Hulu's CFL 2018

[Hulu]

Hello fellow CTGers, we're on the cusp of another CFL season. I had a pretty good season last year, finishing up 20+ units, all documented right here on this fine forum.

I've been doing my homework for the past few weeks, been fortunate enough to visit 3 training camps and my notebook is about 25 pages deep with notes...leggo!



One future play to start off with...

0.5* Edmonton Eskimos to win Grey Cup +650

I don't play a lot of futures but I think there is fantastic value here. The esks spent a good deal of time atop my power rankings last season and continue to top the list as we enter the season. They had a strange season in 2017 as they tallied up an unprecedented number of injuries and yet continued to win. I believe they had 88 players pass through their roster and 54 different starters throughout the year. One thing about a spate of injuries is that it typically leaves a team stronger in the future as those backups all got invaluable playing time.

QB Mike Reilly has established himself as the premier quarterback in the league and showed incredible toughness enduring hit after hit from his continually reshuffled OL last season. This year he has a healthy OL that lost a couple of starters in Joel Figueroa and Simeon Rottier but should still be a strength due to the NAT depth they have. Picking up CJ Gable late last year was a great move as he is a fantastic blocking back. They signed a competent backup in 18yr vet Kevin Glenn for insurance. At receiver they lost Brandon Zylstra to the Vikings and let Bowman go but he didn't look that impressive LY anyway. They still have a very good Vidal Hazleton and Derel Walker with a full camp under his belt this season could be an MVP type talent if he returns to previous form.

The only real concern on this team is the huge turnover on the DL. They lost Euclid Cummings, Daquan Bowers, Marcus Howard, Philip Hunt and John Chick so they will see some significant turnover in this dept. Kwaku Boateng enters his 2nd year and looks like he could be a real force on the line. Also returning is Almondo Sewell and Alex Bazzie, brought over from BC. At linebacker they lose Odell Willis (who is aging anyway) and Kenny Ladler but with a returning NAT Kevin Konar and defensive MOP candidate JC Sherritt, this will be a major strength on this team. The defensive secondary is also back and healthy with outstanding depth due to the multiple injuries suffered last year.

I am getting on this today as Edmonton opens the preseason against Sask today. Sask is only playing their 3rd, 4th and 5th QBs today. I was afraid if the Esks lay a beatdown on them it may move the line against me. I don't know, I don't play futures much.


If I have time, I may do some team previews. Best of luck to everyone this year. As always, comments, questions, compliments, insults, bile and vitriol all welcome.

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

Edmonton certainly has a great shot at winning it all.

 

[scarf31]

Have been looking forward to this thread, Hulu. You know your shit as good as anyone when it comes to the 3-down league. Best of luck this season, sir.

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

Who is Edmonton’s competition.

Calgary- obvious contenders. However they lost many players from last years team. Josh bell Tommy Campbell Marquay McDaniel Messam Andrew Buckley Pierre lavertu. Charleston Hughes and derin mayo. Shaq Richardson to nfl.

Bc- Wally buono is no threat at all. At this point he is the John fox of the cfl. Employed because of his legendary status not his ability to coach. The game passed Wally years ago. I mean a coach who doesent wear a head set. Yeah.
I’m not sold on bc qb Jennings.
Plus the high cost of real estate and silo culture of B.C. is not good For team morale - there’s a reason why Adam Bighill left to Winnipeg. He didn’t want to play for Wally-

Winnipeg- potential dark horse candidate.
Offensively they are pretty good. Harris dressier darbjn Adams and adarious bowman now.
Defensively add a former defensive mvp in Adam Bighill and I see this defense being quite excellent. Nichols was impressive the past year.

Sask- they are attracting lots of talent. Former nfl running backs tre mason and zak Stacy -
Stacked at receiver.
Defense has Hughes and Jefferson.

 

[Hulu]

Have been looking forward to this thread, Hulu. You know your shit as good as anyone when it comes to the 3-down league. Best of luck this season, sir.

Thanks scarf, I appreciate it. Things have gotten a little tougher from a capping perspective with the elimination of contact practices during the season this year but I hope to have a profitable year nonetheless.

 

[Hulu]

Who is Edmonton’s competition.

Calgary- obvious contenders. However they lost many players from last years team. Josh bell Tommy Campbell Marquay McDaniel Messam Andrew Buckley Pierre lavertu. Charleston Hughes and derin mayo. Shaq Richardson to nfl.

Bc- Wally buono is no threat at all. At this point he is the John fox of the cfl. Employed because of his legendary status not his ability to coach. The game passed Wally years ago. I mean a coach who doesent wear a head set. Yeah.
I’m not sold on bc qb Jennings.
Plus the high cost of real estate and silo culture of B.C. is not good For team morale - there’s a reason why Adam Bighill left to Winnipeg. He didn’t want to play for Wally-

Winnipeg- potential dark horse candidate.
Offensively they are pretty good. Harris dressier darbjn Adams and adarious bowman now.
Defensively add a former defensive mvp in Adam Bighill and I see this defense being quite excellent. Nichols was impressive the past year.

