As his career has shown the answer to be fair usually isn’t much. The Eskimos came into Hamilton, started off slow, and never recovered.

The 2019 Tiger-Cats are a runaway train and it was just Edmonton’s turn to line up on the tracks. Hamilton looks to win their first Grey Cup since 1999.

Recently, Harris has shown he can get things done to march whichever team he is leading to a Grey Cup appearance.

His six touchdown passes in last year’s East Final with the Redblacks was outstanding, and he dropped jaws on Semi-Final Sunday with a superb 29-of-36 performance in their win over Montreal to send them to Hamilton. Going back one year further, his 2017 performance against Saskatchewan, an eventual loss but 457 passing yards were paired with a couple of touchdowns (and interceptions) in the East Semi-Final.

It’s probably unfair to have even slightly expected a similar performance this time out, and for one of a few reasons it’s because the Ticats look like (and are), world-beaters.

However this was one of those games heading into it where you felt you’d need an out-of-body repeat showing by Harris for the Eskimos to have a chance in winning. They didn’t get it, and now they’re going home.

This one felt and looked different from the get go.

Edmonton blinked first, as Harris’ third pass was intercepted and their second drive was stalled out on a C.J Gable fumble.

The #Esks have asked “why not us?” all week, referencing the fact that no crossover team has advanced to the Grey Cup. Two turnovers in the first six minutes of a road playoff game might end up being the answer to that question. #Ticats #CFL

— John Hodge (@JohnDHodge) November 17, 2019

Harris strung together a solid second quarter, and it included their lone touchdown of the game. He found DaVaris Daniels in the second who walked it into the end zone and their first damage was dealt. His stat line read 15-for-20 on his pass attempts for 158 yards, and they were stuck just 10 going into the third.

But a timely second interception and the Tiger-Cats defence forcing Harris and the offence taking three instead of surrendering six or more time and time again led to their advancement. This matchup was perhaps Harris’ toughest task in recent years.

The Ticats defence, as typically is the case on first place teams, led in most defensive categories this regular season. They allowed the fewest touchdowns and points, while being in the top tier league-wide for several other stat trackers.

There was also some unfamiliarity – Harris was out during both of the regular season meetings with the Tabbies. You can study all the game film you’d like and draw from your experience in the league, but there’s no better way to get a feel for a defence than actually being out there on game day.

Despite recording just three sacks (two on the second final drive), the pressure Hamilton brought on was evident on almost every play. Harris was frequently flushed out of the pocket and forced to throw on the run.

He certainly had a lot of adversity to battle against: a hostile crowd, a poor start, and an on-fire Hamilton offence had the Eskimos needing to find offensive ground quickly to stay in the game.

But they couldn’t get over the hump. Hamilton simply bested Edmonton – and Harris – in every aspect of the game.

He finished 29-of-41 for 319 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. His safety valve Greg Ellingson had a game-high 11 targets.

Edmonton’s highly-touted free agent signings did not result in a ring this year. If this is the end of Jason Maas’ tenure in Edmonton, so be it. They couldn’t get past one of the greatest CFL teams in recent memory.

But Eskimos fans shouldn’t feel down for too long after this loss. Harris is locked in for the next year and he’s proven to be a guy you want to be behind centre when the moment counts.

The post Trevor Harris couldn’t repeat otherworldly performance as Eskimos came up empty in Hamilton appeared first on 3DownNation.

With seven comeback wins in 2019, the club was staring down the barrel at number eight, but ultimately, this season had its fate sealed on a bad pass decision which led to a late-game pick and an Edmonton Eskimos date with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the Eastern Final.

Before the game started, Matt Dunigan was telling the panel how he feels head coach Khari Jones changed the atmosphere around the Alouettes. He talked about the players wanting to run through walls for their energetic coach and have fun doing it.

There’s been lots of smiles for the club this year. From crazy comebacks in New Brunswick, Calgary and at home against Winnipeg with the emergence of Vernon Adams Jr. leading the way. Khari Jones has brought the fading football pulse in Montreal back to life, year one under the jumping-around-the-sidelines coach Jones really has been something to watch. He led them to their first playoff game since 2014, the longest absence of playoff football in franchise history.

