Stamps look to get downright offensive
Calgary hopes to get the running game going as team heads to Ottawa
Early in this 2015 CFL season, each game has been a grind for the Calgary Stampeders’ offence, getting the job done minus the conviction that was their signature in 2014.
It’s nothing, insisted quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell, to get your knickers in a knot over.
“Whether it’s a throw, a route, whatever it is, we’re always just a little bit off on a couple of things,” said the Stamps’ signal caller. “That’s going to happen early on in the season and, to be honest with you, I’d rather be off now than at the end of the season, so we have something to work toward.”
Calgary, 3- 1, will attempt to get things right on the road as they visit TD Place and the Ottawa Redblacks on Friday night, 5 p. m. MDT kickoff ( News Talk 770, TSN). The squad has one loss away from home this season, in Montreal, and that was the entire total, same venue, last year.
“To me, I’m not going to count one loss as a panic mode,” Mitchell pointed out. “Winning on the road is always hard. We pride ourselves on that. That’s what championship teams do. They come to somebody’s house and they beat them. That’s what we’re looking to do this week.
“Offensively, we look strong. We have all the talent and we have all the guys and we all have each other’s backs out there.”
First- quarter scoring has been a particular bugaboo for the Stamps as only the 2- 2 Redblacks — who have yet to score in the first 15 minutes of any game — have done worse. Calgary has posted 15 points in the first, having been outscored 45- 15 in that segment.
Of course, Jon Cornish and the running game will be key. Last weekend, Edmonton’s Shakir Bell romped for 144 yards against the Redblacks, but John Hufnagel insisted it wasn’t due to any lack on Ottawa’s part.
“A lot of that was because of the running back’s second and third effort, not because there was a highway to run through,” said the Stamps’ head coach/ general manager. “They do a good job against the run. We need to get Jon involved in the game, we know that.”
Mitchell’s favourite target this season is a guy the Redblacks didn’t deem worthy at their 2014 rookie camp. Eric Rogers is fourth in the league in receiving with 17 catches for 276 yards and a league- high three touchdowns.
“I felt like they were going to go more veterans, guys that knew the game,” said Rogers on being let go, which led to a blessing when Calgary picked him up.
Needless to say, the Redblacks will be watching him — as well as fellow stalwart Jeff Fuller — with fresh interest on Friday.
“They call us the twin towers or the trees, even though Jeff has me by a good inch and a couple of pounds,” said Rogers. “But we’re trying to play off each other.”
Veteran Paul Swiston will be the designated backup for the offensive line, and the team no doubt hopes it doesn’t have to summon bodies from the defence for help.
“We’re going to run our offence like we run our offence,” Mitchell said. “We have full trust in the guys who stepped in. They did an amazing job last week. And the guys who are stepping in right now are all looking good. We didn’t have any glaring holes last week.”
The Stamps, meanwhile, see in the Redblacks a group that’s second in team defence.
“They’re a very good football team, very well coached in all three phases,” said Hufnagel. “Defensively, they’re one of the top defences in the league right now. And their receivers are dangerous, with a strong- armed quarterback.”
Two of those receivers, Brad Sinopoli and Maurice Price, Hufnagel knows pretty well.
“I know they’ll stretch the field on us, attack the seam,” he said. “Hopefully we can hold up.”