TrueBlue4ever

My favorite part of the morning - Nunes' face right after Sondland's testimony.

So the GOP defence has now moved to: a) When Sondland asked Trump what he wanted from Ukraine in exchange for the meeting, he said "I want nothing, I want no quid pro quo" (that conversation occurred Sept. 9 - right AFTER the whistleblower complaint became public knowledge) b) Ukraine got a phone call, a meeting, and military aid for ultimately no investigation into Biden in return, so no delivery of quid pro quo (phone call was where quid pro quo discussed, the meeting DID NOT in fact happen, and the aid was released only AFTER the whistleblower complaint leaked) c) No one ever told Sondland directly that aid was tied to the investigations (so you saw Trump with the smoking gun in his hands standing over the dead body on 5th Avenue, but he never SAID he killed the guy, and no one else told you that he did it, so then there is NO MURDER, right?) The goalposts are in the upper deck by now.

If Winnipeg beats Hamilton on Sunday, they will have beaten 3 teams in the playoffs who won a combined 40 games in the regular season, which would tie the record for most won games combined by playoff opponents for a Grey Cup champion. Previously done in 1993 by Edmonton, who beat Saskatchewan (11 wins), Calgary (15 wins), and Winnipeg (14 wins), and in 1994 by BC, who beat Edmonton (13 wins), Calgary (15 wins), and Baltimore (12 wins).

Ten teams in CFL history have finished the regular season with 15 or more wins prior to this year. Of those 10 teams, 5 won the Grey Cup, 2 lost the Grey Cup game, and 3 never even got to the final. Edmonton: 16 wins, lost division final (1989) Calgary: 15 wins, lost division final (1993, 94) Calgary: 15 wins, lost Grey Cup (1995, 2016) Baltimore: 15 wins, won Grey Cup (1995) Toronto: 15 wins, won Grey Cup (1996, 97) Montreal: 15 wins, won Grey Cup (2012) Calgary: 15 wins, won Grey Cup (2014)

Hamilton, the city that smells like Regina sounds.

I have heard Doug Brown talk about turf toe being the most aggravating injury because you can do so little about it, the pain and debilitation is far worse than what you think it should be for a small digit, and even if it "feels" good you need to let it heal past the point of no pain so as not to re-aggravate it (like a groin pull, you don't play once it doesn't hurt, you play 2-3 weeks after it has stopped hurting because no pain doesn't mean fully healed). I know players who talked about wanting to cut off the toe and be able to play instead of being unable to play through the pain and being so frustrated.

Same with me. Picking up a buddy in Brandon, one day trip. Sec. 139 row 27 behind the Bomber bench on the 45 yard line. Tix were resale, $60 below face value each. First road playoff game ever.

I think Westwood actually was perfect in the 2007 game. In fact, except for one game in 2001 (we ALL know which one) he was very accurate in the playoffs. Fat lot of good that did though. The one time we needed him to come through he decides to have his worst game as a pro. What is irritating is to hear Westwood say he knew Roberts was out all night. And I've heard Milt Stegall talk about never winning a ring and say "All I know is that I came prepared and was mentally and physically ready to have my best game on Grey Cup day. Won't speak for my teammates, and I saw some of them take a different attitude, but for my part I made sure I was able to perform at my best on Grey Cup sunday" (paraphrasing but that is as close to accurate as I recall). So, as Speedflex asked, why couldn't these veteran teammates get Charlie in line and keep him in check on Grey Cup week?

We are 54 hours away. Do I sound excited? I feel like I'm getting excited.

Just got my seats too! And 33% off on resale. Saw them win the inaugural Canada Day game, now time to see the march to the Grey Cup.

Wait, didn't this guy get the last one?

I agree that this scheme is totally set up for this week, given how he NEVER showed he was going to throw last week. Simplest way to deal with a "run first" QB (which Streveler really started to become more and more as he progressed as a starter - Hamilton and Sask in their 3rd game against us figured this out, Montreal a little bit) is to spy the QB with the MLB and just ignore everything else. If the RB gets the ball, it is the job of the rest of the line to stop him, MLB keeps spying. So the way to beat that is more option tosses or the late throw. At this point I think very few expect to see a pass from Streveler (and the majority expect a QB keeper rather than a hand-off) when he enters the game. Will be fascinating to see what LaPo has devised to utilize both of his QB's strengths and weaknesses.

Booch, am I wrong that jamming at the line seems to be largely a non-thing in the CFL? Is it solely because of the unlimited pre-snap motion from the receivers, too hard to jam them when they are on the run like that? Or am I not seeing what I think I am not seeing?

First - extremely rare that both your QB's go down in one game. And how often do we ever see a third stringer get into a game? Second - I am not saying Streveler can't throw. But you are presenting a game plan where he is acting like a runner, not a passer. You don't need a second QB on the field with him to make the opposition guard against him running or passing, he can do that himself at the QB position. And with Adams being able to throw as well, and Demski, Harris, and Streveler being able to be in the back field at one time, we already have a system that offers those multiple looks. Don't need to add a second QB to that mix to confuse the issue. Not at the sake of another roster position, anyway.

With the way Collaros has thrown a few into heavy coverage that have been dropped by the opposition, and looking at Fajardo's slower tosses in practice to guard against re-aggravating his injury, I have a hunch we WILL see a pick-6 this weekend. Just a gut call, praying it is the Blue and Gold running one back.

We just have to guard against his patented blind side roll out. Have seen it enough to know that that is his only consistent escape plan. Come in with control and don't overcommit, and he could spin his way into a big loss on a sack.

Depends on how injured. If he was so injured that in hindsight he should not have played, then yes. But an injured Streveler was better than no Streveler and McGuire in his role. I don't see Harker and think "oh boy, this might burn us". Honestly, I think the possibility of Shaq Evans being out is a bigger deal than Fajardo playing at less than 100%.

I don't see that happening. CFL rosters are too small to mess around with a gimmick system like that. When you have to play starters on your special teams, you aren't going to use up a position playing a 3rd QB in a non-QB role. Why have a QB who does nothing but run when you can have an actual running back? If a QB can throw well enough, then make him a QB. If he can't, you don't want him on the team instead of an Augustine or Oilviera.

That's only because the mini putt rule is a max 8 strokes per hole. Otherwise we'd see double digits, right?

Does the MLB play a role at all in this? I know a big hitter at safety can make receivers leery of running those deep crossing routes for fear of getting plastered. Would the MLB in a similar mentality 5-7 yards off the line make the receivers hear footsteps on those quick slants?

The downfall of that team started when Charlie Roberts walked out for 2 days in week 19 because he wasn't getting enough touches.

That's all right. Innocent mistake. Not at all bitter (and I'm sorry about those things I said about your mother in my P.M. That was uncalled for). You can just keep this for the rest of the day.

This was in fact the 1985 West Final. Not appreciated. Seriously, is this ban-worthy?

Wow, judging by the comments people seem to have forgotten our "guaranteed" victory against "non-formidable" foe Marcus Crandell in the 2001 Grey Cup. Beware the rope-a-dope, people.

Careful now, you can't just go and turn over random cars on a whim, fuelled by nothing but emotion. You want to warm up and train for that kind of thing, otherwise you might pull an oblique muscle or something.