“With close to 20,000 seats sold, we have decided to start removing some banners and put extra tickets on sale,” said Patrick Boivin President and CEO of the Alouettes. #CFL #LCF #MontreALS via @MTLAlouettes

— CFL News (@CFL_News) November 7, 2019

The Eskimos and Als traded wins in the regular season against each other and it appeared to be reminiscent of Week 2 when the Esks put up over 600 yards of offence on Bob Slowik’s defensive unit. Trevor Harris completed his first 22 pass attempts, showing once more how little the Alouettes have stopped him as a starter. Harris boasted an 11-3 career record against Montreal heading into the Eastern Semi-final.

For Adams, this was his first foray into pressure-packed, sudden death action. Sure, there’s been intense moments, like the handful of comebacks he led through the regular season, but nothing compares to your first playoff game as a starting pivot for a team and city starving for a consistent starter — and winner.

He wasn’t as good as the Als needed him to be (14-of-27, 226 yards, three interceptions) in the loss. An overthrow to an open end-zone target while scrambling and trailing 31-19 late in the third seemed like a play which would have been made in any other of their comebacks this season, but not to be.

Adams also threw an ill-advised pass into double coverage which went straight into Josh Johnson’s hands, his second of three picks in the tilt. Growing pains. For what felt like the first time of the year, he and the offence seemed out of sync.

The #Esks can see the finish line!#GCPlayoffs @Shaw_CFL #RoadtotheGreyCup pic.twitter.com/IC2JhuXpPR

— CFL (@CFL) November 10, 2019

But it was sure made interesting after John Bowman, who leads the club with most playoff games in a career with nine, picked off one of Harris’ three passes which didn’t hit their intended target, and Adams danced into the end zone soon after.

Refusing to go down (@bigplay_va). Game on.#GCPlayoffs @shaw_Cfl #RoadtotheGreyCup pic.twitter.com/s1cXVukYjS

— CFL (@CFL) November 10, 2019

There are looming off-season questions ahead for the organization. Finding a new owner will be a big part of it, as the league continues to oversee the franchise until a deal is done.

A sold out Percival Molson Memorial Stadium only helps the league’s pitch and the team’s image to potential buyers, so too will the excitement which has built around the team for the first time in a long while.

Regarding the on-field product, keeping Adams around should be priority No. 1. For the first time since Anthony Calvillo’s retirement, the team finally has found a legitimate number one quarterback. Keeping the pending free agent in the mix is a must both for a winning standpoint and a marketing one.

Perhaps the Jones-Adams duo can launch a new era of winning in Montreal, much like the Marc Trestman-Calvillo combo.

But those decisions will be made in the coming days and months. While the search for an owner won’t stop, the players will take a break, go on vacation, and rest their bodies after the natural wear and tear which comes with playing professional football.

Even with this season ending perhaps a bit prematurely with the loss, there are only positives to take from this campaign.

And that, for a franchise which has been through a lot of uncertainty in the last few years, is a win.

The post Alouettes ditched Johnny Manziel but adopted Comeback SZN mantra in 2019 appeared first on 3DownNation.

The Argos improve to 4-13 — three of those victories have come against the Redblacks by a combined score of 113-47. Toronto sweeps the season series 3-0.

The biggest name getting some looks as Toronto cruised to a 39-9 win was national quarterback Michael O’Connor. He was picked in the third round, 20th overall by the Argos in the 2018 CFL draft. The Orleans, Ontario native put together a wonderful USports career at the University of British Columbia, winning the Vanier Cup in 2015 and has been touted as a legitimate future starter.

He put up video game numbers at UBC, completing 773 out of 1,197 attempts for 9,990 yards, 61 touchdowns and 22 interceptions in four seasons.

Out he came on the final play of the third, where he immediately connected with Armanti Edwards for 31 yards, the receiver had 126 of them in the game. Then, on his fourth straight completion he secured his first career touchdown pass, an 11-yard strike to Rodney Smith.

First career TD for Michael O'Connor (@TheTrueQB)! #CFLGameday | @TorontoArgos pic.twitter.com/ZGlz5H81Pq

— CFL (@CFL) October 26, 2019

O’Connor finished 5-of-9 for 61 yards and the touchdown in his quarter of play.

Before he came in however, some other players took care of business. McLeod Bethel-Thompson tossed for 198 yards and a couple touchdowns in his half of football, leading his Argonauts to a 15-8 score at the break. Those yards put him over 4,000 on the year, an impressive feat on a four-win team.

