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Kenny Lawler has had a relatively slow start through two regular-season games this year, but that isn’t cause for concern for Hamilton Tiger-Cats head coach Scott Milanovich.
“He doesn’t have the catches right now, I’m sure, that he would want, but he’s a win-first guy. He knows his time will come. We had a couple opportunities to give him a bigger night the other day that just didn’t work out for him, but he’s been great,” Milanovich told the media in Hamilton.
“His impact — you can’t overestimate it, what he does. If he’s just running a clear route, people don’t fall off. In two games, he’s got two pass interference penalties that have set up touchdowns. There’s nobody I would rather have.”
The 31-year-old has only six catches for 75 yards so far this year to rank fourth on the roster behind Kiondré Smith, Keric Wheatfall, and Myron Mitchell.
Lawler was dominant last season, setting all-new career-highs with 86 receptions for 1,443 yards and 14 touchdowns to earn an All-CFL selection. He signed a contract extension last month worth a reported $1 million over three years that will tie him to Steeltown through 2028.
The University of California product may have scored a 102-yard touchdown against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers — his former team — in Week 2, though Bo Levi Mitchell overthrew him. Lawler ran a double move against Deatrick Nichols and was wide open on the play.
It also appeared that stopping Lawler was a priority for the Montreal Alouettes in Week 1, as they routinely dropped defenders deep to his side of the field.
In all, Milanovich seems happy with his team’s start to the year, particularly with how young players have excelled in place of injured veterans.
“We still have a lot of things to tighten up, but with as many injuries as we’ve had early in the season, I think the guys stepping in have done a nice job,” said Milanovich.
“We found a way to win against a really good team on the road. What Mitchell’s doing offensively in place of Shemar (Bridges) has been outstanding. I thought Keric had a great night, Larry Rountree obviously had a big night, (Ryan) Baker’s playing well at (middle linebacker) in place of (Wynton McManis).”
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats (1-1) will host the B.C. Lions (0-1) at Hamilton Stadium on Friday, June 19 with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EDT. The Lions are coming off a last-minute loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in a repeat of last year’s West Final, while the Tiger-Cats are coming off a high-scoring win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
The weather forecast in Hamilton calls for a high of 24 degrees with a 40 percent chance of showers. The game will be broadcast on TSN in Canada and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune in on 730 CKNW (English) or Sher-E-Punjab Radio AM 600 (Punjabi) in Vancouver or the Ticats Audio Network in Hamilton.
