The Montreal Alouettes arrived in Hamilton on Friday with a couple of good streaks under their belt: seven straight wins against the Tiger-Cats and six consecutive on the road dating back to last season.
With a great performance from Davis Alexander in his CFL starting debut, the Als managed to keep both going with a dominant 33-16 win against the Tabbies.
Below are my thoughts on the game.
The Davis Alexander show begins
The last time Davis Alexander started a game was in 2021 for Portland State University. Since then, he has been patiently waiting for his turn behind quarterbacks Trevor Harris, Vernon Adams Jr., Cody Fajardo, and Caleb Evans. Friday night was his night and he didn’t miss his chance.
Alexander finished the game 19-of-27 for 261 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. It was a gutsy outing that should cement him as Montreal’s number two option.
However, it didn’t start well for the 25-year-old quarterback. He fumbled the ball, threw a pick-six, and missed a wide-open Tyson Philpot to open the game. On the interception, his intended receiver Cole Spieker fell but the ball was on the wrong spot and defensive back Kenneth George Jr. ran the route better. Philpot beat Richard Leonard on the ensuing drive but the ball was too far for him.
That was the last costly mistake Alexander made. From then on, we saw the best of him with timely throws and great escapes from the pocket. He distributed the ball well to his receivers, who made life easier with beautiful catches throughout the game.
His favourite target was rookie Charleston Rambo, who made four catches for 86 yards. His second grab of the game was a dime from Alexander, which resulted in Montreal’s first touchdown. The Als never looked back from there.
Physical toughness
Alexander was sacked three times Friday night but never backed down from throwing passes down the field. His biggest physical test came when defensive tackle Casey Sayles delivered a cheap and dirty hit directly to his head in the fourth quarter.
On the play, he saw the defensive lineman coming and still found a way to throw a dime to Tyson Philpot, who couldn’t hold on to the ball. The helmet-to-helmet contact after the ball had left his hand was so egregious that it earned a Grade 2 spearing penalty, worth 25 yards of field position instead of the usual 15.
Alexander had to leave the game temporarily but was able to get back on the field before the final whistle. We’ll know if he sustained any lasting damage when the next week of practice starts, as he was also seen limping at the end of the game.
Rambo has arrived
A coming out party is how Alexander described Charleston Rambo’s game in The Hammer. The receiver, mostly in the line-up for his ability to stretch the field vertically, is starting to show why the Als released Tevin Jones after training camp.
On Friday night, he adjusted well to the ball and resisted contact with opponents and the ground when he had it in his hands. This was key for his inexperienced quarterback, especially when he was looking to pick up rhythm.
Rambo has the potential to make big plays in the CFL and we’ve only seen glimpses of what he can do.
Back to their roots
In the previous two games, the Alouettes’ defence failed to play a full sixty minutes of good football like they usually do. They let Toronto and Saskatchewan run as they pleased and couldn’t quickly get the opposing offence off the field.
Not only did Noel Thorpe’s unit fix those issues for this matchup against the Ti-Cats, but the Als notched an interception for the first time since Week 5. In fact, they picked off Bo Levi Mitchell twice and it could have been more. In addition, the only points the defence allowed came in the fourth quarter, when the game was already out of reach for the home team.
Mitchell played at a disappointing level but no credit should be removed from Thorpe’s unit, which made his life difficult by presenting him with multiple different defensive looks.
A disgraceful missed fumble
In the first half, Jason Maas was right to be frustrated with the officials after a totally missed call. My colleague, Joel Gasson, wrote an excellent opinion column about this situation and the command centre’s involvement.
Ticats’ fullback James Tuck fumbled the ball way before being down by contact but the sideline judge didn’t see it come out and whistled too early. The Alouettes clearly recovered the ball but the command centre judged that it wasn’t immediate, as Wesley Sutton and Najee Murray slightly juggled with the ball.
The CFL should own up to the sideline judge’s mistake and clarify the exact reasons why the call couldn’t be overturned. I have the feeling the early whistle complicated things for the command centre. It feels like in hockey when the referee whistles too early and the goalie does not control the puck. If that was the case, it needs to be said.
Although it was the biggest officiating mistake I’ve ever seen in the CFL, I still believe the league has great referees.
A champion’s mentality
The Montreal Alouettes proved once again why they should be considered favourites for the Grey Cup. They faced big episodes of adversity from the referees on the missed call and from Sayles’ dirty hit. What happened next? After the referee’s mistake, the Als’ defence stood tall and forced a punt. After the big hit, backup Caleb Evans connected with David fullback Dallaire for his first CFL touchdown on a 39-yard strike.
That’s how a championship team should behave. The Als kept their cool and moved on perfectly. The best way to answer is to score more points, not with stupid penalties.
Evans goes down
Backup Caleb Evans, who was unseated as Cody Fajardo’s replacement last week, was sent to finish the last drive for Montreal but got injured while trying to beat a defender. He grabbed his right knee immediately and needed help leaving the field.
The injury seemed severe, and he could be out for an extended period. Fajardo is already off the six-game injured list and trending toward a return, while the team also has James Morgan in the quarterback room. That means an injury to Evans isn’t a complete crisis, but the team could look to add more depth in the near future.
What’s next?
The Alouettes (7-1) will have a rematch against the Tiger-Cats (2-6) next Saturday in Montreal. The kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EDT.