Sask- they are attracting lots of talent. Former nfl running backs tre mason and zak Stacy -
Stacked at receiver.
Defense has Hughes and Jefferson.

Agree on Calgary, they are still a powerhouse and with Bo peep's shoulder now 100% they should contend for sure. He's also taken off about 20lbs so he should be faster too. At +250 or so there just isn't any value though.

I am strongly considering putting a half unit down on the Bombers at +750. They have a solid OL and their receiving corps is ridiculously deep with NAT talent. New NAT rookie receivers Simonise and Petermann have looked great in camp. They've also added ex-NFLers Kembrell Tompkins and Reuben Randall into the mix. Defensively they were an enigma last year, giving up huge yards and a lot of points while simultaneously leading the league in takeaways. Bighill will be a huge addition to their defense and the word from camp is that last years weak link in the secondary, Kevin Fogg has drastically improved. This is a solid, well-coached team top to bottom. If there is a weakness its that they have no QB experience behind Matt Nichols courtesy of Darian Durant who took his signing bonus and went home. If Nichols goes down as he did late last season, their year could go down with him.

I honestly don't think Sask was as good as they looked last year and a lot of their season will depend on whether or not Collaros can regain the MOP form he had 3 years ago before the knee injury. That being said, their OL is superior to what Hamilton had early last year so I am hopeful that he can benefit from the change of scenery. I like Zach, he's a stand-up guy. Brandon Bridge is a great change-of-pace QB but is not yet ready to lead a team. While they do have quality receivers they lack some NAT depth after losing Demski to the peggers. On defense they have a major hole to fill at MLB after losing Henoc Muamba in free agency to Montreal. Its still not established exactly how they will handle that but I think its safe to say their LB corps is weaker overall than last year.

BC is where I'll have to respectfully disagree. I think they have a chance to be much improved this season depending on how their retooled OL, DL and secondary pan out. Wally gave a couple of interesting interviews in the spring where he acknowledged that he was doing too much taking on the coaching and GM role, hence Ed Hervey being hired. He also said he'd become too conservative and with this being his final shot at the cup, he is going to pull out all the stops, be more aggressive than ever and take some shots to win. Is that for real or just hot air? Time will tell. You might be right, maybe the game has passed him by and maybe I'm just sentimental for Wally but I am really hoping he can go out a winner. As for Jennings, he started last year well but after missing a few games, looked absolutely lost. One of the storylines that started to emerge after the season is that he was not on the same wavelength as OC Khari Jones and there was a ton of friction behind the scenes. Jones is now gone and replaced by Jarious Jackson who has been working with Jennings in the offseason, improving his mechanics and having him see a sports psychologist. This is a make-or-break year for Jennings. Add in Travis Lulay who is a starter-quality backup (although coming off a major knee injury) and you might have the best QB tandem in the league after Reilly/Glenn in Edmonton. Also, Bighill didn't leave because of Wally. He went to the Saints LY and was in talks with BC but they just didn't have the cap space to get a deal done when they already had so much work to do in other areas.

 

[Hulu]

Seeing Edmonton at +500 now after the 2 preseason games. Glad I got on them when I did.

 

[Hulu]

CFL East division preview

Toronto Argonauts
It took a while for this team to get going in 2017 and why not, they only completed putting the organization together right before training camp. But post-labour day they really came into their own. The defense was dominant and the offense, led by 250 year old Ricky Ray was on a mission. SJ Green came back from a serious knee injury to look like a league leading receiver again and developed almost immediate chemistry with Ray. Better still was the emergence of RB James Wilder Jr as one of the premier ball carriers in the league.
Both are back this year and although Wilder Jr was pretty pissed about not being released from his contract to pursue an NFL shot, reports from camp are that he has gotten over it. Also back is Ray, a little surprisingly since I thought he would go out on top after his Grey cup win. But apparently he still has gas in the tank even though the boatmen have signed his heir apparent in former Mizzou QB and esks backup James Franklin. I suspect Marc Trestman will begin working Franklin into the offense this season as Ray must surely be entering his final season and is one hit away from being sidelined. The scullers lost receiver Devier Posey to the NFL but have plenty of talent behind him. The aforementioned Green, Armanti Edwards and Bryan Tyms are all solid. They lack some talent at NAT receiver but do have a couple of returning players and I trust that GM Jim Popp can fill that void. They also lost OC Marcus Brady to the Indianapolis Colts and have replaced him with Tommy Condell. Condell has experience but I feel like Brady was becoming one of the best young OCs in the game so its a downgrade. Anthony Calvillo is also in town as the new QB coach which can only be a good thing.
The DL lost dominant rush end Victor Butler to retirement but added Frank Beltre (ex CAL). Overall its a stacked group with plenty of NAT talent like Cleon Layng and Linden Gaydosh. With the Lemonator, Shawn Lemon manning the other end and Troy Davis, Dylan Wynn and Jesse Tuggle all returning, this is a strong group. Ditto for the linebacking corps who were already great before adding Tank Reid from Ottawa. MLB Bear Woods had offseason back surgery so it remains to be seen if he can return to form. Marcus Ball, Terrance Plummer and newly added Khalil Bass (ex OTT) are all solid. In the defensive backfield, the Argos lost a couple of talented players in Rico Murray (who can also play the SAM) and Ziggy Owusu-Anseh who was emerging into a top cover man. They add TJ Heath (ex WPG) and Ronnie Yell (ex BC) to keep this a strong group. Rookie Trumaine Washington has looked very good in camp and may secure a starting role as the season progresses. Cassius Vaughn and Johnny Sears return from last year. Possibly the biggest defensive change is at DC where Cory Chamblin inexplicably left the team after fielding one of the top defences last year. Replacing him is little known DC Mike Archer who has little, if any, CFL experience.

