Monday Morning Musings - we're 4 and 0 edition

[TrueBlue4ever]

After the emotion of the big win (I think - hard to tell from some of the wailing here over the weekend) has subsided, some thoughts on sober reflection of the events past.

- Nichols is good - like, really good right now. I don't really care if he doesn't excite some posters here like the "Strevelation" or pass their subjective eye test. Dude is killing it and I re-affirm my position from the pre-season that people need to get off his back. Some of the (I'll say it right here and now) utter nonsense posted about him not being consistent or not worthy of trust to pull out the big game or spoiling Streveler's chance to get reps and be our star QB remind me why I take 48 off from posting following a game to avoid the hysteria. Others should try it some time.

- Streveler is one tough dude, but if we want to apply the same level of scrutiny to his game and we do to Nichols, that INT he threw was not a smart decision, and he's lucky his reckless run and fumble was recovered by his teammates, and that he didn't get hurt himself. People who moan about the conservative approach miss the very point Nichols made on the post-game show. Do not allow any bad turnovers by forcing plays, and at worst the other team needs to drive a longer field and eat up more time. The strategy employed by Nichols and LaPo won't score you 37 more points in the second half, but we aren't playing a video game. It's clock management, and given that the Bombers finished the game with 33+ minutes of time of possession, I'd say the game plan is working to a tee (especially since the Argos has the ball for 7 of the first 8 minutes of the game).

-back to Streveler, poor decision to throw with heat in his face, and a really poor throw to boot for an easy pick. That pass may have helped the decision to get Nichols back in

- I questioned with Lucky Whitehead's speed why Charles Nelson is back returning punts, but boy he is solid running up to catch tricky punts on the fly and drawing no yards calls

-who would have thought Nic Demski would be our deep threat?

- for all those wanting Nichols and Harris benched early for fear of injury, rosters just aren't big enough to sit people down on a regular basis. Besides, for the blowout wins the Patriots put up, when do you ever see Tom Brady pulled early? Or any QB for that matter?

- BC is worse than Toronto right now. On paper, BC has more talent, and Toronto has been far more overmatched than BC in games, so I know that statement seems odd. But the Argos did not quit on Friday, and BC flat out rolled over at home, the second time they have just stopped playing mid-game in the last 4 weeks.

- Jackson Jeffcoat is our defensive MOP right now

- Willie Jefferson may not have the sexy stats like last year, but he has been well worth the investment for his disruption on the line of scrimmage alone.

 - Chandler Fenner is the most visible of the DBs right now. For all the right AND wrong reasons. Either a great tackle/INT/knockdown, or a big bust. No middle ground it seems.

 - Can we remove Jeff Hecht from the scapegoat list now, especially given what Derek Jones showed in his place?

 

Edited July 15, 2019 by TrueBlue4ever

[do or die]

For all the talk about Fenner.....Jones and Alexander were pretty bad out there.  Alexander still (from last year) has some issues with the tackling.

[Mark H.]

Our best man in the secondary is still Markus Sayles - more ‘sayles scouting’ please. 

[Bubba Zanetti]

Yup, secondary needs to tighten up. Been disappointed in Fenner and Alexander this year. Both have looked terrible at times.

[Rod Black]

Good post TB4E. Demski is a big surprise for me replacing the previous #7, with new #7 displaying exceptional athletic skills. The Hecht injury didn’t look good so will miss the guy. 

Edited July 15, 2019 by Rod Black

[Alpaca]

I’ve never been sold on Alexander. He has size and looks the part but...

(Now he’ll go have the game of his life lol)

[blue_gold_84]

3 minutes ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

Yup, secondary needs to tighten up. Been disappointed in Fenner and Alexander this year. Both have looked terrible at times.

With the pressure/disruption the D-line seems to generate up front, it's amazing how poorly positioned the DBs are at times. Especially the veteran players. Tackling has been somewhat sloppy, too. It looks like a lack of attention to detail and/or inconsistent communication, so I'm hoping it can be remedied as this unit builds chemistry.

Nichols' long ball was on the money on Friday. His chemistry with Demski has been great thus far and that pass to Adams was absolutely ridiculous.

