Harris has to start torching blitzes for Redblacks to snap out of funk
It isn’t just about identifying what has gone horribly wrong for the Ottawa Redblacks in their past two games, it’s about getting your players to eliminate the causes.
Coming off losses to division cellar-dwelling Montreal (21-11) and the B. C. Lions (26-14), the 6-5 Redblacks have some work to do this week as they prepare for a Saturday game in Regina against the red-hot Saskatchewan Roughriders. The 7-4 Riders have reeled off four straight wins, largely because of an opportunistic defence.
“We look back at the game (vs. the Lions) — it’s frustrating for all of us,” Redblacks offensive coordinator Jaime Elizondo said. “It’s one player on this play, one player on that play, one player on the next play. Unfortunately, that was sort of the song and dance.
“When offensively you get out of rhythm, guys start trying to do too much. You start trying to overcompensate. We need to just go back to having fun and playing better football. As pros, you try to manage your frustration and your confidence levels. Football is a game of momentum and confidence, and we’ve been missing those.”
Much of their offensive troubles have occurred when quarterback Trevor Harris is pressured — he was sacked six times (three times by Odell Willis) in Vancouver. Harris also threw two interceptions, with a couple more that could have been picked off. There’s an onus on the blockers to be better, but it’s also on the quarterback to make better decisions in the face of pressure and on the co-ordinator to minimize those situations. Teams dialed up the pressure in both of the past two games — the Cover Zero defence, in particular, seems to be giving Harris all kinds of problems.
In the Cover Zero, the defence adds extra bodies to the blitz — with the remaining defenders in man-to-man coverage. There is no support on the back end if one of the receivers can break away from the defender. It’s up to Harris to identify the “hot” receiver.
Asked about beating the Cover Zero, Elizondo said: “We’re going to see Cover Zero this week. It comes down to this — you have to be able to gash somebody in Cover Zero. It gets any defensive co-ordinator out of it. If we hit a hot (receiver), all of a sudden, we’re going to see less Zero.
“When they’re getting home, when they’re hitting the quarterback when he’s hanging onto the ball too long, they’re going to keep bringing the dogs. Every play has a hot answer. We don’t go into a play without a blitz answer. That’s on me giving the right play call.”
The Redblacks have Saskatchewan on Saturday, then the Edmonton Eskimos here the following Saturday. Then it’s a bye week. The Green Riders, who Ottawa handled easily, 40-17, in the first game of their season, are a different team since June.
“They have studs on (the defensive) side of the ball,” Elizondo said. “They’re long, they’re fast, they’re all over the place. They have No. 0 (Tobi Antigha) who plays defensive end, but he’s also a SAM linebacker and a free safety.
“In our six wins, we averaged one turnover per game. In our five losses, we averaged three turnovers a game. There’s the difference. If you give their defence any free ones — that’s how they’ve been winning their games, they’ve been scoring on defence.”
THE COACH SAYS
Asked about his team’s struggles, Redblacks coach Rick Campbell said: “It’s always disappointing to lose; we’re looking to bounce back. It’s always easier to play from ahead. We played from behind the whole time, and you leave yourself susceptible to things like that. We want to play the game from ahead, we want to protect our quarterback better, we want to make more plays earlier in the game and get momentum in our favour.”
The head coach is never one to point fingers, so when asked about the sacks and his team’s offensive line, he said: “It’s no single person or single group. It sounds like the trend is we’re criticizing our O -line — I don’t know if that’s the case. If you watch the game film, they’re a pretty good group. We just need to make sure we do some things to help them and our quarterback out. One of the key things is making sure we throw the ball on time, get it out. It’s amazing how that changes the dynamic of the thing — if we can get the ball out of the quarterback’s hand in a good amount of time, it all of a sudden makes things look different.”
A COSTLY HIT?
Redblacks defensive lineman J.R. Tavai could be a few dollars lighter in the wallet this week.
CFL senior director of officiating Darren Hackwood on Monday said Tavai’s hit on B.C. QB Travis Lulay — where the crown of his helmet struck the Lulay under his face mask — should have been a penalty (spearing). The CFL is reviewing the hit for supplementary discipline.