QUARTERBACK - C-
It was not a good night for MBT. He had a good first half, but he was really stymied in the second and it was obvious they were really grinding. He had a really hard time finding a receiver open and his touch was off. He is a streaky quarterback but when the ball starts flying on him, it is a bad sign. His pick six was a killer and he just never got into a rhythm in the second half. The red zone challenges are also a big issue. Chad Kelly showed some wiggle as the short yardage quarterback but he needed to vary up sliding down the line and just running up the middle.
WIDE RECEIVERS - D
With all due respect to AJ Ouellette, who is a warrior, he can not be your leading receiver. The unit had a really hard time getting off man coverage and the new guy, Coxie looked it. He should have had an early game touchdown, but he slowed on the route. The DaVaris Daniels drop in the second quarter was a killer. I hoped to see more quick twitch work from Gittens Jr, but he also had a hard time shaking free of his coverage. This unit is also still not particularly good at run blocking. Scheming up open targets is the only hope.
RUNNING BACKS - D
There was simply put no running game on Saturday night. 27 yards split between Ouellette and Leake. This is not solely their fault, the offensive line has a say and really, those two guys are not meant to be every-down players. I love Ouellette’s effort and desire to be the guy. That fumble knockout was a bad break, and a perfect defensive play. More is going to be needed from this unit to compliment the checkdown passing work. Can the rookie Adeboboye add something? Worth looking into next week.
OFFENSIVE LINE - D
The numbers are grim: 5 sacks given up, 27 yards rushing, essentially no offense in the second half. As with most positions, there are a lot of interconnected reasons for the issues. The backs are not necessarily able to threaten the defense and when it is clearly a passing down, it can be very challenging to deal with a defensive line that is firing on the snap of the ball. Hopefully the unit can find a way to run block that works for them.
DEFENSIVE BACKS - A
On the flip side of the offense woes was a terrific defensive performance against a league leading offense. Take away the huge deep ball in the opening drive that was eventually held to just a field goal and the secondary dominated. Three interceptions by Amos, McFadden and Carnell and just generally great pressure on the receivers. If this unit can create turnovers at this rate, the Argos will have a chance to stay in the race.
LINEBACKERS - A
Muamba and McManis were dominant forces all game. They both absolutely crushed the running game with their physicality and continued to be excellent at stopping two-point conversions. Chris Edwards had a nice forced fumble and the Calgary run game never got going.
DEFENSIVE LINE - B
A solid game from the line. They pressured the quarterback all game and closed the running game down. The near sacks are frustrating, but the unit is solid. Hendrix is really coming on as a useful member of the rotation. The line still needs to work on setting the edge and keeping the quarterback in the pocket and not getting too deep on the edge runs.
SPECIAL TEAMS - A
A bounce back game for the coverage units, as the kicking coverage was excellent. Gunners were screaming down the field and the breakdown and tackling was terrific. Leake showed real potential as a kick returner, and he had a great game averaging 23.7 yards on three. Bede was locked in as well, going 4 for 4. Two of the three facets of the game were good tonight.
COACHING - C
Any time the opposition comes out at half with adjustments that shuts your team down, you must take a hit on the coaching grade. There definitely needed to be more planning to get MBT back in a groove and to deal with the man coverage blanket. The team should consider going for it in the red zone more often and I disagreed with the punting with 2:31 left in the game. At that point, at that position in the field you must try and keep driving.