Tale of the Tape

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/11/2011 (5413 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

VanCouver — The gambling community says there is a seven-point difference between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the B.C. Lions heading into the 99th installment of the Grey Cup championship.

Ever wonder where they get this number from? Let’s compare and contrast the different elements of the two football teams and see if that spread actually measures up.

Get your rulers out, kids.

Witness the Tale of the Tape: 2011 Grey Cup edition.

Quarterbacks

Winnipeg: Buck Pierce had 14 TDs against 18 interceptions, a ratio that suggests he needs to be more careful with the football. Winnipeg likes its offence conservative, so turnovers are killer.

B.C.: With 32 touchdowns and just 11 picks, Travis Lulay is the ‘it’ quarterback. He shows a composure well above his experience. Like Pierce, he can scramble and make things happen.

Scorecard: Lions. Lulay has been the best player in the league since Labour Day.

Receivers

Bombers: Terrence Edwards leads the group with 1,124 yards and eight TDs. Clarence Denmark (818) and Cory Watson (793) remain popular targets. Greg Carr is a wild-card.

Lions: Geroy Simon (1,350 yards) and Arland Bruce (859) have combined for 16 TDs. Shawn Gore and Akeem Foster both average 14 yards per catch as secondary targets.

Scorecard: Even.

Running backs

Winnipeg: Chris Garrett has given the ground game new life and that has rounded out the offence. The Bombers will try to control the clock with the shifty Garrett.

B.C.: Andrew Harris is more effective catching the ball out of the backfield, so look for him to spill off to the side or underneath. Harris is very dangerous in the open field.

Scorecard: Even, based on youth. Not enough information.

Offensive line

Winnipeg: Brendon LaBatte is a CFL all-star and headlines a solid group. Winnipeg has allowed a league-high 46 sacks. Is the line that bad? No, but numbers are a part of professional sport.

B.C.: Two CFL all-stars — tackle Jovan Olafioye and centre Angus Reid. The Leos gave up 29 sacks this year and have only given up 11 since facing Winnipeg in Week 7.

Scorecard: Lions.

Defensive line

Winnipeg: Odell Willis (13 sacks) is a CFL all-star. Jason Vega and Rodney Fritz have a bright future in the league.

B.C.: Tackles Aaron Hunt and Khalif Mitchell are CFL all-stars. B.C.’s 54 team sacks trailed only Winnipeg (55).

Scorecard: Lions, but both teams do a great job of applying pressure.

Linebackers

Winnipeg: Clint Kent and Marcellus Bowman are the key figures in this group. Winnipeg likes to drop one guy back and keep the other two up front.

B.C.: Solomon Elimimian is another CFL all-star and is always around the ball, as evidenced by his 98 tackles.

Scorecard: Lions. Did we mention Elimimian?

Secondary

Winnipeg: Jovon Johnson, Jonathan Hefney, and Ian Logan were CFL all-stars. The Bombers had 25 interceptions and gave up a CFL-low 223 passing yards per game.

B.C.: Dante Marsh, Korey Banks, Ryan Phillips — some of the names in a unit that gave up only 20 passing TDs.

Scorecard: Bombers. They have the ability to deliver a knockout punch.

Kickers

Winnipeg: Justin Palardy went 40-of-52 (77 per cent) in the field goal department in 2011.

B.C.: Paul McCallum hit 50-of-53 (94 per cent) of his field goals. ‘Nuff said.

Scorecard: Lions.

Special Teams

Winnipeg: The coverage on kickoff and punts has been excellent, though short kicks play a role in that. Jovon Johnson finished second in the league in punt return yards.

B.C.: Tim Brown handles most of the return duties. Coverage-wise, the Lions have had a few hiccups in 2011.

Scorecard: Bombers.

Coaching

Winnipeg: Paul LaPolice has a Grey Cup ring as an assistant and most on his staff have some CFL championship experience, but this is all new for the second-year head coach.

B.C.: As Free Press columnist Gary Lawless said Thursday, Buono is on the Mount Rushmore of CFL coaches.

Scorecard: Lions.

Intangibles

Winnipeg: No pressure on the road, underdog mentality, playing for Richard Harris, Doug Brown’s retirement, they have to win the Grey Cup again at some point, right?

B.C.: Playing in front of the home crowd, experience, home crowd, the hottest team in the league, did we mention the home crowd?

Scorecard: They’re intangibles — how do you measure them?

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca