Bede’s patchy play latest kick to Alouettes’ season
A football game generally doesn’t come down to one play. So perhaps it’s unfair to hang this latest Alouettes defeat on the foot of kicker Boris Bede.
Nonetheless, had Bede made a 39-yard field goal with slightly more than two minutes remaining Saturday, Montreal would have had a five-point lead on Toronto. And even after the Argonauts produced a 75-yard drive for the go-ahead touchdown with 56 seconds remaining, the Als would have required only a field goal for their fourth victory this season.
And maybe then quarterback Johnny Manziel, who drove the Als to the Toronto 36 — already in field goal range — with 13 seconds remaining would have called a rushing play instead of being penalized for intentional grounding.
Good teams will always find a way to get it done. Bad teams, conversely, will always find a way not to. And so it was that the Als lost for the 13th time in 16 games, 26-22, to the Argonauts at BMO Field before a smattering of spectators, the attendance so low it was never officially announced.
Bede, who missed another 39-yard attempt in the second quarter (he did connect from 24 and 37 yards), refused to speak to the media following the game.
“It’s disappointing, without a doubt, to miss two field goals,” head coach Mike Sherman said.
Bede has now made 29 of 35 field goal attempts this season. While he has been far from horrific, he must be better. CFL teams in general don’t utilize imports at the kicking position. Playing on a team that continually is challenged to find the end zone, the Als aren’t in any position to leave points on the field.
Of course, had Montreal’s defence made a stop at the end when one was required, Bede’s final miss wouldn’t have been so magnified. Even had the defence held the Argos to a field goal, the game would have been settled in overtime.
The defence, arguably, deserved a better fate, holding Toronto to only two touchdowns. But when a stop was required, the unit failed to deliver.
“We just have to figure a way to be more in tune at the end of the game,” middle linebacker Henoc Muamba said. “I feel like we played really well throughout the whole game. We have to figure a way to finish it down the stretch. It’s a process.
“I think we’re really close, but at the end of the day, it’s about taking that next step.”
The Als held a tenuous 21-16 advantage heading into the final quarter, only to be outscored 10-1. While the visitors scored two touchdowns, only one was generated by the offence — a sixplay, 75-yard drive at the end of the opening half that culminated in an 11-yard pass to Eugene Lewis.
Lewis caught eight passes for 100 yards. It marked only the third time this season a Montreal receiver produced a 100-yard effort.
The Als’ other touchdown came on a 37-yard interception return by Canadian cornerback Tevaughn Campbell in the third quarter. Campbell, who was released by the team only to be repatriated, has now pilfered two balls this season for scores.
Manziel, for his part, completed 23 of 30 passes for 220 yards along with being intercepted once. He has now been picked off seven times while throwing three touchdown passes. Of more concern, potentially, is his 0-6 record as the team’s starting quarterback.
“I don’t feel like I’m 0-6 and discouraged,” he said. “We played good today, good enough to win this game. We just didn’t win it and that’s been the story of our season.
“Today was a better offensive day for us all around. Our receivers, offensive line and running backs played their ass off.”
While the Als generated 371 yards of net offence, they also were held to 20 first downs — two fewer than Toronto — while controlling the ball for 29 minutes 43 seconds.
Both Manziel and Sherman disagreed with the intentional grounding penalty. However, even had it not been called, was there any reason to believe the Als would produce a touchdown from there with precious few seconds remaining? And in somewhat of a bizarre twist, Manziel was replaced by Antonio Pipkin for the game’s final play, a desperation Hail Mary attempt on which the backup quarterback was sacked.
Ironically, Sherman said Pipkin was inserted because of his fresh legs on a play that required some mobility.
It has been that kind of a season for a team that hasn’t learned how to win.
“You could say that because we haven’t done a very good job of it,” Sherman said. “There are no moral victories, but we are competitive. Hopefully you get over that hump and you start winning those close games.”
Toronto ended a seven-game losing streak with the victory. Although the Argos’ 4-12 record is hardly flattering, it’s still one game better than the 3-13 Als heading into the teams’ return engagement next Sunday at Molson Stadium.
Montreal has two games remaining and will be hardpressed to improve on its 3-15 record of 2017, one that included an 11-game losing streak at the end.
This season, the Als are now on a five-game losing skid.
On a positive note, tailback William Stanback gained 118 yards on 10 carries — 72 of which came on one play. He became the first Als rusher this season to top the century mark.
We played good today, good enough to win this game. We just didn’t win it and that’s been the story of our season.