Stretching their three-game win streak to four was going to be a challenge for the Edmonton Elks against the Montreal Alouettes. There was a Punchout moment during which it appeared Little Mac might beat Mike Tyson, but the reigning Grey Cup champions came through in the later rounds to win 21-17. Below are my thoughts on the game.
Hot first half
Edmonton came out of the gate with a good early gameplan as the running game saw the return of Kevin Brown and the offensive line continued their recent positive work.
Brown produced three runs over 10 yards and it was fun to see the guards pulling early and often to open up space. Former first-overall CFL draft pick Shane Richards had a couple of excellent upfield blocks to spring the speedy back, while newcomer Jakub Szott was a fun addition as a 305-pound fullback. Brown finished the game with 16 carries for 105 yards.
McLeod Bethel-Thompson also came out firing with two touchdown passes in the first half. His reads were on point and he found his hot routes under pressure when needed. It was an efficient performance and good complimentary football as the defence had time to catch its breath while the offence marched the field, generating an 11-point lead at the half.
It was exactly the type of start you’d hope for when playing against the defending Grey Cup champions on the road. And then…
Second-half breakdown
The third quarter hasn’t been kind to the Elks all season. It’s unclear if this is an adjustment issue or a confidence issue coming off a good first half — it’s probably the former — but regardless, it’s an area that needs improvement.
For the fifth game in a row, Edmonton was held off the scoresheet entirely in the third quarter. This isn’t a new trend as the Elks have only scored a total of 19 third-quarter points in 11 games this season. It truly boggles the mind how the preparation can be so good to start a game and so awful to restart after halftime.
Montreal capitalized on the Green and Gold’s third-quarter slump with two long-drive touchdowns. Edmonton countered with a total of three two-and-outs as McLeod Bethel-Thompson was forced to the check down on every second down and the run game was neutralized. Add in the return of some Elksplosion plays and some inexcusable penalties and the 11-point lead built in the first half evaporated.
Interim head coach Jarious Jackson has a lot to work on to improve that production.
Wide right (again)
Boris Bede missed yet another field goal. The Laval product, brought in as a major free-agent addition this off-season, continues to struggle. If not for the challenges of Brett Lauther in Saskatchewan, Bede would be the only kicker under 80 percent on his field goals in the CFL. It appears that money was not well spent.
Timing is everything and the miss this week was a back-breaker. After finally moving the ball effectively and down four points, the kick came from the 41-yard line and sailed wide right. It was returned out of the end zone by James Letcher Jr. for no points.
The miss came with nine minutes remaining and the Elks didn’t get the ball back until the 5:28 mark of the fourth quarter. It killed any momentum the team had working against arguably the best defence in the league.
Own worst enemy
A common theme for Edmonton, outside of the third-quarter foibles, was penalties coming out at the worst possible times.
This was epitomized by Kai Grey taking an uncalled-for unnecessary roughness penalty. Edmonton would have had Montreal in first-and-20 on a holding call but Grey lowered his shoulder into Cody Fajardo as he was out of bounds. The drive ended in a touchdown for the Alouettes.
Reeling in the penalties has been a priority for the Elks and the overall number has dropped, though the timing of the infractions is making it hard to continue any success.
Challenges are weird
Two challenges in this game could both have gone either way, though you never know these days with the CFL command centre.
Montreal head coach Jason Maas used his challenge in the second quarter as he believed Austin Mack was interfered with by Devodric Bynum. There was certainly a collision on the play, though Bynum recovered and was able to chase down the pass for an interception.
The contact was very close to being in the five-yard legal area, so I understood the challenge. It could also have been considered illegal contact, though that’s no longer challengeable. On a close call, the ruling went with what was ruled on the field.
Early in the fourth quarter, Jackson used his challenge on an incomplete pass that he thought was an interception.
Charleston Rambo and Darius Bratton rolled and the ball ended up in between them with the latter coming up with the ball. It initially appeared close and the Elks needed the momentum, so the challenge was understandable.
In the end, it wasn’t close as Bratton clearly didn’t secure the ball. In hindsight, whoever called for Jackson to throw his challenge flag probably erred in doing so.
The old run around
Kevin Brown rushing for 100 yards in his return has raised the question of how Edmonton will handle its three running backs when Javon Leake is healthy.
All three are producing and the run game will only get better with the return of Tre Ford, which is a good problem to have. For my two cents, I think they do go back to Brown and Leake. If anyone falters, there is a capable guy to come back in. They could possibly also rotate who’s in during the upcoming Labour Day series and faster turnaround.
Next up
The Elks hit the field next for the annual Labour Day Classic in Calgary, a pivotal series for the team as they try to climb back into the playoff picture after their horrendous start.
