Look for Montreal receivers to play big role in East final
MONTREAL — S.J. Green was the Alouettes’ leading receiver last weekend, catching seven passes for 95 yards against the Lions and scoring a touchdown.
Montreal passed for only 156 yards against B.C., so the veteran slotback accounted for most of that total.
There was a time when that phrase — leading receiver — seemed routinely automatic. This season? Not so much. “It felt good to contribute in a key victory, being able to trust me in those key moments,” Green said Thursday after the Als practised indoors for a second consecutive day in Brossard, Que.
It remains to be determined how this Sunday’s East Division final in Hamilton will play out. But if the Tiger-Cats, who had the CFL’s stingiest run defence this season — allowing an average of fewer than 77 yards rushing per game — hold true to form, it may well be left in the hands of Montreal quarterback Jonathan Crompton and his receivers.
And if the Ticats are focusing on Duron Carter and potentially double-teaming him, that means others, including Green, will draw single coverage.
And if the game’s on his shoulders, the 6-foot-3, 220-pounder appears prepared.
Green, 29, has played for this team since 2007, becoming a regular fixture three seasons later. This will mark his seventh playoff game.
“This is what I live for. These are the moments we prepare for in the off-season — the big moments, the big stage,” he said. “I’ve been here before. I’m excited to be back in the position where we have a chance to turn our whole season around and make it something positive.”
Green had a respectable season. He caught 53 passes for 835 yards in 16 games, catching four touchdowns. But there’s no doubt his production dropped.