WILLIAMS FINDS HIS MOJO AGAIN AFTER RECENT SKID
Rusher/returner responds to benching with big game,
A week on the sidelines gave Terry Williams all the motivation he needed.
By his own admission, Williams hadn’t been as effective as he’d wanted to be for the Calgary Stampeders recently.
He was still running well on punt and kick returns when he got the ball in his hands, but there’d been times when he hadn’t caught the ball as cleanly as he would have liked.
With Romar Morris and Don Jackson both available to play running back — and potentially return kicks — the Stampeders coaching staff decided to make Williams inactive for the team’s Week 16 game against the Toronto Argonauts.
He responded a week later against the Montreal Alouettes with the sort of performance that reminded fans why they were so excited about his potential heading into the season.
“Oh yeah, man, there was a lot of motivation going in,” Williams said Thursday from McMahon Stadium. “I know Romar’s been doing well and Don, coming back, has been doing well, so I felt like I had to step up my game a little bit.
“I was on a little slope, I was a little frustrated with how I was playing, catching punts and stuff and dealing with my injury. I just felt I had to respond and try to put my best foot forward.”
At first glance, Williams’ numbers against the Alouettes don’t especially pop. He returned one kickoff for 20 yards and returned eight punts for 55 yards, but those numbers don’t really tell the full story.
Williams also returned a third-quarter punt for an 81-yard touchdown in the third quarter, only for it to be called back because of an illegal blocking penalty, and had four carries on offence for 37 yards and a touchdown.
“I thought he played well and I thought he gave us some jump in the running back game,” said Stamps head coach Dave Dickenson. “We basically feel like our running back position is solid. I mean, we’ve got good options regardless of which way we go and I thought Terry looked good in the return game and I certainly expect him to stay in there and do a good job.”
The Alouettes also deserve credit for limiting Williams’ ability to get into open space and take off for big returns. Their special teams unit did a solid job of getting on top of him as soon as he had the ball.
Williams was still effective, though, and that’s obviously good news for the Stampeders.
He is, after all, leading the CFL in punt-return touchdowns and is third in the league in puntreturn yards.
Williams’ performances suffered a little dip in recent weeks, but he remains one of the league’s most dangerous returners.
“I got a little ahead of myself,” Williams said. “It’s my first year doing punt returns and I did pretty well having three (touchdowns) and got a little ahead of myself. I needed that week ( being made inactive), it was a little reality check and I’m just coming back in and ready to hit it full speed.”
Monday’s game also provided a reminder of how effective Williams can be in the run game.
His touchdown was a thing of beauty, too, as Williams bounced through several Alouettes tacklers for the Stampeders’ only trip to the end zone.
“Oh man, it felt good to be playing running back,” Williams said. “It felt good knowing I could punch it in and show my versatility. Not just outrun everybody, but just bounce off people and run through people.”
A TALE OF TWO QBS
From the sounds of things, the Lions will be starting Travis Lulay at quarterback Saturday.
Lulay has been out since Week 14 with a dislocated shoulder.
The Lions quarterback situation is generally broken down as Lulay being a pocket passer, while backup Jonathon Jennings is more comfortable making plays with his feet. The Stamps don’t seem to buy into that.
“They both give you certain things, I think Jennings is a little mobile, but you can’t sleep on Lulay,” said Stamps defensive line coach Corey Mace. “He’s done it throughout his career and he’s still able to make plays with his feet.
“Regardless of who it is, we’ve got to keep him in the cup just like most quarterbacks.”
RECORD-SETTING RUN
The CFL sent out a note Thursday that re-affirmed what most of us already know: Alex Singleton has been exceptional for the Stampeders in his first three seasons.
According to the league, if Singleton is able to keep up his tackling pace for the rest of the season, he’ll finish with 309 tackles in his first three years in the league.
That’s the most any player has had in their first three seasons in the CFL — or at least the most since tackles have been recorded — breaking Barrin Simpson’s record of 299.
Simpson set that record between 2001 and 2003 while he was with the B.C. Lions.