Overall this is still a strong, talented team, led by the top mind in the 3 down game, Marc Trestman. If the can avoid the Grey Cup hangover, they should easily lead the east.

 

[Hulu]

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Full disclosure...this is my team since my dad took me to my first football game as a kid. I try as best I can to remove emotion when capping but this is the one team I still allow myself an emotional connection to. I do have a winning record in games involving Hamilton so hopefully I'm doing ok.

This team started 2017 0-8 before finishing 6-4. It was less about talent and more about the organization itself. Kent Austin had clearly lost the team and the problems just kept snowballing until changes were made. I was actually impressed with what June Jones was able to do with this group after taking over. Perhaps the biggest improvement was ousting DC Jeff Reinbold (who should be prevented from coaching at any level ever) and replacing him with DL coach Philip Lolly. The defense improved by leaps and bounds after that. This year, Lolly is gone and replaced by (gulp!) Jerry Glanville, resurrected from the coaching landfill by Jones. I really don't know how Glanville will work out in the CFL and I am nervous that he has to reinvent himself to be successful. He was a guy who liked physical press coverage which doesn't really exist in the CFL due to all the motion. What's worse is that they hired back one of the best young DCs in the game Orlondo Steinauer after a stint at Fresno STate bu have now sidelined him in favour of Glanville. I am not liking this. I also have to question how effective Jones' offense will be after opposing teams now have a 10 game sample to look at. I think he caught some teams off guard LY and that won't happen again.
I'll save my words about the QB situation because its been discussed ad nauseum but suffice to say, Manziel has brought the circus to town and I can only believe this will be a major distraction as the season wears on. I feel bad for Jeremiah Masoli who has worked damn hard to finally earn a starting role. This guy was on the practice roster making nothing a few seasons ago and stuck with it, always the first to arrive and last to leave. Now he has to put up with dipshit 'fans' second-guessing his every play. Between the Manziel signing and Glanville, it makes me wonder if the cats are looking for actual talent or just big names.
Offensively, the tabbies OL finally solidified with the emergence of Ryker Matthews at LT late last year. They traded away talented and dependable RG Ryan Bomben to move up a mere one spot in the draft (to draft a player whos now holding out). The cats have been stockpiling NAT OL talebnt for years though and they should be able to fill that gap. Landon Rice is the likely day 1 starter there. At RB, there are major questions marks as #1 RB Alex Green has left camp for unspecified personal reasons and may or may not be back. June Jones had the bright idea of converting undersized DL Nikita Whitlock to RB/FB but after 2 lost fumbles on 2 touches in the first preseason game, we'll see how long that lasts. NAT RB Mercer Timmis is basically all they have after that. Yikes!
There are also huge holes at receiver. After losing big-bodies receivers Andy Fantuz (retirement) and Kevin Elliot (to BC) the cats hoped to fill the void by drafting Chapman out of C Michigan. But with him not reporting yet, they are in real trouble. With Terrance Tolliver still coming back off a serious knee injury in game 1 LY, they only have a group of talented, if undersized INT receivers but virtually nothing national after SHamawd Chambers tore an ACL at practice on Friday. Feliz Faubert-Lussier looks like the best bet to be a starting NAT receiver but after that there is nothing. This team had hoped to go with 2 NATs this year but that is looking doubtful which means juggling elsewhere on the roster. I believe they will sign Chapman before the season begins but he will suffer from missing camp.
Defensively, this team looks average at best. The DL should be fairly solid with Ted Laurent anchoring the middle. 2/3 of the linebacking corps also look set but they still don't have a day 1 starter at SAM. It was looking like MAriel Cooper would provide the answer but he is hurt and there us no word on when he returns.
The defensive backfield is a work in progress. They had way too many players rotating in and out of this group last year due to injury and ineptitude so it remains to be seen if they can patch together a workable secondary. At least Abdul Kanneh is back after only playing in 2 games LY due to repeated injuries.
Special teams should be a strength as the team signed Lirim Hajrallahu from Toronto. He looks to be one of the top 3 kickers in the league this season and as a NAT who can handle all three phases of the kicking game, helps with roster flexibility.