One of his passes went to S.J. Green who surpassed 1,000 receiving yards for the third straight year and sixth time in his long career.

Both Bethel-Thompson touchdowns came through the air. First to Edwards for 33 yards and then Chandler Worthy in their first drive after Ottawa’s touchdown. Worthy played just his third game this year, he played a week ago and made his debut in Week 7.

https://twitter.com/TorontoArgos/status/1188191391320551426

In the third Dakota Prukop, now in his third year with the Argonauts, took the field. His last regular season action came in Week 7 against the Eskimos, where he threw two interceptions on 8-of-13 tosses and 68 passing yards.

He fared quite better Saturday with a couple of touchdown drives as the lead stretched to 29-8.

On the Redblacks side of the ball, their punter Richie Leone was busy. He had 10 punts in this one as Ottawa’s offence continued to sputter with Wild Ardnt behind centre for the third straight week. He was sacked four times and threw for 194 yards on 21-of-32 completions and a touchdown.

Ottawa put up 261 net offensive yards to the Argos 450.

The Redblacks close the chapter on an abysmal 2019 season with lots of issues to address in the off-season against Montreal next week while the Argonauts do the same against Hamilton.

The post Argos sweep away the awful Redblacks appeared first on 3DownNation.

BRANDON BANKS STEALING ANKLES @speedybanks87#CFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/xMltjJHgXA

— CFL on TSN (@CFLonTSN) October 26, 2019

Banks secured a personal and franchise record for most receptions in a season with his 105th grab. It seemed only fitting it was also for a touchdown, his first of three on the afternoon. He put up a career single-game best 201 receiving yards in the game.

That's the 12th touchdown of the season for @speedybanks87, a new career high!#CFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/5CpgED6JY4

— CFL on TSN (@CFLonTSN) October 26, 2019

Dane Evans was also lights out completing 29-for-36 for 379 yards, four touchdowns and a pick.

Banks could be a pivotal player if these teams meet up again in the East Final. He’s gotten used to torching Montreal this season. He put up a previous season0-high 152 yards in Week 3 and then a respectable 82 the following week against against Khari Jones’ squad.

Tracking Montreal’s receivers, Eugene Lewis eclipsed the 1,000 receiving yard mark early in this one as he passed the century mark in a game for the fourth time this year.

Matthew Shiltz entered the game midway through the second for Vernon Adams Jr. and his touchdown drive helped lead Montreal to a 21-14 lead at the break. Adams went 11-of-14 for 142 passing yards, two touchdowns and an interception in limited minutes. Also of note was Jeremiah Johnson’s 105 rushing yards on a season-high 16 carries.

The tides shifted in the third as Evans put two more touchdowns on the board through the air and it was a 28-23 Ticats lead. Their lead slowly grew after that the rest of the way, topped off with Banks’ third touchdown.

Make that THREE touchdowns on the day for @speedybanks87! #CFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/X9tf2PZqV4

— CFL on TSN (@CFLonTSN) October 26, 2019

The rubber match offered no motivation in the standings as both teams have their eyes locked on November football. The tilt offered players the chance to further build on their seasons while trying to avoid injury.

Both squads will likely rest a bulk of their starters in the final week of the regular season as they face the two non-playoff teams. The Als square up against Ottawa while the Tabbies take on Toronto.

The post Ticats’ Brandon Banks leaves speedy tread marks all over Alouettes appeared first on 3DownNation.

It’s a remarkable feat considering the Als fired former head coach Mike Sherman days before the regular season kicked off, general manager Kavis Reed was punted early in the schedule and Vernon Adams Jr. was the backup quarterback to Antonio Pipkin.

Montreal weathered the storm early and their defence shut out the Stampeders in the second half, as their offence did just enough to get the 21-17 win.

There is no loved lost between the 2019 Stamps and Alouettes.

For the most part, the shoving and jawing was kept to a minimum throughout a beautiful afternoon for football and an electrified crowd. When the clubs met in Week 10, the fight started before the first whistle – literally. The teams got into it during warm-ups prior to Montreal’s thrilling 40-34 OT win.

This time around, most of the blows were on the scoreboard.