[Mr Dee]

For the win and all the good that came out of this game, this is what Ted Wyman reports:

Fenner:

“We’re definitely gonna get chewed out in the media room because it was an ugly win,” he said. “We’re not feeling relaxed at all. We were definitely humbled by this win. We didn’t anticipate it going the way it did and there were mistakes made. That’s not our standard.

“They hold us to a very high standard here and all those mistakes will come up on film. That red dot will be on different players when they make mistakes. Nobody will be feeling good about watching this film.”

“We’re never gonna be perfect,” Bombers coach Mike O’Shea said. “You need to try to be more perfect.”

They managed only six first downs on offence and had just 69 passing yards and 61 rushing yards. The defence, which had not allowed a touchdown in two games (10 quarters overall), was picked apart by Argos QB McLeod Bethel-Thompson (388 yards, three TDs) and receiver Derel Walker (nine catches, 188 yards, two TDs

And  Nic Kowalski:

 

Edited July 15, 2019 by Mr Dee

[Bigblue204]

I'm not sure I'd call Awe a beast. I mean, they gave up over 40 points.

[do or die]

If being a beast involves late hits and spearing.....well ok

[Bubba Zanetti]

9 minutes ago, Mr Dee said:

For the win and all the good that came out of this game, this is what Ted Wyman reports:

Fenner:

“We’re definitely gonna get chewed out in the media room because it was an ugly win,” he said. “We’re not feeling relaxed at all. We were definitely humbled by this win. We didn’t anticipate it going the way it did and there were mistakes made. That’s not our standard.

“They hold us to a very high standard here and all those mistakes will come up on film. That red dot will be on different players when they make mistakes. Nobody will be feeling good about watching this film.”

“We’re never gonna be perfect,” Bombers coach Mike O’Shea said. “You need to try to be more perfect.”

They managed only six first downs on offence and had just 69 passing yards and 61 rushing yards. The defence, which had not allowed a touchdown in two games (10 quarters overall), was picked apart by Argos QB McLeod Bethel-Thompson (388 yards, three TDs) and receiver Derel Walker (nine catches, 188 yards, two TDs

And  Nic Kowalski:

 

This confirms what our eyes are seeing. Fenner and Alexander need to get their **** together if we are truly going to be a contender. Cant keep giving up so many explosive plays.

Edited July 15, 2019 by Bubba Zanetti

[Sard]

57 minutes ago, Mark H. said:

Our best man in the secondary is still Markus Sayles - more ‘sayles scouting’ please. 

My only issue with Sayles is that he seems to sell out attempting to get the 'big hit' too often and doesn't wrap the ball carrier up.  He's good for at least 1 or 2 every game where he can stop a guy for no YAC yards if he just puts his arms out, but he tries to knock guys off balance or out of bounds instead and usually just glances off of them.

[Tracker]

Some of the screwups in the Bomber secondary can be written off to teething problems as the pieces get familiar with each other and the system, but that excuse is gonna get real old real fast. 

[do or die]

4 minutes ago, Tracker said:

Some of the screwups in the Bomber secondary can be written off to teething problems as the pieces get familiar with each other and the system, but that excuse is gonna get real old real fast. 

That would certainly account for TD #1
One was just a beauty throw from BT, with Fenner only 1 step behind
The other was Jones and Alexander looking somewhat like Alphonse and Gaston

Edited July 15, 2019 by do or die

[Booch]

Two of the TD's were miscommunication/missed assignments by the Bombers..is this fixable...certainly and better to flesh out the growing pains and oopsies now...and up to this point it hasn't cost us in the win column so that is a bonus as well.

That TD to Amanti Edwards...truly believe if Hecht was in there he would have blown up the play or at the least made the Tackle (can't believe I am defending Hecht but he has impressed and played lights out) as Jones I think effed up from not playing with live bullets often enough and didnt react like he should...he took a weird route to the play, almost like he was trying to stay out of Alexander's way....but regardless i know in post game film study and coaching they will have him coached up to that being a one time thing and learning experience

[Firekid]

2 hours ago, Mark H. said:

Our best man in the secondary is still Markus Sayles - more ‘sayles scouting’ please. 

