Lions at Bombers Aug. 3, 2023

[TheLionKing]

The one bright spot was the play of Terry Williams. It finally dawned on him to hit the holes at full speed rather than try to fake out tacklers

[QB Club 63]

Oh yea, does Campbell realize that he CAN throw a challenge flag? There are no bonus points for keeping it in your pocket at the end of the game. Good grief. Our players literally have to be mugged before he will consider it.

Was it not foolish to run out the clock after Williams' long return in the final minute? Couldn't there be tie-breaker potential in which every point counts. We could have at least kicked a field goal instead of taking a knee twice.

We should have had a roughing the passer call on Bighill's late hit on Evans. No need to take him to the ground like that.[/b]

Dumb idea to try and execute a low % onside kick with over 9 minutes left.


DH

I agree - Bighill seems to be the only guy who didn't get the memo from the league that using your helmet as a weapon is illegal. He flat out speared Dane Evans in the chest with the top of his helmet and nobody - no officials, no coaches, no TSN talking heads - said a word about it!! Biggie has always been a hard-nosed player and maybe the league just smiles and says, "That's a typical Biggie tackle!" but for me that cheap-shot hit on a QB who was already wrapped up puts him in the same category with ex-Rider Garrett Marino (the guy who ended Jeremiah Masoli's 2022 season with the sickening hit to the knee).

[cromartie]

Lions are not a team that can make any in-game offensive adjustments as the playbook and signal caller rely totally on execution.

Gosh, where I have heard that before ?

We've all lived it.

It's wrong in this case, however. Evans is a backup for a reason.

[cromartie]

* Can we talk about the elephant in the room no one seems to want to talk about? Lucky's production. Granted, he may still be suffering the lingering effects of a hamstring but that's another problem. An inability to stay healthy. I still want to see more of Terry Williams at WR or packages.



DH

I don't entirely disagree with you, however..

Evans isn't the kind of QB that's going to get the ball to Lucky, Adams is, and when Adams is healthy, Lucky isn't.

Sometimes, Lucky's job within the offense isn't to catch the ball, it's to draw coverage to open up the intermediate game. That doesn't lend itself to production per se but it still is meaningful within the scheme.

Of course, if you don't have a QB that has a deep arm, you end up with the worst of both worlds.

[cromartie]

I think the lesson here is, when you lose the battle in the trenches, you lose the game. And the Lions definitely lost that battle.

[DanoT]

Giving up 50 points brings Lions D down to earth and no question they are NOT the best D in the CFL.
No passes to Cottoy until late in the game????
Evans is a pocket passer, not a runner or rollout QB, but at least move the pocket from time to time.

A loss is a loss, but getting trounced is at least a wake up call, so I would rather that than lose a close one.

[SammyGreene]

Yah they got torched but credit to the Bombers protection and the accuracy of Collaros. Also their receivers didn't have to make quite the brilliant catches like the Lions QB Dane Evans tossed in that first half.
I think Collaros and the Bombers just were ready for the man coverage and Collaros had time to hit the throws.
It's clear the Bombers given their personnel aren't afraid to add wrinkles and do it successfully.

The tactics for the second half says HC Rick C was to do just do their jobs. But that hole they were in no doubt was deflating.

Dom Davis hasn't really played other than short yardage. That failed first half 3rd and 1 was lame.

You sure are right Toppy. Collaros throws a terrific deep ball, rainbow like that allows his receivers enough time to run under it but with decent velocity too.
They also moved Lawler all over the place. His deep catches were against Lee, Sayles and Peters while he drew the PI against Edwards Cooper. That’s our entire starting secondary!

Good news for the Lions is not many other teams in the league have the talent at QB and receivers to do the same.

This is why football is easily my favourite sport. Bombers made some fantastic adjustments after the week 3 embarrassment and were at full strength. Now let’s see how the Lions respond with the rubber match in October. Last night’s result should be a burned into the players and coaches’ minds moving forward.

[DanoT]

I anticipated a Lions loss, so earlier in the week I bought a ticket to the Oct 6 rematch. I just didn't expect the Lions would get beat so badly.

[Toppy Vann]

If there are positives in a blowout this time of year, it's if you learn the lessons one of which is the standard shown by the Bombers after losing to the Lions and the Redblacks.

While BC is very unlikley to do do more than minor tinkering offensively with line protection believing only in their saviour Vernon Adams returning healthy and playing well, I'm confident that Ryan Phillips seems more like the type to learn the lessons - and adjust - his defense has to learn here.

Granted that opening by the Bombers for Collaros with 2 of 3 passes resulting in 162 yards and 2 TDS was incredible and seemed to catch the Lions napping.

They clearly won't be fooled in future games (nor will others) if the Bombers show maximum protection like they're running the ball but I suspect there will be a rethink of man coverage when you've got two deep threats in Lawler and Schoen who hit those inside seams like they did for TDs early.

Collaros was accurate. Evans and Davis less so but cutting them some slack here as they've played less and the Bombers QB and their D were on the top of their game. Crowd helped too.

On another note, I don't think for even a milli-second that Adam Bighill is a cheap-shot artist despite the controversial no-call. Early on the call he took for a hit was even to the TV folks a mystery. Bighill who I met in the gym working out alone and with Sol E pre-covid has nothing but respect for other players and is not out to hurt anyone.

