Joe's Take

CFL Insider's columnist Joe Pritchard offers his take on all of week 4's action.

I've learned something this past week. Never never never make a blanket judgment on a team's performance after only a few games.

(Okay, maybe not. I'll probably make the same mistake dozens of times. Let's hope not, though.)

One other thing, I have to give credit where credit is due, and Charlie Taaffe had the Ti-Cats ready to play, and stuck with Jason Maas the whole game. The result? A game they were in the entire time against the 4-0 BC Lions.

Let's start our weekly rundown in Montreal. You'd think it's a guarantee of an Als victory for Anthony Calvillo to complete 33 of 38 passes and throw no interceptions. Ben Cahoon had 12 catches for over 100 yards. You'd think that'd help too. It didn't. Winnipeg came away with a 20-18 victory in a game where they hibernated on offence for three quarters once again. Kevin Glenn was 21 of 24, though, and Charles Roberts had 22 touches, which usually indicates good things for the Bombers. Two of the major plays, though, were made by the Winnipeg defence, as Robert Edwards was stopped on 3rd down at the 1 in the 4th quarter, and then again when Tom Canada sacked Calvillo to thwart a 2 point conversion that would have tied the game.

The quarterbacks may not have been at their best in Vancouver, but Jesse Lumsden had a breakout game with 11 carries for 158 yards and a major, and Joe Smith piled up 100 yards on the ground himself. The major story in this game (besides the near-upset of a 3-0 team by an 0-3 one), however, was the officiating. Hamilton was charged with a spearing call on a 3rd down sneak by Jarious Jackson, and got the blame for an illegal interference call in the end zone, when replay clearly showed that both players were guilty of interference. Those are the breaks of football, though, and something that happens when you have that much space to cover with so few members of the officiating crew. It can't make Hamilton feel any better about things, though.

You'd think a 20-1 lead at the half would hold up, especially when the other team isn't moving the ball, but the tables were almost completely turned on the Saskatchewan Roughriders, and they gave up 20 unanswered points, letting the Edmonton Eskimos get away with a victory on home turf. Luca Congi missed a 14 yard field goal with the score at 20-1, bouncing it off the upright for no points. The single lost in the exchange proved to be the difference. There isn't much more to say than it was a major meltdown for the Riders, a team that I thought had been playing strong football.

Finally, I was proven dreadfully and dramatically wrong, as Calgary was the team doing the scoring at McMahon Stadium against the Argos. Mike McMahon (or former NFLer Mike McMahon, if you had to listen to Mark Lee all game like I did) was a poor 6 for 18, just not being able to execute some of the more basic passes that a CFL quarterback must make, and generally looking like he wasn't sure what was going on. I can't blame someone new to the CFL for it, but it doesn't help you win games. Damon Allen came in and played the 4th quarter, but it didn't really matter at that point. One other point of note was the fake field goal Calgary ran to perfection in the 4th with a big lead. Some say it was piling on. I say it was a safe time to call it and make other teams aware you have it. Even if it's never used again, you've just given Sandro DeAngelis just a bit more breathing room on a couple of kicks where a fake may be a possibility.

Okay, week 5 time. Buckle up, it's gonna be a wild one, if this week is any indication.

I'm not sure picking Montreal over Toronto counts as an upset at this point, and that's what I'm going to do, as I see Montreal finally getting things together here. If Mike McMahon starts, this could be ugly. If not, I think we see a lower scoring 22-16 final score, as the Als win on the road.

Everything about this game for the Bombers screams "TRAP!" to me. It's a home game against the league's worst team in terms of record, with the Bombers having won an emotionally charged division game last week. I think they successfully avoid the trap, though, even though Jesse Lumsden makes them work for a 27-22 win.

Eskimos-Roughriders mark II happens at Taylor Field, and I think the Riders will be geared up for this one, especially after being humiliated the week before by these same Eskimos. I have the Riders winning 32-18, and restoring some of their confidence in the process.

Finally, Lions-Stamps at McMahon will be a big one, as the Lions try to keep their streak alive, and the Stamps are rebounding from an early season pothole. Calgary comes away with this one late, winning 32-27, as the Lions can't quite get it going on offence.