I ran into Sayles and Humes before the game at Pita Pit on University Cres. The home game before it was "Stove" Steven Richardson and Tomas Miles.

[kelownabomberfan]

6 minutes ago, Firekid said:

I ran into Sayles and Humes before the game at Pita Pit on University Cres. The home game before it was "Stove" Steven Richardson and Tomas Miles.

Do the Bombers eat free there or something?

[Rod Black]

28 minutes ago, Booch said:

Two of the TD's were miscommunication/missed assignments by the Bombers..is this fixable...certainly and better to flesh out the growing pains and oopsies now...and up to this point it hasn't cost us in the win column so that is a bonus as well.

That TD to Amanti Edwards...truly believe if Hecht was in there he would have blown up the play or at the least made the Tackle (can't believe I am defending Hecht but he has impressed and played lights out) as Jones I think effed up from not playing with live bullets often enough and didnt react like he should...he took a weird route to the play, almost like he was trying to stay out of Alexander's way....but regardless i know in post game film study and coaching they will have him coached up to that being a one time thing and learning experience

I’m impressed with the dude. He’s lucky his chicken dance in front of carter wasn’t called a fowl. 

[TrueBlue4ever]

A few additional musings:

- I like to think trhat the team sensed the wailing that was to come on the message boards later when the game was 41-19 and Toronto was driving to score and decided, "OK, enough nonsense, time for a stand on first and goal from the 2 to quiet the few remaining doubters, and not let's march for a late TD to have a score reflective of the blowout this was"

- RE: Fenner and his good./bad, one play encapsulated that perfectly. Got burned on a one-on-one out pattern coverage and totally juked out, leaving the receiver with lots of open space after over-running the play, but made a spectacular recovery and tackle to limit the damage to a 5 yard gain when it could have gone for 50.

- hard luck for Lawler on that end zone grab where he dragged his feet perfectly. I presume he did not survive contact with the ground, but thought it was worth a challenge, because he had the catch made as he slid out of bounds. Would have been the touchdown of the night

 - I know why there was so much angst on the boards this weekend. No "Odds and Sods" to tell us exactly how the game played out and quell the insurrection before it started. Do or Die, you have to tip me off when you are AWOL so I can slide in and play relief QB (like Streveler, I need the game reps. Unlike Streveler, this back-up will never be the fan favorite)

and finally, I again like to think that after the first quarter gaffe, Mike O'Shea's conversation with Kenny Lawler went something like this:

 

Edited July 15, 2019 by TrueBlue4ever

[Jpan85]

Another thing about Fenner is it seem league wide that OC's are attacking the wide side of field a lot more this year. You would never see a guy like Walker get so many reps out there before. 

[Firekid]

28 minutes ago, kelownabomberfan said:

Do the Bombers eat free there or something?

Yes they do. Or at least none of them paid lol!

[TBURGESS]

1 hour ago, TrueBlue4ever said:

hard luck for Lawler on that end zone grab where he dragged his feet perfectly. I presume he did not survive contact with the ground, but thought it was worth a challenge, because he had the catch made as he slid out of bounds. Would have been the touchdown of the night

He didn't survive contact with the ground. It was automatically reviewed because it was a possible TD so a challenge wouldn't have been a good idea.

[TrueBlue4ever]

4 minutes ago, TBURGESS said:

He didn't survive contact with the ground. It was automatically reviewed because it was a possible TD so a challenge wouldn't have been a good idea.

Hasn't stopped O'Shea before.

[brett_c_b]

15 minutes ago, TBURGESS said:

He didn't survive contact with the ground. It was automatically reviewed because it was a possible TD so a challenge wouldn't have been a good idea.

I could be wrong but doesn't it have to be called a TD by the refs to be reviewed.  I haven't been able to watch much this year, but always thought if the refs called it incomplete/down on the 1 etc, that there was no automatic review. But if the call on the field is TD then it's reviewed.

[17to85]

Potential scoring plays get reviewed too, the replay showed he trapped the ball on the ground when he landed so no td.