Bo Levi Mitchell put on his best performance in his fifth game back from injury as he had 313 passing yards at half. The long ball was a common theme in the opening 30 minutes. He only had a 25 percent completion rate on pass attempts longer than 15 yards entering Week 17.

Bo dropping an absolute dime.#CFLGameday #Stamps pic.twitter.com/eWVjvnHpRt

— CFL (@CFL) October 5, 2019

But it worked at Molson Stadium. The Stampeders scored 17 unanswered points and there were more than a handful of highlights to get there. Namely a 68-yard grab to end the first by rookie and Montreal native Hergy Mayala, his first of two big plays in the game.

Some fireworks to end the opening quarter.#CFLGameday #Stamps pic.twitter.com/rk7BxKkbOR

— CFL (@CFL) October 5, 2019

Adams Jr. wasted no one getting back into the swing of things. After serving his one-game suspension, he marched an opening touchdown drive for a quick strike. The quarterbacks combined for a perfect 14-for-14 start. Adams Jr. went 18-of-29 for 206 passing yards and a rushing touchdown.

The Als offence was quieted down for a few drives after that however save for a 41-yard Eugene Lewis snag which led to three points.

GET UP EUGENE!#CFLGameday #AlsMTL pic.twitter.com/7UXAkEV5DT

— CFL (@CFL) October 5, 2019

Montreal was dealing with some key injuries throughout this one.

John Bowman left in the first with his knee bugging him but came back, while Tony Washington was carted off in the second with an ankle injury. There was also a scary moment in the third, when Brandon Smith made incidental helmet-to-helmet contact with Quon Bray, who left for the locker room. William Stanback also was banged up following a fourth quarter hit but he stayed in the game.

The fireworks continued in the third but this time it was special teams and defence taking centre stage. Rob Maver’s first punt of the game was returned 85 yards by Mario Alford, squaring things up at 17.

The momentum was fully on the home team side after that, especially as their defence forced four turnovers on five of Calgary’s drives following their last score. The fifth drive ended in the aforementioned punt return touchdown.

The defence forced five turnovers when it was all said and done and had two sacks.

There's a reason we're showing this (hint:)#CFLGameday #AlsMTL pic.twitter.com/qFyG8y8Iug

— CFL (@CFL) October 5, 2019

Add an Als put single and that was all the scoring the quarter offered as both sides buckled up for the fourth.

A big defensive third and one stop with over five minutes to play gave Mitchell and the offence a chance to take the lead and possibly the game. But a Bowman second down sack gave the ball back to Montreal who put three points on the board and made Mitchell have to throw a touchdown to get the win.

A defensive pass interference penalty by Jaronor Jones put Calgary on the Als 43, but it was the same Jones who swallowed up a completion to force a third down. A batted down pass on that third down sealed the win and a playoff game at home. It was Bo Lokombo with the knockdown, he had a game-high nine tackles and a forced fumble as well.

Mitchell finished with 443 passing yards on 30-of-42 completions, one touchdown and one interception. Josh Huff was his favourite target as he enjoyed a breakout game, grabbing a touchdown on nine receptions with 149 yards.

Calgary is at home against Saskatchewan (9-4) next week while Montreal is in Winnipeg (9-5).

The post Alouettes defence shuts Stamps out in second half; clinch playoff spot appeared first on 3DownNation.

The Esks were looking at a similar situation on Friday night when they trailed by 16 points at the midpoint of the second quarter.

But this time around there wasn’t any late game drama as the Ticats’ defence held Edmonton to just one touchdown, walking away with a 42-12 win.

The Eskimos leaned on C.J. Gable in the game’s early stages, before the run game was put on the back-burner as the deficit grew. He would finish the game with 11 carries for 47 yards before leaving the game with a lower body injury.

Hamilton scored on its first drive of the game on a touchdown pass to Brandon Banks. The star receiver had another strong performance putting up 81 receiving yards on eight receptions.

A 30-yard punt return by Frankie Williams set the Ticats up in the red zone right away for the second scoring drive. Williams finished the game with almost 170 combined return yards and a game-high seven tackles. Jaelon Acklin snagged the score for his third touchdown of the year.

