You be the analyst!

West Division rivals collide as Stamps battle Lions

Adam Markowitz, SBR Forum • August 7, 2010 • Comments (0)

Empire Field in British Columbia will be rockin’ Saturday night for a CFL battle between West Division rivals when the Lions host Henry Burris and the Calgary Stampeders

The Stampeders won all four meetings against the Lions last season.

Going into the sixth week of the season, the Stampeders are tied for first place in the West Division at 4-1-0, while the Lions are in the gutter with the Edmonton Eskimos at 1-4-0.

On paper, the Stampeders should be one of the best offensive teams in the CFL. However, with 140 points scored, they are just a middle of the road team in terms of point production. The team is averaging 24.4 first downs per game, the second highest mark in the league. As a result, they Calgary is one of the best time of possession teams in the league.

The Stampeders’ biggest drawback is that they are just flat out turning the ball over too much. Seven fumbles lost is tied for the league lead coming into Week 6, while quarterback Henry Burris has tossed a league worst eight interceptions.

The good news for Burris is that his numbers are starting to recover from a horrid start to the year. Without Ryan Thelwell (injured), Ken-Yon Rambo (injured) and Jeremaine Copeland (now in Toronto) to start the season, Calgary’s signal caller has looked uncomfortable in the pocket at times. However, the Stampeders are now at full strength with both Thelwell and Rambo returning in last week’s 23-20 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. As a result, Burris was 28/38 for 340 yards, two touchdowns and more importantly, no picks.

The Calgary defence has given up the fewest touchdowns in the league (Seven) and is averaging allowing a league best 21.0 points per game.

As for the boys from British Columbia, they need a real shot in the arm and quickly. The Lions are coming off of a bad 28-25 loss at Commonwealth Stadium to the Edmonton Eskimos in a game that they really accomplished nothing through the air.

"As of Thursday morning, there is still a question as to who will be taking the first snap under center for head coach Wally Buono"

Backup QB Travis Lulay, playing in place of the injured Casey Printers, only went 16/26 for 134 yards and two interceptions. He did run for 62 yards and the team’s lone offensive score.

BC’s rushing attack has had some awful outings this year and though the Lions are averaging 105.8 YPG on the ground (Sixth in the CFL), a good chunk of those yards have come on huge runs. They average just 15.8 rushing attempts per game, the lowest in the CFL.

Running back Jamal Robertson was considered one of the top weapons on this team at the outset of the season, but he just hasn’t been deployed enough to make a huge difference. Though Robertson leads all backs in the CFL in rushing average (7.9 YPC), he has only handled the rock 46 times all year, easily the lowest in the league for starters.

As of Thursday morning, there is still a question as to who will be taking the first snap under center for head coach Wally Buono. Lulay is clearly the only healthy option he has at his disposal, as Printers is listed as doubtful for the game. Don’t count out the prospects of seeing Jarious Jackson, last year’s starting quarterback, for a good chunk of the season, either.

Calgary is simply on a roll in this series. The Stampeders won all four meetings with the Lions last year, taking 28-26 and 48-10 decisions at BC Place while winning 27-18 and 37-30 at home. In fact, you have to go back to the very first meeting of the 2008 season between these teams to find the last BC victory. Since then, the Stampeders have taken down eight straight SU and are 7-0-1 ATS.

The good news for the Lions is that they are typically a strong team in the second full month of the season. They are 20-7 ATS in their last 27 matchups played in August. However, Calgary is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games played against teams with a losing record.

The CFL betting lines for this crucial duel feature the Stampeders as 2.5 point favorites. The ‘total’ can be found at 49.5.