All things considered, this is a .500 team at best this year and won't likely make any noise.

Its late and my Nyquil is kicking in. I'll do the other two teams tomorrow.

 

[Hulu]

If there is a weakness its that they have no QB experience behind Matt Nichols courtesy of Darian Durant who took his signing bonus and went home. If Nichols goes down as he did late last season, their year could go down with him.

Well it happened. Matt Nichols went down with a non-contact right knee injury yesterday and the word today is that he will miss 4-6 weeks. A lot of rumors swirling around that a deal may be in the works for Hamilton's Vernon Adams Jr who has shown promise at times but hasn't really gotten a shot at a starting role. This could be good news for the cats if they can secure a desperately needed NAT receiver in return. Stay tuned.

 

[Hulu]

Continuing with the east preview...

Ottawa Roughriders (yeah I still call them the roughriders because redblacks is a stupid, unimaginative name for a team)

Ottawa was my bugaboo last year. Every time I zigged, they zagged. Looking back I think it was a combination of me overestimating them due to their improbable cup win in 2016 and a hangover from the same. They really have been a 9-9 type of team for the past 2 years and I shouldn't have let that surprise championship colour my judgement.

Ottawa goes as Trevor Harris goes and I really struggle to figure him out. At times he looks like a world beater and puts up tremendous numbers but he also goes for long stretches where he looks very average or worse. One of his biggest problems is that he holds the ball too long and takes way too many hits. I feel like he will struggle to play a complete season until he loses the warrior mentality and learns to preserve himself. People mock Tom Brady for never taking hits but the guy lives to play another down and thats what Harris needs to do. He already left the first preseason game with a knee problem but reportedly will be ready for game 1 of the reg season. The other thing about Harris is he seems to be very emotional, even moody. Sometimes on the sideline he appears to be sulking so I really don't understand where his head is at. Behind him, they lost Drew Tate to retirement (who had talent but could never stay healthy long enough to showcase it) and dumped Ryan Lindley (no big loss). Now they have Dominique Davis who looked utterly lost in spot duty with the peg last season although he looked pretty spiffy in the RBs first preseason tilt and Danny Collins who I don't know much about. Harris had better learn to stay healthy if this team is to go anywhere. Another thing about Harris: he led the league in fumbles lost last season, another consequence of holding the ball too long.

Otherwise the offense is mostly in tact. They have a very strong receiving corps with Ellingson, Sinopoli and Spencer and with the former 2 being NATs really helps the ratio. William Powell is back at RB and the OL, anchored by returners John Gott and SirVincent Rogers should be solid.

Defensively there are question marks. Ottawa lost the interior of their line including star Zach Evans to Sask and have some rebuilding to do there. The team lost MLB Tank Reed to Toronto but have added Kyries Hebert from Montreal. Hebert is very talented but aged. This can only be seen as a downgrade. The secondary is mostly the same group that turned it on in the second half of last season, mostly due to the emergence of Sherrod Baltimore

The kicking duties have yet to be decided after the loss of Brett Mahar but as of now it looks like it will be an INT duo with Sergio Castillo handling the pk duties while Richie Leone handles punting.

Coaching-wise I am still not sold on Rick Campbell as a head man despite his pedigree. One major change is that Mark Nelson is out as DC, replaced by Noel Thorpe who is known for physical defences and did a great job with Montreal last year.

Overall I see this team as about the same as last season. They are a 9-9 or maybe a 10-8 team if they catch a few breaks.

 

[guaranteeed]

Great thread

Love is the value on the esks

Keep reilly healthy and they are as scary as anyone

 

[Hulu]

Montreal Alouettes

And now for the gong show. Kavis Reed was a fantastic linebacker and at one time was viewed as an up and coming executive. But now his days at GM may be numbered as he continues to make bonehead moves. Last year it was severely overpaying Darian Durant who completely flopped and this season he recycled Josh Freeman off the scrap heap. Freeman lasted a whole 6 days in camp before being cut because his heart was just not in the game anymore. Furthermore, hiring Mike Sherman as HC has to be viewed as a real long shot. I know he won a superbowl with the Packers but had largely retired and was coaching a high school team when the Als called. Can he really switch out of retirement mode and find success by adapting to a very different brand of football? Time will tell but I am betting its not going to be a long relationship. Then their DC walks away on the cusp of training camp opening. At least they found a quality guy to step in with Rich Stubler but like I said: a total gong show.