Acquiring target… Target found.#CFLGameday #Ticats pic.twitter.com/hSIqQmFLRs

— CFL (@CFL) October 5, 2019

Both quarterbacks were fairly accurate in the opening 30 minutes. A bad read by Logan Kilgore was responsible for a Richard Leonard interception, just one of two first-half incompletions. Evans, meanwhile, almost had an 80 per cent completion rate. Leonard would later put the game entirely out of reach with a fourth-quarter pick-six.

.@trey4six comes up with his fourth interception of the season and takes it all the way to the house!#CFLGameday pic.twitter.com/o6sxxiMjH8

— CFL on TSN (@CFLonTSN) October 5, 2019

Kilgore went 23-of-32 for 233 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. He faced lots of pressure from Hamilton’s front seven and was sacked five times. Backup quarterback Jeremiah Briscoe finished the game for Edmonton once it was out of reach.

A two-for-one field goal trade in the third stretched the Ticats’ lead by three heading into the fourth.

A quick Eskimos’ drive led to the club’s only touchdown of the game, making it a two-score lead. Natey Adjei’s nine-yard grab cut the lead to 13. A disastrous two-point convert attempt cost Edmonton a timeout and resulted in another Kilgore interception.

The @EdmontonEsks score their first TD of the night to cut into the Ticats' lead in the fourth quarter. #CFLGameday pic.twitter.com/ejsjzOxf4M

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) October 5, 2019

But that’s as close as the game would get because Hamilton’s Tyrell Sutton helped settle things down the other way. He tore off two of his biggest runs on the next drive, which essentially ended the contest. It was his Sutton’s best game as a Tiger-Cat, finishing with 11 touches and 88 yards. David Watford capped off the drive with a touchdown on a QB sneak.

Evans finished the game 24-of-32 for 277 passing yards and a pair of touchdowns as he continues to improve in the absence of Jeremiah Masoli.

The Eskimos dropped to 7-8 and failed to clinch a playoff spot, while Hamilton improved to 12-3 – equaling a franchise record for wins in a season. The Eskimos are up against the B.C. Lions (4-10) next week with the Tiger-Cats heading into a bye.

The post Eskimos fall under .500 as Ticats equal franchise record for wins in season appeared first on 3DownNation.

The 9-4 Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Kings of the West, went to war with the 10-3 Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Kings of the East.

And in the end, it was a new CFL face who got to keep the crown.

Dane Evans threw for 359 yards with three touchdowns and an interception on 25-of-32 attempts, leading the way on offence as Hamilton downed Winnipeg 33-13.

Simoni Lawrence brought the pain notching a single game league record 17 tackles, putting him over the 500 mark in his career.

The downfall of the Bombers fourth quarter collapse to the Montreal Alouettes a week ago was in large part because their secondary gave up simply too many deep plays. The trend continued in the opening half of this tilt.

Evans torched the Bombers defence two separate times in the first half, both drives led to touchdowns. The first, a 44-yarder to Bralon Addison, who’d later cap the drive himself. The second was a 52-yard gain to Marcus Tucker. David Watford later plunged the ball in for their third touchdown of the half.

Wow, only thing that kept this from SPECTACULAR was 1 yard.#CFLGameday #Ticats pic.twitter.com/WMmlgFDJ1D

— CFL (@CFL) September 28, 2019

That was the story of how Hamilton led 24-10. That and Evans playing like a chiselled veteran. Staying in the pocket, making his reads and chucking for over 300 yards passing and just four incompletions without really breaking a sweat. Brandon Banks made a few plays himself, finishing the contest with 113 receiving yards on eight catches.

A quiet third quarter drifted into the fourth until Justin Tuggle picked Chris Streveler off and hauled 80 yards down field the other way. That queued up Evans’ third touchdown pass and the lead was 20 for Hamilton.

Justin Tuggle (@Takeover_Tuggle) picks off Streveler in the 4th quarter and almost takes it to the house!#CFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/w8aGxlKMVZ

— CFL on TSN (@CFLonTSN) September 28, 2019

The Ticats defence kept getting to Streveler as he was brought down five times.

Streveler threw for 304 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. He completed 31 of his 42 pass attempts. A number of those were to Kenny Lawler, who caught all 10 of his targets for 144 receiving yards.

Hamilton (11-3) returns home next week to face the sinking Edmonton Eskimos (6-7), while Winnipeg (9-5) is in tough for the third straight week as they fight the Saskatchewan Roughriders (8-4) in what could be a battle for first place in the West.

