G 13 Post-game

Wow, what a game. They played well, although they still aren't great at halftime adjustments. We had our first 2 & out and first punt of the game in the 3rd quarter.

Also, they still insist on running that soft zone D when trying to protect a lead. They need to figure that out already.

On the whole, great game by the offense.

Crash, it was great to meet you.

what the fuq just happened?

Agree. This week told us a little something about this team. Next week tells us more.

Secondary did give up a ton of yards for sure and Zach had a pretty clean pocket most of the night. Schoen is a pretty phenomenal receiver though and Collaros can make a lot happen and deliver some big throws even as he’s getting hit. I think we all expected Winnipeg to keep coming and that’s what championship teams do.

Looked like Brooks was out in the second half and Darby was playing in the secondary. Anybody catch the game on TV and was any reason given? I don’t remember Brooks being injured but he missed practices this week so probably wasn’t 100%.

Morning after/post pvr watch thoughts:

- Hills was great. Whoever said that he might be our Stanback was absolutely correct. If he stays healthy, we've got a running game
- Protection for Dane was great, Hills contributed with some great blocks on Jefferson et al. Bombers lost Jeffcoat late in the 1st half, his replacement was invisible. You'd have to think they'll keep this O line combination after this performance. This is what happens when Evans has time to throw
- Speaking of, I didn't see a single time where Dane either threw it away or couldn't find someone. Big difference from the 12 previous games
- This was the first time this year I saw a killer instinct from the Ticats. The long drive after the Bombers 1st TD, the TD to Kiondre Smith with less than 2 minutes remaining in the 1st half, the Bennett/Kelly sack on Collaros just before the half preventing them from taking back momentum, the 2nd possession of the 3rd quarter resulting in a Tim White TD after our 1st 2 & out of the game on our 1st possession. KEEP THIS UP.
- Carney's scoop & score in the 1st half was huge, but goddamn it TSN, cut away from the Hall of Fame interview to cover the play ffs
- We were up 34-14 at the half. When this year did anyone hang 34 on the Bummers in a half?
- Why the eff did they stick Newman in when Dane was rolling?? Made zero sense. Luckily, that play was procedure against us, Dane came back in & threw a perfect TD pass to Dunbar. I'll say it again: this team does not know how to manage QBs
- Winnipeg adjusted their protection in the 2nd half, Collaros had much more time. Between this & some sloppy Ticat tackling, Wpg got back into the game. Washington is still the king of the soft zone. So frustrating!!!
- Vosean Joseph was all over the place. ST tackles, great knockdown on D, which went for naught as the Cats were called for illegal contact. No # was given, but Forde thought it was Joseph who bumped the FB coming out of the backfield. I don't think so, since he was the intended target, so the call would have then become PI, but they didn't show any other possibilities. Result = Bummer TD by Prukop.
- The only interview I didn't mind was Ricky Ray. Forde asked if he was interested in coaching, he said he's gotten a few calls from different teams about it, but is enjoying time off. Didn't rule it out in future. I don't know how he'd be as a coach, but the Ticats could certainly do worse. I'd definitely take him over Khari.
- So, so happy for Dane. Just like 2019, this was no fluke. The flukey part was what we went through the 12 games prior to this.
- Why the f*ck couldn't they play like this last November???
- TSN did not even mention that Darby was in the game for Brooks, so no details on his injury. We need Ciante Evans back in the secondary, though. Badly.

Spot on, wanted to piggy back on this a bit tho so,

1.  this was embarrassing...  takes nothing to cut that interview off and resume after the play.

2.  very, guy looked like a beast, still don't understand how the illegal contact play ended up happening when there was supposed to be a procedure call...  

3. December*  but YES, the "this is so cool, what a game" feeling was somewhat tainted by thoughts of "where the fu*k was this all year and good lord imagine if this was how the GC ended instead" creeping in.

Good analysis Count. I’ll probably re-watch the game later on, for once it will be enjoyable.
Just want to add Mason Bennett has been improving since the start of the year and played a decent game yesterday. He’s a free agent next year and a Winnipeg guy. Hopefully we hang onto him.

