Labour Day marks the end of summer in Canada. It also means we are more than halfway through the CFL season. With NFL cuts headed north to help boost rosters down the stretch, this is a time of year when tough questions have to be asked about all nine CFL rosters.
Below are my takeaways from the first half of what has been an eventful 2018 season and the questions they inspire.
Montreal – 3-8 (fourth in the East)
The biggest and only question for the Montreal surrounds its quarterback situation. Montreal traded a boatload for Johnny Manziel, publicly promoted his arrival and stated he wasn’t brought in to be a backup before rushing him in to his first forgettable start.
His play has been better since but marginally. After Manziel was concussed, in entered Antonio Pipkin who played his college ball at Tiffin and was cut by the Alouettes out of training camp. All he’s done since is become the first Alouettes QB to throw for over 300 yards in a game in over a year. Pipkin has led the team to two straight victories. Pipkin also became the first QB in Alouettes history to throw for 300 yards and score two TDs in the same game. He has given the Alouettes their best QB play since Anthony Calvillo.
But will the Alouettes actually keep Manziel on the sidelines? Can Pipkin do enough to win the job when Manziel was brought to play and to sell tickets? If Mike Sherman, who is personally close with Manziel, puts Johnny Football back in will he lose his locker room? The QB controversy in Montreal bears watching, but the way the season started they are just happy they have two QBs anybody wants to see play.
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Ottawa – 6-4 (first in the East)
Will Kyries Hebert get the message the CFL is trying to send? Hebert was suspended two games for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Alouettes receiver B.J. Cunningham in Ottawa’s loss on Friday. This is Hebert’s second suspension this year as he had a one-game suspension after his hit on Calgary’s DaVaris Daniels in Week 3. This is the first two-game suspension for an on-field play.
Hebert could appeal along with the CFLPA. The CFLPA has been partners with the league on player safety matters. Will they actually go against the league in favour of a player who some consider dirty and has already been suspended twice? Will the punishment act as a deterrent for Hebert? The biggest deterrent might not be the ground-breaking suspension but the fact Avery Williams has played really well in Hebert’s place.
Toronto – 3-7 (third in the East)
Mcleod Bethel-Thompson has bounced around for eight years on 12 teams. He’s finally found a home with the Argonauts after the unfortunate injury of Ricky Ray and inconsistent play of James Franklin. Thompson has looked good and has shown impressive arm talent.
Only problem is he hasn’t had the deep targets to show off that big arm. GM Jim Popp is trying to ignite the offence on the fly. First it was the signing of Duron Carter. Carter has just eight receptions for 111 yards on the season but has spent much of his time this year in Saskatchewan on defence. Carter didn’t dress in the Labour Day loss to Hamilton and Marc Trestman already said he wasn’t going to play in the return match at BMO field this week.
With Toronto falling behind the pack in the East and a West crossover looking likely, how long can Trestman afford to wait to get one of the most talented receivers in the league in the lineup? Carter is a proven commodity who has 266 catches, 4,031 receiving yards, 26 TDs in 66 career CFL games. The Argos receiving core has struggled so much that running back James Wilder lead them in receiving against Hamilton with three catches for 42 yards. Another option is the Argonauts star from their Grey Cup win last season, Devier Posey who was cut from the Baltimore Ravens. The B.C. Lions will be interested in Posey after they lost Manny Arceneaux as would the Hamilton Tiger-Cats who lost Chris Williams for the year with an Achilles injury and had Jalen Saunders suffer what is believed to be an MCL sprain.
Hamilton – 5-5 (second in the West)
The Tiger-Cats answered their QB controversy scenario when they traded Manziel, showing confidence in Jeremiah Masoli. Masoli has responded by ranking second in the CFL in passing yards. The issue is though incredibly accurate, Masoli makes some bad decisions. Masoli has failed to throw an interception in only one game this season. Masoli‘s TD-to-interception ratio is 12:11. No QB has thrown more interceptions than Masoli this season. Can he break that habit and still aggressively push the ball down field?
Winnipeg – 5-6 (fourth in the West)
Is Matt Nichols an elite QB? Could Chris Streveler become one? Remember Nichols got his job because Drew Willy struggled. Could Nichols lose his job the same way? Nichols has the second-worst QB efficiency (84.2), interception percentage (3.8) and TD-to-interception ratio (11:9) among starting QBs. Streveler however ranks among the league best in all those marks with a 105.5 efficiency mark, interception percentage of 2.0 and eight TD passes to just two interceptions. With Nichols as the starter Winnipeg now has three straight losses heading in to the Banjo Bowl against Saskatchewan. Winnipeg has a game in hand and trails the three big teams in the West in the standings. After complaining about the fans booing him and then complaining about the offensive execution (although his comments were blown out of proportion) Nichols needs to worry about his own job security moving forward.
Saskatchewan – 6-4 (second in the West)
Can Charleston Hughes break a 24-year-old CFL record in his first year with Saskatchewan?
Hughes has sacks in eight straight games, the largest sack streak in the CFL since 2010. He already has 13 sacks which is more than twice the amount by any other defender in the league. Hughes himself has one more sack than the Toronto Argonauts as a team. James Parker has the single-season record for sacks in a season with 26.5. They way Chris Jones wants his front to get after the passer it is very possible that Hughes could break this record this season.
Edmonton – 6-5 (third in the West)
The battle for the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player award might be with two players on the same team. Duke Williams leads the CFL in receiving yards (1,063), receiving touchdowns (8) and average per catch (18.6). Mike Reilly leads the CFL in passing yards (3,546) and touchdowns (23). Who winds up the the Eskimos MOP nominee might be the only question left to answer about their offence that has been a step ahead of the rest through the first half of the season.
Calgary – 9-1 (first in the West)
Devone Claybrooks has had some pretty good defences in his time in Calgary. Is this the best ever? The fact he isn’t a head coach yet and is still a defensive co-ordinator is crazy. The dominant play of his defence this year has been just as crazy. Playing in the West against some of the best offences in the league, Calgary’s defence leads the CFL in points allowed per game, yards allowed per game, yards per play, rushing yards allowed per game and TDs allowed.
The Stampeders have had some injuries on offence. Most notably Kamar Jorden and Bo Levi Mitchell both hurt their knees in the Labour Day Classic. With this defence it hasn’t seemed to matter. The 2018 Stampeders unit could be considered among the best ever by the end of the year.
B.C. – 3-6 (fifth in the West)
Wally Buono has been known for grooming Hall of Fame QBs in his career. In his last season at the helm there is a question of what he will do with the QB position. Travis Lulay is their best option to win right now. But he is 34 years old and has had multiple knee injuries. With a playoff spot slipping out of reach will B.C. look to invest in its future at the position? In 2016, Jonathon Jennings threw for over 5,000 yards and seemed to be the future. But this season he threw just two TDs and three interceptions this season before being pulled for Lulay after he recovered from off-season knee surgery. Buono is tasked with trying to win now and trying to shepherd the health of the franchise after he is gone.
