AKAChip

I think I'm the only one not concerned about the receiver situation for next game. Losing Watson is most certainly a loss since he's the only guy who has any sort of chemistry with Pierce but the lineup of Pierce, Anderson, Kohlert, Etienne and Denmark isn't as scary as people seem to think it is. First of all, it's not as if we're going to be tearing it up through the air anyway and Anderson showed some incredible potential and polish in limited time last year and through TC this year. Pierce is someone we've all wanted to see for a while now and let's all be honest, receiver is the easiest position in the CFL to step in and succeed right away. Calgary's offense didn't suffer at all when Price and West stepped in last year and when Simon and Bruce were hurt or struggling last year, Taylor and Ernest Jackson were quite good in their first seasons.

Assuming you mean Romby Bryant is playing for Toronto.

Good news for us.

Wear it in good health.

Because it helps the point he's trying to make.

It's Fitzgerald time.

I would get my hopes up that this will get Buck injured but we all know that Buck only gets hurt when it puts us at a disadvantage. Now that he's useless, he's going for the ironman streak.

Maybe one clear drop and one more bad throw that was still somewhat catchable but was also tipped. He's not playing very well right now but to say that he's putting multiple catches on the ground is just wrong. On the other hand, how many throws has Buck airmailed in the last three games? I'll pause while you come up with that number.

Or maybe historically, Buck Pierce has difficulty getting balls to the WR. Last year, Matthews' stats with Brink and Elliott were far better than they were with Buck and it has trended even more towards the SBs as years has gone on. It's not just one game. Denmark isn't a world-beater. we all know it, but he and Matthews aren't so bad that they would each get less than 80 yards in three games with even average QB play.

And last year it was Terrell Parker who rarely played on the active roster. This year it is Ian Wild. Same deal.

What kind of offence IS suited to Buck?

This really does come down to a difference of opinion of NI talent. I figure that if you saw more of Fraser or McCartney, you'd be singing a different tune as Fraser has widely been considered a liability and McCartney has been in the league for a few years already with only any success on STs, much like Labbe. Labbe is older and not getting any better, there is no doubt about that, but he isn't the black hole you think he is. I won't deny there are some NIs on other teams that I would love to have. Butler, Gore, Harris, Laurent, Durie and many more, but these are all legit starters. I have no doubt that any team in the league would love to have some of our legit NIs like Muamba and Watson. A guy like Stephan having two injuries doesn't make him injury prone (yet) but I see absolutely no issue with our pipeline as of now. We just so happen to not put a ton of stock into the LB portion of our young NI talent outside of Stephan. We have receivers and OL coming out the ass,

Also, I hate to do this but I can't help but find holes here. What about Karl McCartney makes you think he's any better than Labbe? They are both nothing more than special teamers. Eric Fraser is a "starting" safety but he is at best slightly better than Logan was last year. He's hardly a game-breaker. M.O Broulliette has never started in any situation other than emergency ever before so I wouldn't consider him a starting caliber player. And please tell me who Saskatchewan's third starting caliber Canadian DL is. Shologan and Foley are legit Canadian starters but that's the point, so is Muamba. Having quality NI backups at every position is essentially impossible. EDIT: Who are the 5 starting receivers in BC? Gore and Foster I will give you. Ianuzzi is no more a legit starting receiver than Kohlert at this point. Paris Jackson is not nearly a viable starter in the league anymore. Who's the other? Haidara? You must be kidding.

Why do we need a backup to our backup LB? Am I missing something?

He's there for special teams reasons and is an emergency LB, which is perfectly fine of a role for him. He's not a great or even good starting LB but please, find me another team's backup Canadians at any position that are in your mind worthy of starting (excluding OL).

I'm pretty sure Buck is notorious for having awful chemistry with his WRs. Not entirely sure where you are coming from.

There are a few things plaguing this team on offense right now but to say that most of it isn't caused by Buck's numerous shortcomings is a real stretch.

But I want to blame Jovon.

I don't hide the fact that I'd love to see Jovon replaced. Being burned by Sam Giguere, one of the most painfully average players in the entire league, is just plain not acceptable. I just don't think it's happening based on Burke's comments and the fact that Sears will have to play SAM for the next while.

Not terribly. He still has trouble reading outside runs even in the middle and his coverage skills are not even close to the level as Parker, but I wouldn't call him a liability there.

Labbe played MLB and Henoc moved outside. Not ideal, but with the way we structure our roster, we kind of get screwed if the MLB or the WIL gets hurt.

Based on Burke's comments it's an OL and a receiver and to be completely honest, I think it's going to be Matthews and Morley. I see Doug PIerce and Swiston starting next game. As happy as I would be to see Morley's time on this team end, I am sick to my stomach knowing that Matthews is likely to take the fall for Buck this week.

I know Buck isn't the only problem and I know that for the most part, Tim Burke is not an idiot. I do however, question if Burke's comments are based on an unbiased opinion on Buck's play or is just him ignoring Buck's shortcomings that have been visible for some time if not becoming more prominent. History has shown us that Burke is a zero-tolerance kind of coach to everyone, with one exception. He completely threw Joey Elliott under the bus last year and rightfully so since it was after an atrocious game. Why is he so cautious to say the same things about Buck? I wish I could make sense of it but I can't.

I'm disgusted with Tim Burke right now.

This blows.