Its doubtful that Freeman was destined to be the ALs starter this season considering he signed for a reported $70k with no signing bonus but after that they don't have a whole lot. Drew Willy will be the likely day 1 starter and although he has shown flashes of competence in the past few years they have been too few and far between. He tends to wilt under pressure. Is this Willey's time to shine? I dunno but I wouldn't bet on it. 2nd year man Schilz looks to have promise but is very inexperienced and Antonio Pipkin is very young (22?) and has looked lost in limited action.

The ALs have an above average OL but the loss of Olifoye to BC leaves a big hole at the all-important LT position. Journeyman Xavier Fulton may have to plug that hole. Additionally RG Ryan Bomben who the ALs traded away the 1st pick overall to get, has broken his finger or hand and will miss the first couple of games. Behind them RB Tyrell Sutton is a bone-crushing back and may be the teams best offensive weapon. The team has a decent receiving corps but perhaps the biggest crime last year was making all-star WR Ernest Jackson completely invisible. I don't see that changing much this season with the lack of talent under centre. This team will struggle to score all year.

On the defensive side its a different story as the ALs made almost all of their offseason changes to improve an already good defense. This season they could be one of the top 3 defenses in the league. On the line they've added Jamal Westermann joining his brother and Allen-Michael Cash (ex TOR). Rush end John Bowman returns. This is a stacked group. At LB Chip Cox has finally re-signed albeit near the end of camp to join one of the biggest free agent signings of the offseason in Henoc Muamba (ex SSK). Talented 2nd year NAT Chris Ackie is projected to start at the WILL spot. With 2 NATS on the DL plus Ackie, the ALs will have the luxury of playing an all American secondary and what a talented group that is. They've added Mitchell White (ex TOR), Dominique Ellis (ex OTT), shutdown corner Tommie Campbell (ex CAL) and Joe Burnett (ex CAL). This group may take some time to jell but it will be good. The major loss they suffered was Johnathan Mincy (to the Chicago Bears) who was turning into a star shutdown corner. Mincy is the prototypical CFL player...talented enough to be on at least half of the rosters in the NFL but fatally undersized. I wouldn't be surprised if he is back after NFL cutdown day.

Kicking is solid with big-legged Boris Bede who is talented but full of himself.

To recap...crazy talented defense led by a legendary DC, crap offense whose best talent is at RB. I smell a lot of unders. The problem is this was also the case last year and the market adjusted by seasons end and we were seeing totals in the 50-51 range. Regardless, Montreal should be in the leagues basement again this year.

 

[Hulu]

Great thread

Love is the value on the esks

Keep reilly healthy and they are as scary as anyone

Thanks man, I appreciate you saying so.

My esks future just got better with Nichols going down. And yeah, Reilly is a stud. I would totally have his baby.

 

[Hulu]

I'm going to go out on a limb and make a wild prediction.

I predict that within maybe 2-3 seasons, the Edmonton Eskimos will change their team nickname to Empire. I think its in keeping with the tenor of the times and although there have only been a few calls to eliminate the Eskimo name, it would be a totally Canadian thing to do. Also, if you've ever been to Edmonton you know there is a huge indigenous (although not necessarily Inuit) demographic there, at least some of whom don't like the name. Empire would allow them to keep the double E logo too.

This is totally off the top of my imagination and I haven't seen or heard anything to suggest this is in the works but I would take +2500 on this.

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

Hulu.

Astute observations about Trevor Harris. He does sulk in the sidelines looking visibly frustrated.

He does hold onto the ball way too long and also looks to be too slow to run. I feel his foot speed is sub par for a cfl q.b. Almost every other qb in the league looks much faster on their feet.

Jennings B.C. fast feet good runner
Collaros- scrambles a lot. Was quick before knee
NICHOLLS - nothing fancy but al least avoids sacks.
Reilly- Fast enough to run and powerful. Runs with a long powerful stride.
Mitchell- Doesent run a lot but can dance in the pocket and make things happen
Misoli- Elite feet elite scrambler. Very coordinated

Harris- No threat as a runner gaining yards, slow footed. Lacks escape moves if trapped . Takes sacks and can’t break contain or threaten edges.
Strictly a pocket q.b who needs a very solid offensive line to be successful.

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

I think if Ottawa had a Nichols at qb they would be a much better team and be a more serious contender for the title.

Maybe Ottawa should traded for Vernon Adams. I think he’s better than Harris .

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

Agree on Montreal. Easily top 3 defense but offensively they will suck with drew Willy.
Secondary if mincy returns will be dominant.