[Toppy Vann]

JC Abbott:

Lions get 50 doses of their own medicine and 10 other thoughts on being blown out by the Bombers

By JC Abbott -August 4, 2023

The Lions’ defence entered this game boasting a streak of 44 straight opponent possessions without an offensive touchdown allowed. That didn’t last long against a Bombers squad that came out firing thanks to the aggressive play-calling of coordinator Buck Pierce.

https://3downnation.com/2023/08/04/lion ... e-bombers/

John Hodge:

Blue Bombers wreck Lions to reclaim first place in West Division (& 10 other thoughts)
By John Hodge -August 3, 202

3

That’s not to say Winnipeg is going to has an easy path winning the division. The Lions have a pretty light schedule over their final 10 games with half of those contests being against the Edmonton Elks (0-8), Calgary Stampeders (2-5), and Saskatchewan Roughriders (3-4). The club also doesn’t have any remaining games against the Toronto Argonauts (6-0), who handed the Lions their first loss of the season.

Adam Bighill responds to the call for the hit on Hatcher. He has a point there.

https://3downnation.com/2023/08/03/blue ... -thoughts/

[Lion Guy]

Oh yea, does Campbell realize that he CAN throw a challenge flag? There are no bonus points for keeping it in your pocket at the end of the game. Good grief. Our players literally have to be mugged before he will consider it.

Was it not foolish to run out the clock after Williams' long return in the final minute? Couldn't there be tie-breaker potential in which every point counts. We could have at least kicked a field goal instead of taking a knee twice.

We should have had a roughing the passer call on Bighill's late hit on Evans. No need to take him to the ground like that.[/b]

Dumb idea to try and execute a low % onside kick with over 9 minutes left.


DH

I agree - Bighill seems to be the only guy who didn't get the memo from the league that using your helmet as a weapon is illegal. He flat out speared Dane Evans in the chest with the top of his helmet and nobody - no officials, no coaches, no TSN talking heads - said a word about it!! Biggie has always been a hard-nosed player and maybe the league just smiles and says, "That's a typical Biggie tackle!" but for me that cheap-shot hit on a QB who was already wrapped up puts him in the same category with ex-Rider Garrett Marino (the guy who ended Jeremiah Masoli's 2022 season with the sickening hit to the knee).

That's what I saw

[zeppo]

On another note, I don't think for even a milli-second that Adam Bighill is a cheap-shot artist despite the controversial no-call. Early on the call he took for a hit was even to the TV folks a mystery. Bighill who I met in the gym working out alone and with Sol E pre-covid has nothing but respect for other players and is not out to hurt anyone.

I'm sure he is a great guy around the gym, but that hit on Evans was unnecessary and exactly the type of of thing that the CFL
wants to get out of the game. Bighill's initial contact after Evans had released the ball was okay, but he didn't need to follow through
with his helmet, and drive him into the ground. His intention was to hurt the Lions' starting quarterback as much as possible when he
had him in a vulnerable position.

[Toppy Vann]

I don't disagree about the Bighill hit on Evans. Protecting QBs and players is crucial.
I was more responding to a comment comparing Bighill to Garrett Marino who clearly took out Masoli's legs low and who eventually got the boot from the Riders as all that crap he was pulling off was unhelpful. I'd have liked him gone on that Masoli hit.

I'm actually fully onside with eliminating all the high hits that have crept into the CFL and believe in the post game fines even if not called.

Lately, the tackles (not that I saw last night) by some players below the knees with the shoulder have seemed to increase. No Lions in that group but on other teams. You can't do it on the QB but it should be on nobody.

Fines for the Lions from the Elks game for their seating choice while celebrating a TD:

CFL fines six B.C. Lions for touchdown celebration in Commonwealth Stadium fan seating

By 3Down Staff -August 4, 2023

https://www.lionbackers.com/bc_lions/po ... 94#preview

[Toppy Vann]

I think the lesson here is, when you lose the battle in the trenches, you lose the game. And the Lions definitely lost that battle.

On both sides of the ball the Bombers were determined to not only control the LOS but do it decisively.

I'd not suggest that the Bombers opening drives where Collaros was 2/3 and 2 TDs was game over for BC but how the Lions tried to respond with Dane Evans and failed bombs in retrospect was unlikely to be successful. I'm not sure Vernon Adams would have brought BC back but relying on Evans to make the big plays might be the wrong tactic with any back up.

Calgary beat Toronto with 27 runs and 24 passes where Jake Maier hit 22/24 and NO TOs!
Granted Chad Kelly left by the 2nd Q and Calgary responded to the Argos first TD.
But Maier tossed only 1 pass deep IIRC and it was a 14 yarder. The rest was game management.

Jim Barker's comment was that Dinwiddie needed to help his back up Cameron Dukes more but they didn't much use Harris and Ouellette was banged up.

BC did some better calls with Dom Davis in the 2nd half but when you're down that deep in the score, the come back should be less in mind than keeping the ball.

The horrid onside kick by BC at 9:10 in the 4th Q was ill advised and led to the Bombers putting up a TD to take the score from 37-14 to 43 missing the PAT.

BC at 5:10 at the Bombers 14 on 2nd and 4 passed and missed the TD pass on 3rd down. If you can't run for 4 yds but relying on your 3rd QB you've got work to do.


I thought JC Abbott was a bit too tough on Dom Davis but in retrospect looking at the game again, much of our problem in the entire game stemmed from expectations from big plays.

[Hambone]

Interesting 3D article on Winnipeg's dominance on Thursday, in particular their deep aerial attack. As an armchair QB I really appreciate this stuff and how it breaks down the plays, reads, preparation and execution necessary to have such success.

https://3downnation.com/2023/08/08/bens ... e-rematch/