Lefko's CFL power rankings: Week 8 - sportsnet.ca

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TW	LW	Team	Our Take
1	1		Return to action Friday at home against Hamilton, which it beat 24-16 in Week 1. Bombers have won their last four and Swaggerville is at an all-time high. There are no seats to be had for the game because it’s sold out. You just know the crowd will make it difficult for the Ticats’ offence to call plays -- and that says nothing of the Bombers’ swarming defence. With a win, the Bombers will maintain their position as the top team overall in the league -- and my power rankings.
2	2		Back from a bye week, the Stamps play host to Montreal on Saturday. Calgary is clearly on the upswing and is expected to have middle linebacker Juwan Simpson back in pads, although converted defensive lineman Robert McCune has done a great job filling in. The Stamps are starting to show some of the pluck -- I can’t use swagger because it’s trademarked by the Bombers -- that is part of their DNA, but was missing earlier in the season. With a win, they will move ahead of the slumping Eskimos for first in the West.
3	3		The Als are on a nice two-game win streak and return from the bye week to face the Stamps. The Als beat up Edmonton and Toronto in their last two and face a significantly tougher challenge as they embark on the final 10 games of the regular season. This will test the mettle of the Als, who lost two in a row earlier in the season and had everyone thinking the champs had fallen from their perch. This will indicate something about their ability to play against a quality team on the rise.
4	4		Back from their hiatus from the unofficial Labour Day Classic against Toronto, the Ticats are a team that has yet to fully establish its identity. They beat Toronto, but didn’t dominate them -- if anything the Argos self-destructed. But the Ticats are still experimenting with personnel on offence and defence and it could take the better part of the season for everything to gel. What’s really missing is some big returns from Marcus Thigpen. Facing the Bombers in the hostile environment known as Canad Inns Stadium and against the best defence in the league, their performance will indicate something about the Ticats’ ability to overcome some obstacles.
5	5		Falling fast following another loss, this one the third in a row and clearly the worst, a 36-1 buttkicking by B.C. The loss of almost all their entire starting receiving corps has been a huge factor -- no team has been hit this hard at such a key position -- so there is an understandable excuse for scoring only one point. There is, however, an issue of pass protection, specifically with the tackles. And for reasons that are unknown, the run game has suddenly collapsed. Jerome Messam has gone from the Messiah to the Missing In Action. Hard to believe he wasn’t used more in the last game -- and there’s been no explanation of it -- so independent of the problems throwing the ball something has gone wrong in the rushing department. Head coach Kavis Reed said he was happy at halftime with the number of rushing attempts compared to passes, but it was so one-sided with the runs and didn’t change in the second half. The defence is getting hammered, too, which may be a case of teams having caught up to the Eskimos and their personnel. Losing rookie middle linebacker JC Sherritt will be significant.
6	8		The victory over the Eskimos may be a pivotal turning point in the Lions’ season. This was a total domination in every area. Quarterback Travis Lulay stood in the pocket and made some great throws and also made a nifty pass on the run in what had to be his best career game on so many levels. He showed poise, accuracy and leadership and stood up to his first real test of adversity. The offensive line gave him some good protection for the most part. The entire receiving corps helped make key catches, buoyed by Runako Reth and Arland Bruce, who showed his ability in his second game with the team and clearly benefitted from more practice. He also showed some rare humility saying “It’s all about the team.” Rookie receiver/returner Kierrie Johnson dropped three makeable catches, but shows some promise. When running back/returner Tim Brown returns from a knee injury, the Lions will have some interesting options. Korey Banks’ return to defensive halfback from linebacker made a difference, as did the four-man front instead of the 30 defence which wasn’t working.
7	7		Finally snapped a six-game winning streak, beating Saskatchewan 24-18, but were life and death to hold on at the end. They received every possible break from the officials after having everything work against them by the zebras for most of this season. Maybe the squeaky wheel finally got the grease. The defence still needs work, particularly when playing with a three-man front, although you can’t blame the unit for making two big plays at the end to run the Riders out of downs. Quarterback Cleo Lemon had an ordinary game, unless you factor in the pass interference penalties that are essentially yards gained. Key factor in the game was the punting/place kicking of Noel Prefontaine, who had a solid two-way game after a struggle in Hamilton. Surprising that at the end, running back Cory Boyd became embroiled in a skirmish with his teammates and special teams coach Mike O’Shea. Imagine what would have happened had the team lost!
8	6		The loss to the Argos dropped them to the basement of the CFL and led to the firing of head coach Greg Marshall and offensive co-ordinator Doug Berry, who collectively couldn’t get anything going. Marshall did not seem to inspire any confidence in his team, while Berry couldn’t get the offence on track – although there was a sense of urgency in the final few minutes against Toronto that mysteriously has been absent all season. New head coach/offensive co-ordinator Ken Miller returns to the sidelines. Miller’s calm, cool demeanour and previous experience, notably with quarterback Darian Durant, should help. If the Riders get receiver Andy Fantuz and/or rush end John Chick back from the NFL then there is still time to make a run. But the Riders still have to show their resolve. They need to erase the memory of the first eight games and look upon this as a new season. Even at 1-7, they are hardly out of it. That’s the CFL. If things don’t change dramatically, you have to figure it’s the start of a bigger off-season housecleaning. It’s not certain Miller will want to coach after this season anyway.

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