After a 2014 season that saw multiple quarterbacks miss multiple games, it seemed like 2015 simply had to be easier on signal-callers—if only due to the law of averages. Well, no such luck. Three major QBs—Saskatchewan’s Darian Durant, Edmonton’s Mike Reilly and Montreal’s Jonathan Crompton—went down to injury in Week 1. Even Montreal’s No. 2, Dan LeFevour, got knocked out of the team’s home opener against the Ottawa Redblacks.
In this week’s CFL roundtable, featuring members of Sportsnet.ca’s CFL panel on three hot-button issues, we look at the QB-injury epidemic, plus see how the big off-season rules changes are impacting play.
Which QB injury is the most impactful?
Jamie Thomas: Mike Reilly. The Eskimo QB was healthy again and had people talking about how Edmonton was going to push Calgary for the division title. Saskatchewan, meanwhile, will survive with Kevin Glenn and we are not yet sure how bad Jonathan Crompton is injured.
Justin Dunk: Edmonton losing Mike Reilly has to be the worst blow to any team that suffered a quarterback injury in the opening week—the Eskimos’ offence is nowhere near as potent with him out of the lineup. Saskatchewan has a capable veteran pivot Kevin Glenn to step in for Darian Durant.
Donnovan Bennett: Mike Reilly. Durant’s injury is disappointing but Kevin Glenn is good enough to be a starter in this league despite the many stamps on his passport. The Esks have the worst QB depth in the league so expect them to make a transaction. Could they possibly call on the 41-year-old Kerry Joseph again? The fact that’s plausible answers the question.
Arash Madani: It’s Mike Reilly. This was a big season for him and the Eskimos to take the next step. His loss leaves little margin for error now for this team, and while Matt Nichols can play, the drop-off is significant from a talent standpoint. Edmonton had built its team around Reilly to be the guy, and practice reps were divided as such. The Eskimos now have many questions to answer internally—and it’s only Week 2.
Did the new rules have a factor?
Thomas: I didn’t really see any area of the games affected by the new rules. But I believe we won’t see this for a few weeks and to me the new extra-point rule won’t start being noticed until the weather turns bad.
Dunk: Yes, they did. Receivers seemed to be able to release more freely off the line of scrimmage due to the new no-contact-after-five-yards rule. Also, punt returners had increased space to work with, if they caught the ball cleanly.
Bennett: When the strong-legged Als rookie kicker Boris Bede missed the first extra point the tone was set. To me the offensive-freedom-of-movement rules had little effect since most defensive backs are seven to 10 yards off the ball anyways to compensate for the fact receivers in the CFL are running at them full steam because of unlimited motion in the backfield.
Madani: The new rules had a significant factor. Most significantly, the rules are leading to a change in how defences are coached. There are fewer man-to-man coverages called, and fewer defensive backs are physical at the line of scrimmage in the first five yards. Effectively DBs are now playing a soft zone on almost every play, which is opening up room for receivers and (in a limited four-game sample size) reducing the number of punts in a game.
Canadian QB Brandon Bridge’s performance was _____?
Thomas: Gutsy. Facing a hungry Redblacks defence, the youngster held in there in his first pro game. He threw behind his receiver on his fourth-quarter interception but I can see him getting the hang of things quickly.
Dunk: Solid. Considering Bridge didn’t take any reps with the No. 1 unit heading into Week 1, he displayed the ability to get Montreal’s offence moving. The Mississauga, Ont., native completed five of 10 passes—two attempts were dropped—for 62 yards and threw one interception. (The pick came on a read-route mix-up with S.J. Green.) But, for a 23-year-old rookie quarterback, Bridge showed some positive signs in his CFL debut.
Bennett: Affirmation. He showed a Canadian can competently play the league’s hardest position. Considering all he had under his belt was two weeks of training camp with little reps as a third stringer, what was most impressive was the fact the Als didn’t shorten their playbook with Bridge in the game.
Madani: Better than you could have expected from any rookie CFL quarterback. Admittedly, the kid missed a couple of throws—including a big one to S.J. Green that could have changed the game. But for a No. 3 quarterback who has had so few pro-practice snaps to immediately be thrown into the fire, make some plays with his feet, manufacture first downs when little was there, and connect on throws to continue drives, Bridge did not look out of place.