The B.C. Lions will be without defensive tackle Josh Banks when they take on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Thursday night.
The six-foot-four, 290-pound defender has been moved to the one-game injured list due to a hamstring issue. Banks has recorded only one tackle over seven games this season but is consistently one of the league’s highest-graded defensive linemen by Pro Football Focus (PFF). He was the league’s third-highest-graded defensive player for the month of June, earning a grade of 83.8.
Veteran quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. was a limited participant in practice due to a knee injury this week and will still dress for Thursday’s game, albeit it as the team’s third-stringer. Were the club not coming off a short week, it’s likely that he would have been ready to return to the starting role against Winnipeg.
Dane Evans will make his second consecutive start for the team after completing 25-of-32 pass attempts for 330 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-0 win over the Edmonton Elks. The sixth-year CFL passer is in his first season with the Lions after being traded by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats this past off-season.
Star receiver Dominique Rhymes has returned to the starting lineup after missing last week’s game with a knee injury. Canadian running back Kienan LaFrance, American defensive lineman Marcus Moore, and Canadian defensive back Patrice Rene has all been added to the lineup, while Canadian receiver Daniel Petermann, Canadian linebacker Isaiah Guzylak-Messam, and American linebacker Brooks Parker have been taken off.
Thursday’s game is an excellent opportunity for the Lions to bury Winnipeg in the West Division standings. B.C. dominated the first meeting of the season between the two teams with a 30-6 victory on June 22, meaning a win this week would secure the season series for the west coast team.
The B.C. Lions (6-1) are scheduled to visit the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (5-2) on Thursday, Aug. 3 with kickoff slated for 8:30 p.m. EDT.
