Hello, Toronto Argonaut fans. How did that feel, rooting for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to win on Saturday? Tell me, was there any hot water left in the tank after you showered?<\/p>\n
Never mind. You can go right back to your regularly scheduled Ticat feelings this Saturday.<\/p>\n
Here are the Week 17 takeaways.<\/p>\n
RELATED THEY ARE JUST A BIT DISCOMBOBULATED AT PRESENT<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n The darlings of the CFL for much of the season, both the Calgary Stampeders and Saskatchewan Roughriders, now find themselves looking for some answers after losses in Week 17.<\/p>\n In dropping a second straight with a bye sandwiched in between, the Riders aren\u2019t quite the mean machine they\u2019d been through most of the season, struggling on offence until the late stages in their 27-25 loss to Edmonton, while the defence got torched on deep balls from Elks\u2019 quarterback Cody Fajardo.<\/p>\n With a 38-20 loss in Montreal, the Stampeders have now dropped three in a line, and are in danger of losing their grip on second place in the West. In fact, an extended losing streak could see them fall all the way into a crossover playoff position with a trip East for a Semi-Final, as opposed to a home date at McMahon Stadium.<\/p>\n Or an even worse fate.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve gotta get better,\u201d said Calgary head coach Dave Dickenson, adding that he thought his team deserved better than an 18-point deficit on the scoreboard.<\/p>\n \u201cI do think our team will continue to fight,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n THEY, ON THE OTHER HAND, SEEM RATHER COMBOBULATED AT PRESENT<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n There are, of course, lots of reasons for the Roughriders and Stampeders to keep the fretting over recent losses to a minimum and one of those reasons would be the BC Lions, a team that just a month ago was ragged and lost, staring a descent to the bottom of the division square in the eyes.<\/p>\n While Friday\u2019s win over Toronto wasn\u2019t quite so supercharged with the offensive fireworks that two previous wins had, it did serve as a sign that the Lions are getting all gears meshing, with the defence stepping on the accelerator in holding Toronto\u2019s offence to just one, late-game touchdown drive while keeping five other scoring drives to field goals.<\/p>\n And that\u2019s against an offence that had torched the Lions a month ago, in a 52-34 romp.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we\u2019re showing right now that we\u2019re playing good football as a team,\u201d said Lions\u2019 quarterback Nathan Rourke<\/a>, thanking his defence for stepping up on a night where he threw three interceptions.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you\u2019re struggling in one area, the other parts can pick you up.\u201d<\/p>\n PROTECT THE PRECIOUS AT ALL COSTS, PART ONE<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Raise a glass or tip your hat \u2014 or do both, really \u2014 to Winnipeg quarterback Zach Collaros<\/a>, one of the toughest hombres in the CFL.<\/p>\n Time and time again over the course of his career, he\u2019s returned from injury to re-set his team\u2019s tone.<\/p>\n After missing the previous two games with a head injury, Collaros was back at the controls for the Blue Bombers and it was night and day for what had been a struggling offence.<\/p>\n Collaros\u2019 masterful performance in a 40-3 shellacking of the Hamilton Ticats, completing 21 of 26 passes for 390 yards and a sizzlingly good touchdown strike to receiver Dillon Mitchell<\/a>, very clearly illustrated what is paramount for the Bombers as they attempt to make it to a home Grey Cup game, in November.<\/p>\n They must keep Zach Collaros<\/a> protected.<\/p>\n PROTECT THE PRECIOUS AT ALL COSTS, PART TWO<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n You could say the same thing for the Montreal Alouettes and their quarterback, Davis Alexander.<\/p>\n With few exceptions, the Alouette offence had been mired in muck while Alexander was out of the lineup for eight games with a hamstring injury.<\/p>\n In his Week 17 return, the 26-year-old absolutely jolted the Als\u2019 offence to life, in a 26-for-36 passing performance, racking up 350 yards and a touchdown strike in a comfortable win over Calgary.<\/p>\n Moving ahead, the Alouettes need to be careful to not push Alexander and that hamstring too hard. A relapse could be devastating to a team that is doing its own fair share of combobulating in recent weeks.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s definitely sore,\u201d said Alexander of his hamstring, post-game. \u201cBut it\u2019s a different feeling than what it was two months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n He added that he\u2019d stay in Montreal during the upcoming bye week, continuing his treatment regimen.<\/p>\n NOTHING IS INEVITABLE. I KNOW THAT NOW<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n I know that because of Play number 138 from Friday night\u2019s game between the Toronto Argonauts and the BC Lions.<\/p>\n On third-and-one from the Toronto 41 and with 90 seconds to play, Lions\u2019 quarterback Nathan Rourke<\/a> took the snap and juked to his left and as he did that, Toronto linebacker Wynton McManis<\/a>, as sure a tackling machine as there is in the CFL these days, stepped through the hole and into the backfield to wrap Rourke up, giving the Argos an incredible stop and a turnover on downs.<\/p>\n Except that Rourke, who disappeared beneath McManis\u2019 hulking mass, somehow got loose \u2014 got loose from Wynton McManis<\/a>, I say \u2014 and shot forward for three yards and a first down.<\/p>\n Somewhere on high, the spirit of Harry Houdini nodded and gave the BC quarterback a slow clap of respect.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s inevitable,\u201d some will say to me about some such thing in the future. And I will reply \u201cNothing is inevitable because I saw Nathan Rourke<\/a> break free from Wynton McManis<\/a> one time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00bb\u00a0Patterson\u2019s hat trick leads Alouettes to win over Stampeders<\/a>
\u00bb Zach Collaros cooks up Ticats in his return to action<\/a>
\u00bb Back and forth ends in victory for Elks over Riders<\/a>
\u00bb 3 stats that defined BC\u2019s Week 17 win over Toronto<\/a>
\u00bb\u00a0Sign up and watch CFL games on CFL+ in the U.S. and Internationally<\/a><\/p>\n