I feel Vernon Adams operating the Redblacks with a dynamic trio of Ellingson Sinopli and spencer.
Ottawa would be pretty impressive on offense.

I agree regarding Rick Campbell. It almost seems as if he’s just there while the coordinators do their job. He seems to have benefited from luck.

 

[guaranteeed]

Crazy to think with the Als

Model organization in the league for what like 15 years? Maybe 20

Going back to tracy ham days, now kavis reed like you said is basically thought of as a joke now

 

[Hulu]

Jennings B.C. fast feet good runner
Collaros- scrambles a lot. Was quick before knee
NICHOLLS - nothing fancy but al least avoids sacks.
Reilly- Fast enough to run and powerful. Runs with a long powerful stride.
Mitchell- Doesent run a lot but can dance in the pocket and make things happen
Misoli- Elite feet elite scrambler. Very coordinated

Harris- No threat as a runner gaining yards, slow footed. Lacks escape moves if trapped . Takes sacks and can’t break contain or threaten edges.
Strictly a pocket q.b who needs a very solid offensive line to be successful.

Pretty much agree with all of this. I really hope Zach Collaros can regain his former form. After the ACL he just looked tentative and was getting rid of the ball too quick instead of using his legs to extend the play as he always had in the past. But he was playing behind a pretty porous line so he was probably playing afraid. I hope it will be different for him in Sask. I had the chance to meet him a couple of times and he is a really good guy.

BLM has spoken about how he wants to add more running to his game this season and showed up to camp 20 lbs lighter, not that he was fat to begin with. We'll see how that works out.

It is possible to win as a pure pocket passer in the CFL. Ricky Ray is an absolute statue back there and won the Grey cup just by being smart enough to read a defense and know what to do with the football. I also think back to Danny McManus who was largely the same. Funny story about him: during the '98 season when he won the cup, I walked into a Burger King and see him in line ahead of me. I said something like 'wow Danny Mac!'. He turned to me, smiled and put a finger to his lips as if to say 'shhh I'm not supposed to be here.' After the season he admitted that he had put on so much weight that year he couldn't even lace up his pads properly through the playoffs. And yet not only did he win the cup, but he set a CFL record for the fewest sacks taken in an 18 game regular season at 6. I think that still stands today. That dude could read a defense so well he knew where the ball was going before defenders ever got close.

I don't think Harris has that ability. Not yet anyway.

 

[Hulu]

Crazy to think with the Als

Model organization in the league for what like 15 years? Maybe 20

Going back to tracy ham days, now kavis reed like you said is basically thought of as a joke now

Very true. They are fortunate to have a billionaire owner in Bob Wetenhall who is a legit fan of the team also so the franchise can weather the storm. Reportedly back in the pre-high speed internet days, he would call into the ALs office on game days, have someone set the phone handset near a radio tuned to the game broadcast and listen to it for 3 hours on the phone. Apparently he even did this from Europe where it would have been the middle of the night. That's dedication.

But since his son Andrew was given the reigns of the organization, it has been a steady downhill slide. Hopefully jr can learn from his mistakes and figure out how to run a football team.

 

[Hulu]

My power rankings for week 1 as they stand now alongside currently posted odds to win Grey Cup. Tell me where I'm wrong and why...

1. EDM +3.5 +500
2. CAL +2.5 +280
3. TOR +1.5 +700
4. BCL +0.0 +1200
5. WIN -0.5 +650
6. SSK -0.5 +700
7. OTT -1.0 +950
8. HAM -1.5 +550 (LOL!)
9. MON -4.0 +1400

 

[Hulu]

1* Edmonton -6 -106
1* BC Lions -6.5 -113

Write-ups later

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

1* Edmonton -6 -106
1* BC Lions -6.5 -113

Write-ups later

I like B.C.

They have usually laid a good beating on the als.

However Bc as home chalk is a scary proposition. Jennings is inconsistent and coaching wise Bc is at a severe disadvantage vs any coach that schemes.

Wally buino does not look at film. He does not wear a headset. He refuses to gameplan for a team.

Als have a new coach mike Sherman which might be the only coach that Wally can coach against.

 

[Hulu]

Ok Edmonton vs Winnipeg looks like an easy win for the Esks to me. Winnipeg is a solid team but no Nichols, no chance. They are starting Chris Streveler out of South Dakota in his first game as a pro. Sure he went 10/10 against Edmonton in the preseason but against scrubs. Under might be a decent bet here too. One concern is the news that 2 Esk DBs Johnny Adams and Arjen Colquhoun are were not at practice today. o word on whether they'll be back for the game. Then Aaron Grymes left the team to handle something personal. No telling if he's back either. If all 3 miss, I would be a little worried.

