B.C. Lions survive scare from the basement, banish Redblacks back to the dark (& 10 other thoughts)

Photo courtesy: B.C. Lions

Basements aren’t quite as common on the West Coast as they are elsewhere, but any child who grew up with one knows there is nothing scarier than those first few moments after opening the door to the damp, dim abyss. Whether what awaited you was an unfinished storage space or a purpose-built rumpus room for your enjoyment, hearts always beat a little bit faster as you fumbled for a light switch and descended, not knowing what creatures might await you in the dark.

The B.C. Lions got their scare from a basement-dweller on Sunday night at TD Place, as the winless Ottawa Redblacks jumped out to an early 14-3 lead. However, the flickering lightbulb revealed it was just a harmless Teddy bear casting a grotesque shadow on the concrete walls, and the visitors scampered back up the stairs unharmed with a 45-24 victory.

Here are my thoughts on the game.

Learning the hard way

Whether it was the long travel or they simply got caught looking ahead against a weak opponent, the Lions made things interesting on Sunday night with a myriad of mistakes that would have been more characteristic of the winless home team. Nobody was guiltier of this initially than quarterback Nathan Rourke, who tossed two indefensible interceptions in the first half.

The first came when the team was backed up at their own six-yard line in the first quarter. The Canadian QB pulled the ball and rolled to his left, but immediately got pressure in his face from Jessie Evans. Now standing in his end zone without the ability to take a sack, Rourke attempted to flip his hips and throw against the grain to Justin McInnis. Instead, it was Ottawa safety Alonzo Addae who was sitting there. The Redblacks quickly capitalized with a touchdown, taking a surprising lead.

Early in the second quarter, the Lions had a chance to claw back momentum after a massive defensive stop. Once again, Rourke put the ball at risk unnecessarily. With the centre of the pocket collapsing into his lap, he pumped while staring down Keon Hatcher, then threw late off his back foot. Addae was there again for the takeaway, and it was only a superhuman effort from the QB himself that prevented a pick-six, though Rourke was flagged for a horsecollar on the tackle. The result was a short Bryson Barnes touchdown run.

The stats will tell you that the second interception was the turning point, as Rourke went on to complete 17 straight passes after that point. That ignores several mistakes for which he was not statistically punished, including an illegal forward pass prior to B.C.’s first touchdown, an underthrown shot downfield that drew a PI call, and a panicked high-ball that Jermaine Jackson somehow tipped to himself instead of the waiting defender. What really seemed to change things was a hit he took at the end of the second quarter while unwisely trying to extend a play.

Ottawa’s Jelani Stafford was penalized for roughing the passer after delivering a blow to the head on the play, though it was hard to blame him for the contact point given that Rourke was beginning his descent into a faceplant with another defender around his ankle. Unsurprisingly, it hurt, and the Lions’ golden boy remained down grimacing long enough that the concussion spotter had to step in. Kaidon Salter finished the half for B.C.

Head injuries are a serious business that should never be taken lightly, and I’m glad that the officials stepped in as a precaution. It is only because Rourke appears entirely unharmed that I’d even dare to suggest that the pain of that moment may have knocked some sense into him, metaphorically speaking. True or not, there was a noticeable difference in his play coming out of halftime. In fact, I’d suggest he was basically perfect from that point on.

Rourke finished the game 22-of-25 for 355 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions, while rushing once for nine yards. He was on time, on point, and unflappable. By doing less over the final 30 minutes, he produced more, a lesson that I hope carries over into future weeks. You always have to take the risk with the reward in Nathan’s game, but there is a difference between letting magic happen organically and trying to force it. Too often he has drifted into the second category this year while putting too much weight on his own shoulders. It has to end.

Sinking to their level

Entering this week, the Lions were the least penalized team in the entire CFL. You wouldn’t have known it in Ottawa, as they committed 10 infractions for 84 yards, many of them devastating in nature.

Those problems started on B.C.’s first offensive series, when Michael Couture was caught blocking downfield on one of those moments of actual organic brilliance from Rourke, erasing a first-down throw to Keon Hatcher and forcing a field goal. At the opposite end of the field, another B.C. offensive lineman, Anu Una, got very lucky when he was called for holding in the end zone, which would have resulted in an automatic safety, except that the Redblacks were also called for illegal contact on a receiver.

Rourke, of course, was called for two infractions of his own. I’ll forgive the tackling technique on the horsecollar call, though it did set up Ottawa at the goal line. The illegal forward pass, however, was a head-scratcher, as he was at least three yards past the line of scrimmage when he whipped around to throw across the field to Zander Horvath. It would have been brilliant if legal, but I’ve never known B.C.’s QB to so completely lose track of his position.