A few players I saw go down or not out late in the game to keep watch on - Dylan Wynn, Wes Hills ( but came back in later), Brooks. Short week for the team so keep your eyes on the injury reports.

Some coffee thoughts for this one (guess i had to trademark that because even that's getting lifted)

You could make the argument that was the best game the team has played in the better part of a decade, and no it's not the recency bias its more about the WHO and not the WHAT - when was the last time we went out and flat out smashed a 12-1 team with a historic defense? If that's going back too far it's definitely the biggest win inclusive of 2021.

Dane Evans (25-32 327 / 5TD 0INT) - When you look at the guy and his pure talent, ability to make throws in to tough windows, etc. You just knew a game like that was possible. I ask an honest question without taking any shots - Does Jeremiah Masoli have one single win like that in his career? 5 TDS against a historic defense as an 8 point underdog? Cause it's 2022 and people still talk about a completions record from 6 years ago. The ceiling for Dane has always been MOP stuff, it's just a matter of it all coming together again like it did in 2019. It's no coincidence that Winnipeg and BC have the best QBs, they also have the best OLine/Weapons. Dane had all day to throw, that means reading through his progressions and more time to make decisions on what risks to take.

Receivers - Of course the credit goes to Dane for making the throws, but you have to look down the list at the plays made by receivers. We've pounded this group and deservingly so, but guys made plays. But before we go off putting guys like Papi White in the hall of fame, lets take a look at the box score. Dunbar and Kneel White had 12 catches for 129 yards - isn't that what was expected of them going into the season? We didn't pound Dunbar that much, and Kneel White has been good but not great, the bulk of the frustration is with the inability to field solid Canadian receivers (Ungerer, Ternowski, Durant, Smith), Ungerer was 1 for 6 (Great catch on the TD), Durant 1 for 8, Smith 1 for 54 / TD. More importantly the 3 of them only got 5 targets. Add in a fullback we've basically never heard of getting 3 for 66 and you have what we've been all year - Top heavy to Dunbar and Kneel White and not a heck of alot more. For this team to take the step back to being competitive every week, Canadian receiver will have to start to become a position of strength. Papi white was ok - but still very expendable. We can do better.

Turnovers - The cheerleaders will point to Dane Evans and the O protecting the football - but just as important is our Defence (Last in forced turnovers) turning over Winnipeg 3 times, I've said all season that a Championship defence doesnt worry about what the offense is doing, it just goes out and gets it done. Having said that the secondary struggled, especially the middle of the field but for once the Offense bailed them out.

Coaching - So reports of Tommy Condell's death were greatly exaggerated. I didn't see much different than what we've done all year, difference is the QB had time and the receivers went out and made plays (because they had more time to get open). Coach O still does some perplexing things at times - before the half there was 19 seconds on the game clock and 20 seconds on the play clock, we snapped the ball 10 yards back to Adeleke who knelt. Why didn't we just kneel under centre? That's the play you run with 5 seconds left - not 1. When we were up 10 and driving, there were 3 consecutive plays where we snapped the ball with 10 or more seconds on the play clock. Wake up.

Turning Point - Once again, when the chips are down good teams get the stop or the drive to seal the game. Winnipeg made it a 10 point game and kicked off with 9 minutes left (Tell me you werent worried) - we scored the Ungerer TD with 1:57 left, making it a 17 point game. That's how to rip games away from the opponent and end them. a 7 minute drive through 2 Winnipeg time outs, the 3 min warning, etc. There was no doubt in my mind with 9 minutes left a 2 and out would have been a disaster. Similar to the East Final last year - a long game ending drive will do it every time.

I did not watch the replay yet like the Count but i'm looking forward to it for a change. A big satisfying win, at home in front of frankly an ugly crowd. The stats say 22,000 but there was nowhere near that at the game.

Pleasure to meet you Count - unfortunately my voice is basically gone and you didn't get the true Crash sarcastic experience. I owe you one.