As for BC its a fade of Montreal really because they have no offense to speak of. Drew Willy isn't scaring anyone and they have some real questions on their offensive line. Journeyman Xavier Fulton will start at LT and he was manhandled against Hamilton last week. I can't see Montreal putting up more than 15 points here. Jennings and co won't have to do much to win by 2 scores. Also, Montreal has to fly across the country and play a 10pm eastern game which is no picnic. Under might be a viable option here too.

I may be higher on BC than most this year but I'm putting my money where my mouth is. I think they were a better team than their record last season. They were on a tear until Jennings hurt his shoulder and he was never right when he came back. A couple more injuries and suddenly the wheels fell off. I still trust that Wally is a good judge of talent and relies enough on his coordinators to get things done.

And Sammy, I don't care that Wally wears no headset. I am a big believer that you adopt technology where you think it helps you. None of this technology for technology's sake. At my last job I was the only one of 55 sales reps to refuse to use the company-supplied ipad. I showed up with pen and paper and got mocked for it but I was always in the top 10 in sales. I just didn't need it. If Wally doesn't need a headset, then I trust him to make that decision. Maybe I'm sentimental (or just mental) but I still believe in the guy.

 

[Hulu]

Ugh! Colquhoun and Adams confirmed out tomorrow. Grea still away from the team.
The Esks are painfully thin at DB and have Qs on the OL also.
Still like my bet at -6 but won’t be adding to it at the present -7.

 

[Hulu]

Should’ve been more aggressive in week 1. I liked the unders in Winnipeg and Sask and now they’ve dropped 3 and 2 points respectively so the value is gone.

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

Should’ve been more aggressive in week 1. I liked the unders in Winnipeg and Sask and now they’ve dropped 3 and 2 points respectively so the value is gone.

Yeah the cfl lines change so fast bro. Often times I can never get the good lines.

Doesent take much money to move cfl lines.

 

[hunchback]

Why Sask under out of curiosity?

 

[Hulu]

Why Sask under out of curiosity?

Despite Chris Jones refusing to name a starter in this one, I think we all know it will be Collaros on a short leash. As much as I'd like Zach to get back to his 2015 self, I didn't see any evidence in the pre-season that it is going to happen. Not in the near term anyway. I also have some concerns about the riders offensive line and their ability to give him time. If Zach is playing scared again, he'll struggle. Brandon Bridge may see some playing time if that's the case and his ability to move the pocket and scramble will be better suited to the game but Toronto's front 7 is a quality unit. On the other side, the Argos have a decent offense but it rests primarily on James Wilder jr which means more clock is used on each drive. Also, although Ricky Ray is pretty efficient with the football, they had the worst red zone efficiency for most of last season and settled for a lot of field goals when they should've been coming away with TDs. Also Ray didn't play a single snap in preseason and I feel like he will take a couple of drives just to shake the rust off. Feels like a 25-22 kind of game to me.

I leaned Toronto at pk but I think -2 is about where the line should be. The green riders showed a pretty decent HFA in their new stadium last season so I wouldn't be surprised at all to see them pull the upset here.

 

[Hulu]

Yeah the cfl lines change so fast bro. Often times I can never get the good lines.

Doesent take much money to move cfl lines.

Yup, I noticed several times last season where I moved Pinny's line by 2 cents on a 2 dime bet. That's probably also due to the fact that I have beat them pretty good in the CFL over the years.

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

Yup, I noticed several times last season where I moved Pinny's line by 2 cents on a 2 dime bet. That's probably also due to the fact that I have beat them pretty good in the CFL over the years.

Nice work! Bro what’s the easiest way to deposit at Pinny?

I tried a bank wire a few years back and it was returned. I found other options to be confusing?

Much appreciated!

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

I like the Argos to win Hulu.

Argos have been a solid road team of late.

Trestman vs Chris jones is a mismatch imo.


Also the releases of huge locker room guy Chad Owens and Robb Bagg are going to effect the team negatively.



Riders I am sure are talented but I think it will taje the Riders 4-5 games to mesh.
Argos on the other hand will be ready.

I mean Trestman is so detail oriented that he even instructs players on how to lineup for the anthem.

 

[Hulu]

Nice work! Bro what’s the easiest way to deposit at Pinny?

I tried a bank wire a few years back and it was returned. I found other options to be confusing?

Much appreciated!

Its been a long time since I re-upped there. I mostly just siphon off winnings. Last time I did it was by bank wire about 5 years ago. It only took about 3 days and they refund the $30 fee my bank charges so it was pretty painless. I think they take bitcoin now if I'm not mistaken.

But Pinny is as solid as they come. I've beaten them up pretty good and never had a problem withdrawing money.

By the way, someone just told me Sports Interaction offers CFL season win totals. I've never had an account there but I've heard some shady stories about them so I'm not sure.

 

[MrPrimeTime22]

GL on the new year Hulu! Love the analysis, that's really in depth!