The most egregious penalties came at the end of the half when Rourke was in the medical tent. Salter had successfully come in cold and led the team into scoring position, but a holding call on Andrew Peirson pushed the Leos out of field goal range. They managed to get some of the yardage back, but as Sean Whyte lined up to kick, the laundry came out again. A too-many-men penalty took likely points off the board and forced a late punt, which the Redblacks used to tie the game before the break.

B.C. did manage to clean up most of their discipline problems at intermission, though an illegal contact penalty against Maxime Rouyer did rob T.J. Lee of an interception in the final three minutes. In the end, the uncharacteristic lapses weren’t fatal because Ottawa’s own self-inflicted wounds were much, much worse. The home team committed 13 penalties for 154 yards, including a few momentum-swinging pass interference and roughing the passer calls.

Four-Horvpower engine

It boggles the mind that it has taken this long for somebody to make Zander Horvath a feature running back. The 27-year-old has unquestionably been B.C.’s best player over this winning streak, and the best ball-carrier in the CFL over that same span, but he’s had an incredibly difficult time shaking off the fullback label given to him in college.

Sunday night was another outstanding effort, as he ripped off 164 yards on 24 carries, and added four catches for 30 yards to boot. At times, he felt unstoppable, bulldozing through defenders as easily as he could run around them. Nowhere was this more apparent than the red zone, where he helped the Lions go five-for-five and scored four touchdowns himself, tying the franchise’s single-game record.

Now with 16 touchdowns on the year, Horvath is on pace to break Milt Stegall’s single-season CFL record of 23. I wasn’t ready to discuss that possibility before this outing, but the 230-pound bruiser’s dual roles as starting running back and short-yardage quarterback actually make it viable. Consider the prettiest man on television to be officially on upset watch!

Notably, I also felt this was the first time that the Lions made the tandem backfield with James Butler work as intended. Ottawa’s porous and undermanned defence played a role in that, but so did creative playcalling and a strong personal effort. Butler put up 45 yards on seven carries, while adding two catches for 11 yards and a touchdown. He had another big gain erased by penalty as well.

The one-two punch was a major reason why B.C. dominated the time of possession battle — 37:08 compared to 22:52 for their opponent.

Quite the kite

Can someone please give Mike Benevides another head coaching job already? Not only because he legitimately deserves a second chance given his winning record, but because I yearn for more people at the podium who provide more than canned answers.

The Lions defensive coordinator is always generous with his soundbites and was particularly forthcoming in a chat with 3DownNation this week, taking aim at the narrative that the CFL recycles old coaches to its detriment. In his opinion, anyone who thinks that way can “go fly a kite.” And yet, even as the Lions’ defence delivered yet another win, there were still people dressed in Benjamin Franklin cosplay making a fool of themselves in my Twitter mentions.

Since Week 7, the Lions defence has been the best in the CFL in points allowed, net yards allowed, yards allowed per play, red zone touchdown percentage, and pass knockdowns. Nothing that happened in Ottawa will change that, as they allowed just 329 net yards and 24 points despite frequently being placed in a bad position by the team’s other phases. They forced three turnovers on downs, including an early goal line stand that included big plays from Darnell Sankey and Deontai Williams, generated three sacks, and added a pick from Jackson Findlay. Despite the score remaining close for three quarters, the Redblacks managed negative three rushing yards — that’s right, you and I both ran for more than an entire team on Sunday.

That’s not to say there weren’t a few busts. B.C. got very lucky that Jake Maier didn’t see Kalil Pimpleton running free down the right sideline on his first throw of the game. The first down catches from Justin Hardy and Keelan White that set up a walk-off field goal at the half were unfortunate. And the effort from everybody on Ayden Eberhardt’s 49-yard screen touchdown left a lot to be desired. Those things will have to be corrected, but they are also part of pro football. Expecting perfection on every play just isn’t realistic.

This is an aggressive, physical unit that is exceptionally well-coached and playing near the top of their game. I’m sick and tired of pretending like that is some kind of hot take that needs to be defended. I’ll let the lightning deal with the kite-flyers.

Blind on review

I give CFL officials, including the replay centre, a lot more grace than most. In general, I think fans moan too much about missed calls or questionable corrections from on high. However, the ruling on Justin McInnis’ “fumble” in the fourth quarter was almost enough to make me a stone-hearted cynic.

Given the contortion of the receiver’s body and that of the defender, Benny Sapp, it seems illogical that some part of him had not touched the ground by the time the ball came out. The problem was that there was no replay available to prove it, with every angle shown being inconclusive.

