REDBLACKS’ BIG BOYS LOOK TO STEP UP ON FRONT WALL
With 19 sacks allowed, offensive line seeks to be unit that leads way out of 1-6-1 start
It’s basically the same offensive line that protected Henry Burris and helped win a Grey Cup nine months ago.
Offensive-line coach Bryan Chiu says the Ottawa Redblacks’ big boys up front are still among the Canadian Football League’s best.
To be that, though, they need to be better, according to the stat sheet. With 19 sacks allowed (better only than the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, who have 20, and the Toronto Argonauts and B.C. Lions, tied with 22, while the Montreal Alouettes have a league-best 10), and too many pressures, Redblacks offensive linemen are determined to do their part to get the 1-6-1 team back on track.
Said Chiu: “It’s a matter of playing together as a unit. Not just as an offensive line, but the receivers, the running backs, the quarterbacks … everything has to come together. We can’t take our turn making mistakes. At the end of the day, it’s belief and trust in each other. I’m sure we have the guys in this room to get it done. It’s just a matter of going out and doing it. As we go, the team goes.
“I’ll never question my guys’ effort, it’s always going to be there. It’s 100 per cent effort. But sometimes we’re making silly mistakes. It’s not for the lack of trying or wanting. Everyone here wants to win. They’re putting in the work to win. It’s a matter of going out and playing as a collective group, trusting that the backs are supposed to be where they’re at, the receivers are getting open and the quarterback is doing his job.”
Centre Jon Gott, in his ninth CFL season, said the results should start to show.
“You have to do your job. You can’t go out and do the job for the guy beside you,” Gott said. “That never works. You can’t block for two positions. Take care of your own business and trust that the guy beside you is going to take care of his business. When you do that, you should have a good O-line. We’re working through some hiccups, but it’s coming together.
“It gets personal. First, you have to look at yourself and correct the mistakes you’re making. When we do that, we’ll come together as a team and we’ll be fine. Yeah, we’re struggling, but it’s just a few plays here and there that are costing us. It’s not like we’re getting destroyed.”
The Redblacks could be missing right guard Nolan MacMillan, who watched Tuesday’s practice, for Friday night’s game at Hamilton. Matt Albright took reps during practice.
“We’re going to see (with MacMillan),” Redblacks head coach Rick Campbell said. “Some of these guys who are banged up. We’re trying to give them every opportunity to get healthy. Then our Day 3 practice (Wednesday), we’ll see where those guys are.”
It’s not fair to put all the blame for quarterback pressures and sacks on the offensive line.
“The whole unit … I think our guys would tell you the same thing: Our O-line wants to play better, our quarterback wants to make sure he’s getting the ball out on time,” Campbell said. “Part of getting the ball out on time is making sure the receivers run the right routes. It’s a function of the whole offence. We also need to do a good job in our play-calling, mixing things up and making sure we’re giving the defence a lot of different looks in terms of runs and screens and all that type of stuff. Are we where we want to be? No.” THE INJURY REPORT: Receiver/ returner Quincy McDuffie didn’t practise Tuesday and is questionable for Friday’s game. Said Campbell: “He has a slight strain. We’re trying to be cautious with him. We’re going to see where he’s at (Wednesday), then we’ll go from there. If he’s good to go, we want him out there.” Fullback Anthony Gosselin (concussion) worked out on the sidelines Tuesday. Said Campbell: “He’s been coming along, which is a good sign. We hope to get him back soon.”
CATCHING ON: The numbers show that Redblacks receivers are having a good season. Greg Ellingson leads the CFL with 749 receiving yards, while Brad Sinopoli has the most catches (53). Still, receivers coach Travis Moore said they were looking to take it up a notch. “Every day we work on getting better. That’s route running, that’s blocking and that’s on continuing to compete,” he said. “As coaches, we always want more, the players want more. We know there’s more. We have to make sure we keep grinding and keep pushing and giving the effort to compete every day. The things we made a mistake on before, let’s try not to do it again. I tell our guys, if we can do a little bit more and everyone else can do a little bit more, we can get over this hump. But you have to keep believing and trusting.”
DIVERSITY IS STRENGTH: The CFL’s awesome Diversity is Strength T-shirts are being sold at cfl.ca (click on Shop) for $19.99. It’s a wonderful idea. Proceeds go to the CFL Alumni Association and Purolator Tackles Hunger.
THE END AROUND: Ottawa remains eighth in the CFL Nissan Titan Power Rankings, ahead of only Hamilton. The five West Division teams rank 1-5, topped by Edmonton. The Redblacks ranked second after Week 2 … The Argonauts released former Redblacks receiver Khalil Paden on Tuesday. He had nine catches for 107 yards this season … The Redblacks are four-point favourites over the Ticats on Bodog’s betting site … Former Redblacks offensive lineman J’Micheal Deane, now with the Argonauts, was fined for a “tourist hit” on Montreal Alouettes linebacker Chip Cox.