Head shot puts Lewis on injury list
Calgary attack missing three biggest threats
The injury situation is becoming a real headache for the Calgary Stampeders early in the 2014 season.
With star running back Jon Cornish already sidelined due to a concussion, the bad news is piling on the Stampeders offence.
After leaving Wednesday’s practice early because he took a knee to the side of his head and felt woozy, the Stamps ruled veteran slotback Nik Lewis out of Saturday’s meeting with the Toronto Argonauts at Rogers Centre.
Coming off a bye week following a 29-8 victory over the Montreal Alouettes in the season opener, the Stamps are facing the 2012 Grey Cup champions without the league’s reigning most outstanding player, their reliable slotback and their best deep threat Maurice Price, who is out with a broken finger.
“It’s definitely a challenge going without those guys,” said receiver Joe West, who will replace Price in the offence. “They have a big impact on the game. It happens and you have to be able to bounce back.
“Mo and Nik are big-time players and they have big impacts on our offence. We have role players that can step up for this game and get this job done.”
Rookie Sederrik Cunningham gets the late call to replace Lewis’ spot in the lineup, and he went through Thursday’s practice trying to get up to speed on the game plan for the Argos, who are coming off a huge 48-15 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders last week.
“This is the business,” said Cunningham, a Furman product who spent last season on the Green Bay Packers’ injured list with a broken wrist.
“It’s not about whether I had a minute of practice or two weeks of practice. You have to be ready when your number is called. If I don’t feel good now, I better feel good about it pretty quick.
“I’m excited. Calgary was the first Canadian city I’ve been in. It’s going to be a fun trip ... but I can’t let the fun or the lights of Toronto blind me to what we need to do there.”
After doing some cardio work and feeling fine, Lewis stood on the sideline during Thursday’s practice, which is more than Cornish was able to do this week due to the clothesline tackle he took from Kyries Hebert in the opener.
The Stamps are being cautious with the nine-time 1,000-yard receiver who is coming back from a broken ankle that limited him to seven games last year. Lewis would like to suit up in Toronto, but that’s not an option for him, as the Stamps are shutting him down.
“I always feel like I could play,” Lewis said. “If they left it up to me, I would play every game. I was trying to come back at the end of last year, too. “You have to take concussions very seriously. The doctors are well informed on what needs to happen. It takes a certain amount of days. If this would have happened a few days ago I feel I would be playing this weekend. It happened yesterday so it just takes time.”
Lewis caught one pass for 16 yards in the season opener, but he did deliver a highlight-reel block to Marc-Olivier Brouillette to prove he can still be a force on the field. What makes the timing of this so disappointing is he has started to feel like himself again.
“I’m out for one game,” said Lewis, who is trying to remain positive. “It’s not like I’m out for the year.
“I can’t change anything. I just have to keep going. I need to build on what I’ve done and how far I’ve came. This has been my best week of practice. The first three days I felt comfortable running again and felt comfortable making cuts again.”