The post Simoni Lawrence sets CFL record as Ticats stymie Bombers appeared first on 3DownNation.

A week removed from dropping a 29-5 game against a then 1-9 B.C. Lions squad, the Redblacks got handled again as the Leos cruised to a 40-7 win.

The Lions logged 541 net offensive yards in the victory.

It was over before it ever began.

Shaq Johnson had over 100 receiving yards before Ned Flanders could say “howdy neighbour.” Johnson’s big half helped to give him a game-high 160 receiving yards.

He was all over the field in the first half, but especially on his touchdown grab, when Duron Carter – yes, Duron Carter – connected with the receiver for a 67-yard score.

Not your average @BCLions TD #CFLGameday@Rikester13 @DC_CHILLIN_8 @IamSroyJ

BC 14 | OTT 2 pic.twitter.com/3Czx9Kmuhw

— CFL (@CFL) September 21, 2019

Carter later caught a touchdown for himself in the third, his second straight game with a major.

.@DC_CHILLIN_8 with the touchdown pass earlier, and this time he's on the receiving end for the @BCLions!#CFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/4DAzdncKPp

— CFL on TSN (@CFLonTSN) September 22, 2019

It was more of the same from Ottawa’s perspective, that being no offence whatsoever. The Redblacks had a strong first drive, failed to convert a third down play and then did nothing at all the rest of the half netting 64 yards to the Leos 314.

Jonathon Jennings was 3-for-10 with 16 yards after two quarters. Ottawa trailed 20-2 and the Redblacks fans drowned the home team in boos

As Jennings was slowly getting some momentum and stringing completions together in the third, coach Rick Campbell put third stringer Will Ardnt into the game down 30-5. Jennings went 8-of-17 for 121 receiving yards. Ardnt finished with 61 passing yards on 6-of-11.

Bryan Burnham eclipsed the 1,000 receiving yard mark, recording 135 yards on nine receptions. Mike Reilly’s day was done midway through the fourth when Burnham’s touchdown snag in the fourth extended the lead to 37-6. The quarterback tossed for 353 yards with two touchdowns, an interception and went 21-of-27 on his pass attempts.

Also of note, Odell Willis notched career sack No. 100 late in the game. It was his first in nine games.

Ottawa (3-10) meets Edmonton (6-7) at home next week while B.C. takes on the Alouettes.

The post Redblacks boo’d off the field; Lions register second consecutive blowout appeared first on 3DownNation.

If the Montreal Alouettes want their offence to get going earlier in a ball game, they should consider asking to have a 10-0 deficit before every kickoff, because that’s when Adams Jr. seems to turn it on.

A dreadful first half effort from the Alouettes defence saw them give up 34 points and four touchdowns on Winnipeg’s first four drives. Montreal was behind the eight ball, trailing by 17 heading into the third, and 20 prior to the fourth.

It looked pretty bleak until the tail end of the third. Adams moved the ball down field, a 10-play drive ending in Chris Matthews’ second touchdown of the game early in the fourth. They were his first two with the Als and it comes against the team who cut him earlier this year.

.@TheRealCMaTT13 with touchdown number two on the day! #CFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/buyeIyamRE

— CFL on TSN (@CFLonTSN) September 21, 2019

A missed 53-yard Justin Medlock field goal attempt proved very costly, as their lead stayed at 13 rather than 16. He also missed a point after kick earlier in the game.

A Jeff Hecht red zone interception looked too much to overcome for the Als, but that wasn’t the case.

Big defensive stops on top of overcoming a pass interference call meant it was back to work for Adams. A quick six-play drive ended in a DeVier Posey 29-yard touchdown, cutting the lead to six.

.@bigplay_va finds @DPo8 downfield, and now the @MTLAlouettes trail by just six with two minutes to go! #CFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/NJDkwfNu6j

— CFL on TSN (@CFLonTSN) September 21, 2019

With the game on the line, Adams turned to Posey and Jake Wieneke more and more often. And it was, in fact Wieneke who put things to bed. 11 seconds to go, Adams threw to the big target for a poetic 15-yard, game-tying score. Boris Bede didn’t flub the point-after and Montreal did it.

They erased a 24-point deficit and took down the Blue Bombers 38-37. Exhale.

Wieneke had 134 receiving yards on eight receptions while Posey had 132 on seven catches, each with a touchdown.