 

[Hulu]

And of course my girlfriend goes into labor on opening day. I checked it out and the TV here in the hospital waiting room does get TSN but its unlikely I'll be making any halftime wagers tonight.

This girl needs to get her priorities straight!

 

[SIGO]

Good to see you, Hulu. I was gonna say that I was glad your new baby wasn’t getting in the way of you capping the cfl but obviously didn’t realize the baby hadn’t been born yet! Good luck on the season and best wishes that everything goes well for the baby and mom!

 

[Hulu]

Thanks Sigo my man. Good to see you too.

I dont even care if I win my bet tonight. I’m actually kind of hoping for a bad beat. It’s the only way to guarantee I’ll remember the little tyke’s birthday.

 

[Hulu]

Well that game was memorable at least. I hate lightning delays. They always favor the home team and last night was no exception. Reilly an co looked to be cruising until the delays and then the wheels fell off for a while. That missed FG return by Kevin Fogg was just stupid to allow.

Anyway...on to tonight. Reason above somewhere.

1* SSK/TOR 1H under 25 -110

 

[Hulu]

The Alouettes charter plane broke down and they had to switch to a new aircraft. Then that one didn’t have the range to get to Vancouver so they had to make a refuelling stop in Winnipeg. They arrived at 5am local, only 14 hrs before kickoff.

Also, rush end John Bowman and DB Joe Burnett are scratched tonight.

Liking this BC bet more and more.

 

[Hulu]

Yeah I think there’s some more money to be extracted here...

0.5* Teaser CAL -1 / B.C. -1.5 -110

The cats haven’t won in Calgary since 2004 and Montreal’s situation just got worse with their travel schedule.

 

[Hulu]

Also toying with the under in Calgary. I made it 52 and it’s zoomed up to 54.5. I do t see that Hamilton has the receivers to do much damage here. Still thinking.

 

[guaranteeed]

Grats on the kid hulu

Really like that teaser, and the plane difficulties are crazy, als always struggle with these 7pm local starts out here anyway

 

[Hulu]

Thanks ‘teed. She’s a beautiful baby girl.

 

[Hulu]

0.5* Calgary 2H -4 -110

They've done well but I'm still not seeing the cats winning this game.

 

[SIGO]

Congrats on the baby girl, Hulu!

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

Congrats on the baby girl, Hulu!

Congrats bro

 

[Sammy Meatballs]

And congrats on all the winners

 

[Hulu]

Thanks guys. A new baby girl and a few winners as well...couldn't ask for much more out of a weekend.

Results after Week 1

Sides 1-1 -0.06*
Totals 1-0 +1.00*
2H plays 1-0 +0.50*
Teaser/Parlay 1-0 +0.50*

Overall 4-1 +1.94*

 

[Hulu]

Thoughts after the first week of action...

Edmonton: Offensive line is still a work in progress. They have the talent to be good but will take a bit of time with the new pieces. Ditto for the Defensive line. The secondary was pretty weak but what can you expect when you lose 3/5 starters the week of the game. One DHB was cut in camp only to be brought back for the game. They will be better. Reilly is still Reilly and the receiving corps is very good.
Winnipeg: Defense is fantastic as expected and offense will catch up once Nichols returns. Streveler did just enough to keep him team in it but the lightning delay also seriously helped by knocking the Esks off their game.
Toronto: Looked flat as might be expected when you dont give your starters enough preseason reps. Grey cup hangover in progress?
Sask: Offensive line is not as bad as I'd feared. Collaros looked better than he has since before the injury. If they can give him time, he could be a legit threat again. Defence looked good but Toronto's anemic offense helped. Playing Sam Hurl at MLB is a weakness that will show eventually. Secondary played decent but will be exposed against a better passing attack.
Hamilton: Masoli looked sharp and used his legs to good effect but showed he is still good for one catastrophic mistake per game. Receiving corps is too small to be effective and until they get a legit NAT threat, will be the achilles heal of the offense. Defensive front 7 is good as expected and the secondary was a pleasant surprise although were goven a few mulligans by Bo Mitchell and his rustiness
Calgary: Bo says his shoulder is 100% but he looked awfully wild, overthrowing wide open receivers at least 5 times. Calgary could have won by another 2 TDs if he were on. Otherwise, this team is damn good.
Montreal: Drew Willy actually looked like a quarterback for half a football game. He made good reads, hung in the pocket and delivered accurate strikes. They may win a couple more games than I expected. The 2 minute drill was embarrassing though.
BC: Jon Jennings is back. While not perfect, he looked like what we expected last season. He is still too inclined to go downfield into double coverage but if he can limit those mistakes, he will be a great QB once again. The OL looked much improved from last season and going against the ALs front, that is a good test. Defensively, the secondary is going to take some time.