talented secondary - Davis’ two picks helped speed up that process - and then when Ottawa tried to establish a run, the Bombers’ defensive line were ready for it. On the defensive side of the ball, the Blue Bombers had two sacks compared to Ottawa’s one and they took advantage of the Redblacks’ young offensive line, getting more QB pressures than the Redblacks’ defensive line could produce. The Bombers also won the turnover battle, having only one interception from their back up QB late in the third quarter compared to Davis’ two. Two bright spots in this game were kicker Lewis Ward who made both of his kicks to remain perfect on the season and Jonathan Rose who had a pick six. Of Ottawa’s 14 points, seven came from Lewis Ward, six from the defence and one rouge. Not a single touchdown was registered; that is always a problem. Matt Nichols had a spectacular game under center for the Bombers, throwing for nearly 262 yards and one touchdown, completing 16/20 passes with no interceptions. It always seemed like they had at least one open receiver downfield and they simply outplayed Ottawa’s secondary, who had lost Jonathan Rose to injury and many new faces at training camp. Even RB Andrew Harris had a good game with 80 yards on 18 carries and a few receptions. To put it simply, the Redblacks were outmatched offensively getting beaten in total yards by a score of 443 to 240 and their defence wasn’t tight enough to prevent all of those yards. As fans, we all hoped this game would just be a hiccup, but it proved to be much more. 

     In their 36-19 pounding at the hands of the Alouettes, it was evident that the Redblacks’ offence wasn’t just dealing with a minor hiccup in their production and the defence got progressively worse when a mobile QB like Vernon Adams Jr. was added into the equation. The Redblacks’ secondary also took another hit with CB Antoine Pruneau leaving the field with an injury to his left arm and hand during the game and did not return. Both Rose and Pruneau are on the six game injured list and the absence of those two veteran leaders will be a huge blow for the secondary for the near future. To make matters worse, RB Moses Madu wouldn’t be playing after an injury sustained in the loss to Winnipeg meaning rookie John Crockett would be tasked with leading the ground force in his first CFL start. The game started offly quiet, as both teams were notched up 9-9 at the half. There weren’t very many turnovers, Davis only threw one interception. Turnovers would sadly only get worse as the weeks went on for the Redblacks. Again, for the second consecutive game, the Redblacks’ were unable to get a passing touchdown, however, they were still able to use their running game -the anchor of their offence- to put touchdowns on the board. Dominique Davis, who isn’t having the best season in terms of passing yards is lighting up the CFL in rushing and is very mobile. He rushed four times for 21 yards and two touchdowns. He doesn’t necessarily rack up yards on the ground, but he racks up TDs. That’s what counts. He had a better statistical game on the ground than in the air, where he completed 23-37 passes for 268 yards and one interception which led to a short field and an Alouettes touchdown. The Redblacks defence still was the glue that held the team together, keeping the game close and giving the Redblacks in it for the first half until it blew open in the third quarter. They made some key stops and gave the offence many chances. They didn’t cause any turnovers but there was one interception that Rose dropped and a fumble that a Redblacks’ defensive lineman should’ve fell on. Lewis Ward, the kicker had another perfect game hitting both of his field goals, his longest from 50 yards. However, it was the Alouettes offence, particularly their new QB Vernon Adams Jr. Montreal’s defence did a good job shutting down Ottawa’s pass game for the most part, forcing many two-and-outs, giving their offence many chances with the ball. Adams, who is currently 6-2 as the starter, completed 23-30 passes for 327 yards, two TDs and 0 INTs and rushed for 41 yards, scoring two more TDs on top of Stanback’s 100 yard game. The fact that the run game made such a presence opened up the pass game with play action and the Alouettes offence, for the most part, was always one step ahead of the injured Redblacks’ defence.