The officials on the field seemed to understand that they had made a controversial, and perhaps incorrect, call. That’s exactly why, after much discussion, they chose a fumble as the ruling on the field. That decision ensured an automatic review, but without conclusive video proof, the bigwigs in Toronto could only confirm the decision that the refs weren’t sure about. Had the play been ruled the other way on the field and Ryan Dinwiddie challenged, I’m sure that would have been upheld as well.

The added wrinkle here is that earlier in the week, a clear fumble by Winnipeg’s Nic Demski was overturned by the replay centre because his forward progress had stopped, triggering an uproar from Montreal fans and anyone with eyeballs. McInnis certainly wasn’t advancing the ball in this circumstance either, as he lay on top of Sapp. And yet, that same standard wasn’t applied.

All my exes live in Bytown

The Lions were reunited with a couple of old friends on Sunday, both of whom exacted a bit of revenge for their departures.

Receiver Ayden Eberhardt was a popular figure in this organization for the past several seasons, but had to be allowed to walk in free agency due to the rising cost of other pass catchers. He has been one of the very few bright spots amidst the Redblacks’ miserable campaign and showed why yet again against his old team, catching two passes for 59 yards and scoring touchdowns on both. The second was an unbelievable play, as he broke loose on a screen pass against Cover 0 and put T.J. Lee in a spin-cycle to race all the way to the end zone.

Defensive end Sione Teuhema also got his pound of flesh from the team that cut him early in the season. With B.C. once again pinned deep on their second drive, he looped all the way across the formation to come in free for a sack on Rourke, forcing a punt from the shadow of the goal post. He added four tackles on the night, and I bet they all felt amazing.

Tippy toes

Jermaine Jackson is officially listed at five-foot-eight, but for the record, he measured in at five-foot-six-and-a-half at his Idaho pro day. He needed every last millimetre when he stretched up to corral a pass in the second quarter, tipping the ball to himself in an incredible feat of concentration and taking off for a 41-yard romp to the goal line.

The pint-sized speedster was B.C.’s best receiving threat on the night, putting up 128 yards on four receptions. 70 of those came after the catch as he was consistently able to make defenders miss in space. After being cut in training camp, he has brought an element to this offence that they’ve been missing, though I still don’t know that he’s being consistently maximized.

An elephant on the teeter-totter

B.C.’s poor special teams play continues to slant the field position battle heavily in favour of their opponents. The Lions are winning that uphill climb, but it takes a lot of extra effort.

When Ottawa was building its early lead, the difference in average starting field position was stark between the two sides. The Lions were beginning drives on their nine-yard line, while the Redblacks were opening at the B.C. 42-yard line, thanks to the turnovers and a big opening return from Kalil Pimpleton. That evened out as the night progressed, but there was never a real risk of Stanley Berryhill busting a big run. At best, he can get upfield in a straight line, as he did on his 22-yarder.

The Lions signed experienced return specialist Lawrence Woods III this week, but I don’t know how serious they are about using him. Having both Berryhill and Jackson on the roster is an offensive luxury that they don’t want to lose, and Woods may not be compelling enough at this stage to change their mind.

Hoofbeats approaching

Cornerback Garry Peters made his season debut on Sunday after fighting back from a nagging knee injury and did not look out of place. There are more cavalry pounding just over the horizon too, as defensive tackle Jonah Tavai is almost ready to come back after a brief absence and Canadian safety Cristophe Beaulieu is very close to returning from his torn ACL. I would not be shocked if we saw both players within the next two weeks.

Perhaps most intriguing is the news that the Indianapolis Colts waived last year’s Most Outstanding Rookie nominee Robert Carter Jr. as part of their final roster cutdowns. He had a productive preseason and could still land on the practice roster or with another team, but the size concerns that have plagued him his entire life continue to be a hurdle.

Should Carter not receive another NFL shot, the Lions still control his rights. A late-season return is a mouth-watering possibility, though Benevides may soon have more talented players in the secondary than he can possibly dress.

East of Eden

Despite the Redblacks’ well-established status as the lowest of the low, this victory can’t be taken for granted. Not only did it propel B.C. above .500 for the first time this year, but it allowed the team to match the Stampeders and Bombers, both of whom got wins in Week 13. With back-to-backs on tap for everybody in the West the next few weeks, there is the potential for some wild swings in the standings.

The Lions (6-5) will remain out East as they prepare for Montreal on a short week, allowing for some valuable extra rest and some quality team bonding. The last time this group was sequestered together, back in Kelowna, it produced positive results. Now on a five-game hot streak, there is the potential for even greater chemistry.

Kickoff against the Alouettes (9-2) goes at 4:30 p.m. PDT on Friday, September 4.

J.C. Abbott is a University of British Columbia graduate and high school football coach. He covers the CFL, B.C. Lions, CFL Draft and the three-down league’s Global initiative.