NO WORDS. #CFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/h1JUI3NBpH

— CFL (@CFL) September 21, 2019

As much as Adams Jr. was the highlight of the second half – I mean, he did throw for 488 yards and four touchdowns – it shouldn’t be lost that Montreal’s defence held the Bombers to three second half points, completely turning it around after the break.

Before this one, everyone was looking at the running backs. Andrew Harris played after serving his two game suspension for failing a drug test and William Stanback has been enjoying a standout year.

And Harris did leave his mark on the game in the second, on a wildcat play which initially gave the rushing yard leader a touchdown before it was marked down at the one. It stretched the Bombers lead as the Alouettes defence forgot how to tackle. Chris Streveler plunged it across the goal line for his third rushing touchdown of the half.

Welcome back, Andrew Harris!

Darvin Adams throws a bomb to Harris who gets to the one-yard line for yet ANOTHER Chris Streveler touchdown! #CFLGameDay

WPG 28 | MTL 10 pic.twitter.com/peeRTCMVTF

— CFL (@CFL) September 21, 2019

Harris had 76 rushing yards on 12 carries, beaten out by his quarterback Streveler who chipped in 84 to go with his 180 passing yards on 19-for-22 throwing.

Momentum started to swing in the Als favour towards the end of the second after looking down and out following a fumble returned for a touchdown for the Bombers.

A Ciante Evans interception queued up Adams Jr. to later find Matthews in the end zone to trim the deficit to 17. A beautiful Posey snag came before it.

Then a quiet third quarter turned into the crazy fourth and left Montreal fans grinning ear to ear with the opposing Bombers faithful and team with their jaws dropped.

Montreal (7-5) travels to B.C. (2-10) next week while Winnipeg (9-4) heads home to battle Hamilton (10-3).

The post Comeback king: Vernon Adams Jr. flies Alouettes to wild win over Bombers appeared first on 3DownNation.

The Stamps didn’t get a double-digit win this time, but their lead was never much in doubt in a 23-16 road win over Toronto.

Corey Chamblin raised eyebrows in the second quarter when, down 17-0, he opted for a field goal on third and goal from Calgary’s two-yard line.

Chamblin reversed course late in the half, deciding to keep McLeod Bethel-Thompson and the offence out on the field on third and five on their own 53. It was unsuccessful and Calgary got a field goal following Toronto’s turnover on downs.

Fans booed the decisions and again as the Argos headed to the locker room following a fourth sack of Bethel-Thompson. Calgary’s defence would finish the game with six quarterback takedowns.

Toronto tailback James Wilder Jr. recorded 40 of the Argos’ 299 total offensive yards on just four touches.

Bo Levi Mitchell spread the ball, completing passes to nine receivers in a game without Reggie Begelton. He finished 33-of-47 for 346 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

Eric Rogers was Mitchell’s favourite target, making eight receptions for 119 yards. He would have had more had it not been for a few drops on his 17 targets.

Calgary’s two touchdowns came by way of a Terry Williams pitch and a Ka’Deem Carey reception, which came after a Bethel-Thompson interception.

2nd and 1, T-Will takes it outside for the Major!

CGY 7 | TOR 0 #CFLGameday #Stamps pic.twitter.com/HKqUFnzxWr

— CFL (@CFL) September 20, 2019

Looking for a momentum shift, Chamblin sent out James Franklin midway through the third quarter. Bethel-Thompson was 12-for-19 for 86 yards and an interception when he got the hook. Franklin, who had thrown just one pass since Canada Day, immediately connected on a 45-yard bomb to Armanti Edwards.

The Stamps held their ground until the 1:56 mark of the fourth when Franklin trimmed the lead to eight on a Derel Walker touchdown.

Toronto’s defence rebounded as well for a strong second half, conceding three points and picking Mitchell off twice.

Still time left.#CFLGameday #Argos pic.twitter.com/m0oG9hKLVO

— CFL (@CFL) September 21, 2019

Franklin threw 12-for-16 for 147 yards and the touchdown, making a good case to start next week .

Calgary (9-4) slides into the Week 16 bye, while Toronto (2-10) stays at home to face Saskatchewan (8-4).

The post Stampeders use strong first half to sail to another win over Argos appeared first on 3DownNation.