     In the rematch against the Blue Bombers, where the Redblacks lost 31-1, to put it quite simply the game wasn’t even close. Ottawa’s offence couldn’t get anything on the board with the run or pass game and again, the Redblacks lost the turnover battle throwing two picks compared to Matt Nichols who threw no picks. These costly turnovers continue to cut down the Redblacks’ scoring chances and giving extra chances to a potent Bombers offence to put points on the board. Redblacks’ QB Jonathan Jennings who was an MVP caliber talent in the CFL a few mere seasons ago tried to begin rebuilding his career in a Redblacks jersey tonight and didn’t succeed. He completed only 6-15 passes for 45 yards and one interception before getting pulled for the third string QB who didn’t perform much better throwing for 57 yards and one interception only completing 4-13 passes. The Redblacks had 205 total yards, 88 of which came from John Crockett on the ground compared to the red-hot Bombers offence which manifested 448 total yards. It was complete domination by the Bombers just like the score suggested. Another note, the Redblacks couldn’t get a drive going and first downs were hard to come by. They only got 12 first downs the entire game, the Bombers nearly doubled that and six game on the ground, six from the air. Furthermore, the Bombers led won the possession battle also, controlling the ball for 36:40 minutes compared to Ottawa’s 23:20 minutes. The very talented Blue Bombers’ defence that’s been firing on all cylinders clearly took advantage of a struggling Redblacks’ offence - due to the youth on the roster from the massive free agency overhaul - and the numbers show it. However, the game wasn’t a blowout from the opening kickoff. The game was scoreless for about nine minutes and both teams had chances to get a lead. In the opening drives, Ottawa’s offence was already struggling, going three and out the first two opportunities they got the ball, but their defence limited the Blue Bombers to only a few first downs here and there and kept Ottawa in the game. But, with just over six minutes to go in the first quarter, a badly underthrown pass by Jennings was picked off and returned 71 yards for a touchdown by CB Winston Rose. From there, the game was burst wide open. The slight glimmer of hope Ottawa had to win this game disappeared and as their offence kept stuttering, the Bombers offence kept scoring and the Redblacks kept digging themselves deeper and deeper into an inescapable hole. Winnipeg’s defence played a perfect game, with two interceptions, including a pick six midway through the first quarter to turn the tide in Winnipeg’s favour, winning the sack battle 3-1 and limiting the Redblacks to 205 total yards. The Redblacks’ only point came from a single after a 75 yard Richie Leone punt on special teams. The Bombers shut down the Redblacks’ offence, which couldn’t really do anything and their stellar defence gave their offence many possessions and chances to thrive which it did. It wore down Ottawa’s defence that has been on the field so long with the run game and then lit them up in the pass game. Matt Nichols had an amazing game, setting another record for consecutive completions, completing 25 of 29 of his passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns. He also set a record for 19 consecutive completed passes. RB Andrew Harris rushed for 63 yards on the ground but had 68 receiving yards and a TD. WR Kenny Lawler Jr. had a 54 yard receiving TD and even the Bombers’ backup QB rushed for a score. It was a statement win for the Bombers, cementing them as one of the best, if not the best team in the west division and the league. 

     Their best game of their four losing streak, was a 17-16 loss against the Stampeders at home, where they lost a very close game on a last second field goal attempt. For the first time in a while, I can say the Redblacks were in this game and had a chance to win it until the very end. This is definitely progress despite the tough loss to fall to 2-4 on the year after starting 2-0. QB Jonathan Jennings improved from last week, completing 15-18 passes for 125 yards and a TD but he did still throw two interceptions which killed Ottawa’s momentum on some drives. Moreover, for the first time in four games, the Redblacks were able to get a passing touchdown, thanks to Dominique Davis and Brad Sinopoli. Improved QB play aided the receivers get out of their shell. Finally, the ball was being spread around the field getting thrown to places were Ottawa’s receivers had a chance to catch the ball and turn upfield. Also, the Redblacks’ defence: despite giving up 370 passing yards and another 127 yards on the ground, losing the possession battle 37 minutes to 23 and giving up more first downs than Calgary’s defence, they still limited a very strong Stampeders’ offence - even with Nick Arbuckle at QB with Bo Levi Mitchell injured - to no touchdowns - on offence or on defence. The game was tied 9-9 at the half, with each kicker hitting three field goals. Rene Paredes hit a fourth field goal to give the Stampeders a 12-9 lead. In the fourth, Davis threw a beautiful TD pass to Sinopoli for the lead. Lewis Ward remained perfect on the night and hit the PAT. Late in the fourth quarter, with a 16-12 lead, the Redblacks went two and out deep in their own territory and instead of punting the ball away and letting their dominant defence get a stop, HC Rick Campbell decided to give up a safety instead of letting Leone punt the ball. The Stampeders pulled within two points and drove down the field to hit a game winning field goal as time expired. This would be the fourth straight loss for the Redblacks. It is a frustrating game to lose, especially after your defence and QB played so well, and no-one knows why Campbell didn’t just punt the ball away and let his defence takeover but a loss is a loss.

     Despite their four game losing streak, there is still a slight glimmer of hope. Last week, in comeback fashion, the Ottawa Redblacks stunned the Montreal Alouettes 30-27 in overtime to improve to 3-4 on the season, a half game back of the Alouettes who still hold second place in the East. Our offence got better as the game progressed, but still struggled, only being able to get into the endzone once thanks to a pass from Davis to Sinopoli and caused several turnovers; momentum killers for numerous Ottawa drives. Davis threw two picks and fumbled the ball twice. Our defence performed admirably considering they were on the field for the majority of the game; the Alouettes dominated in time of position at 36:24 - 23:36. Also, at the end of the game after a three and out, Ottawa’s defence held the Alouettes to a field goal. That made the game 27-21 in favour of Montreal instead of 31-21. The Redblacks’ defences had many Instances like these proving defence is the backbone of the team with a young offence. Despite losing the turnover battle 4-2, the Redblacks’ defence got one turnover in overtime that mattered most, to seal the comeback victory in overtime. As they say, quality over quantity. The highlight of the game was the Redblacks’ special teams. Particularly, kick and punt returner Devonte Dedmon, who had a punt and kickoff return touchdown and 377 total return yards. Not only that but both of his return TDs came in the first half when Ottawa was down big and he helped keep them in the game. Still need to see some major improvements from the Redblacks - especially on offence - if they want to make the playoffs and succeed in the postseason but things are looking up. Let’s see if Ottawa can get back on the winning side of things tomorrow night in Edmonton against some familiar faces.