DEBUT OF ALOUETTES’ SAM CLOSE AT HAND
If he doesn't play this week in Ottawa, good chance he'll see action at home
We know this much with some certainty: If the much-anticipated Canadian Football League debut of Michael Sam doesn’t occur this Friday night at Ottawa, the rookie rush-end should finally hit the field at home next week, against Edmonton.
And it might all be tied to the status of defensive-back Jerald Brown.
“This is the closest Michael’s been. We’re practising Michael more now,” Alouettes head coach Tom Higgins said following Wednesday’s workout at Stade Hébert — one in which the 6-foot-2, 260-pound Sam participated in first-team drills more than at any point this season.
“I’m not going to talk about who’s on and who’s off because, right now, we’re not really 100 per cent sure,” Higgins continued. “I’m not even sure who the 46-man roster will be. How we line up we never talk about. Let Ottawa guess. We won’t let them know if we have any different wrinkles.”
The Als came out of last weekend’s loss at Calgary with injuries to tailback Tyrell Sutton and Brown. Sutton suffered what the team’s classifying as a minor injury to the back of his knee, while Brown continues being bothered by cramping and dehydration. Neither has practised this week and Higgins always has maintained that if a player doesn’t participate in the team’s final workout of the week, he won’t play.
Sutton almost certainly will be held out against the Redblacks, replaced by Brandon Rutley. But there’s a chance Brown could be part of the 44-man active roster.
“How we’re going to do this moving forward ... J.B. might be someone that’s still easier to plug and play than Sutton,” Higgins said. “I wouldn’t want to risk (Sutton), albeit that it’s early and albeit we have Rutley. Rutley’s a pretty good player and we have (Stefan) Logan, which gives us that (backfield) flexibility.”
Both Sutton and Brown are imports, meaning at least one — if not two Americans — will be added. One almost certainly will be rookie cornerback Terry Johnson, who has been on the practice roster. Higgins and defensive co-ordinator Noel Thorpe must decide whether to dress Brown or go with Dominique Ellis, his replacement, along with Johnson as insurance. Will the Als be better served dressing two import defensive backs in reserve or going with a fourth rush-end, in Sam?
Sam, the first openly-gay player to be drafted by an NFL team — St. Louis — failed to crack the Rams’ roster. He then had a stint on the Dallas Cowboys’ practice roster before being placed on the Als’ negotiation list. He created a stir, not to mention a whirlwind of North American publicity, when he left the team at training camp prior to Montreal’s first exhibition game, requesting permission to depart for personal reasons.
Sam returned slightly more than two weeks later and briefly addressed the media following his first practice. But he hasn’t been made available since and said he won’t talk until he actually plays. He has been on the Als’ 46-man roster ever since, meaning he receives a game cheque without actually playing.
Als general manager Jim Popp, the man responsible for putting Sam on the negotiation list and bringing him to Canada, is busy scouting NFL training camps and isn’t scheduled to attend this week’s game. However, he is expected next week. Travel plans can always change, of course, but it’s imagined Popp would like to be on site when Sam finally plays.
Whether Sam’s activated or not, the Als’ defence will be seeking an improved effort against the Redblacks. The unit was victimized by Bo Levi Mitchell and Calgary’s offence for too many big plays on Saturday, the Stamps repeatedly finding the seams in Montreal’s zone defence. Calgary generated five passing plays longer than 20 yards.
“We can’t give up the deep ball, plain and simple. That’s what hurt us,” Thorpe admitted. “They found the seams in the zone. They did a good job. We didn’t do a great job as far as getting to where we needed to be in our coverage. We’ve gone in and made the corrections. We’ve seen it on film. They know how important this game is coming up.”
While the Als (2-3) are in last place in the East Division, they’ve yet to lose two consecutive games this season and trail Hamilton, Toronto and Ottawa by two points — all three teams sitting at 3-2. At the same time, Montreal’s defence generally has rebounded following a poor effort. The Als already have lost once to the Redblacks this year. A second defeat would give Ottawa the tiebreaker should the teams tie in the final standings.
“As good as we’ve played, you’re only as good as your last game — and our last game wasn’t up to our standards,” safety Marc-Olivier Brouillette said. “We expect to come out and pitch a shutout. No touchdowns. That’s our version of a shutout.”
Veteran receiver Fred Stamps, who returned to Louisiana last week for an urgent family matter and was placed on the disabled list, returns to the roster against Ottawa. Dobson Collins, who replaced him and fumbled on the Calgary one-yard line, is expected to return to the practice roster.