What we’ve learned about the Eskimos
The running game looks revived, but defence is a question mark entering East Division final
It was the East Division’s equivalent of a Wild West shootout when the Edmonton Eskimos came away with a 24-21 semifinal win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to open their Grey Cup title defence. Except there wasn’t nearly as much gun as there was run, thanks to blustery conditions at Tim Hortons Field. Once again, the Eskimos got off to an early lead, just like they did in a regular-season series that was split 1-1, only to find themselves fending off another late Ticats comeback bid. Here are five things we learned from Sunday’s game:
1 The Green and Gold loves White and Whyte
While running back John White galloped to 160 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries, kicker Sean Whyte went 3-for-3 between the uprights, including the game-winning boot from just nine yards out. In a fierce and constant wind, it was White who blew away the competition on the ground, carrying the offence on his shoulders while the regularly robust passing game was held to a season-low 133 yards. Whyte, meanwhile, continued the trend that saw him lead the CFL in field-goal accuracy, while also ringing a conversion kick off the left upright and in. And in a game that was separated by just three points in the end, you can bet his Ticats counterpart, Brett Maher, isn’t feeling so good about the four points he left on the field, missing a conversion kick and a field goal.
2 One of last year’s Grey Cup finalists is going to return to the championship game
And only one, as the Eskimos and Ottawa Redblacks square off in Sunday’s East Division final. After a 26-20 win by the Eskimos in last November’s Grey Cup in Winnipeg, Ottawa has turned the tables by sweeping the two-game season series against the defending champions. Before that, Edmonton hadn’t lost to the current rendition of Ottawa’s CFL franchise, having won their first five meetings — including that Grey Cup. The Eskimos crossing over means their championship rematch takes place one week early, with the winner earning the right to compete against the West Division’s representative. Is it still too early to talk about the CFL’s all-Alberta final?
3 Changing kick returners nearly backfired on the Eskimos
It was an intriguing notion seeing regular return man Troy Stoudermire benched in order to get both running backs John White and Shakir Bell in the lineup. It meant Bell handled kickoffs and missed field goals, while punt return duties fell on rookie receiver Brandon Zylstra. Zylstra was fortunate to recover the ball he bobbled on his first return of the game, and while you can’t necessarily blame him entirely for the onside punt that went Hamilton’s way — seeing as how the ball appeared to bounce off a teammate first — a more veteran returner would probably have been able to take better charge of the situation. One thing’s for sure, if White ended up getting injured and they lost that game, head coach Jason Maas would have been asked why he didn’t do all he could to get Bell in as a backup.
4 Linebacker Ladler is the Eskimos’ most outstanding rookie
OK, so there are two problems with that statement: 1) He plays nickel linebacker, which is more of a defensive back role; and 2) He’s not technically a rookie. Suiting up for two regular-season games with the NFL’s Buffalo Bills in 2014 disqualified the 6-foot-1, 207-pound Vanderbilt product from being voted on as the team’s top rookie in his first CFL season. But that doesn’t take anything away from his 70 tackles, two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble, five knock-downs and two interceptions in 17 regular-season starts with the Eskimos. More important, he showed he can be a big-game player with a late interception on Zach Collaros that sealed the deal Sunday.
5 Edmonton’s defence isn’t pretty
But they were able to win ugly once again on Sunday. Things started off well with a stop on third-and-one on Hamilton’s opening drive before the Eskimos took a 7-0 lead. But as the game progressed, they found themselves on their heels in the face of a mounting charge by a Ticats offence that earned the title of the comeback kings of the CFL in 2016. Still, the bend-but-don’t-break philosophy allowed the Eskimos to bide their time and wait for Collaros to finally make a mistake.