Eastern Final Preview

The CFL regular season and Semi Finals are now over and we are down to the final four. Interestingly enough, there is only one team remaining from the eastern division.

The Montreal Alouettes have had a very strong season and will take on the the cross over team from the west the Edmonton Eskimos. Although the Als wouldn’t mention it to the media, several players admitted that they did prefer playing the Winnipeg Blue Bombers instead of their arch rivals from the west. The main reason they prefered the Bombers was that  Quarterback Kevin Glenn scares them a lot less then Ricky Ray does but they feel just as confident against the Bombers then they do against the Eskies.

The Alouettes come into the game fresh and fairly healthy but I hope they don’t take the eskimos lightly because they have proved over the years that winning at the olympic stadium is no easy chore. Although they have only lost 1 eastern final since the year 2000, they have never had to face a quarterback like Ricky Ray. Les Oiseaux will need to stay focused and disciplined as in any other game, but the key this week will be to get pressure on Ricky Ray without having to always blitz. That means that Anwar Stewart, Keron Williams, Devone Claybrooks, Eric Wilson, John Bowman and Jermaine MaCleveen will have to do a number on CFL all star Patrick Kabongo and the rest of the Edmonton Eskimos offensive line. The problem in the passed against Edmonton has always been pressuring the quarterback. If they send the Blitz on Ricky Ray, he finds the open target. If they don’t blitz and only send four guys at him, he has all day to throw. They will have to find a way to get good pressure on Ray in order to win this game. If they give Ricky a few good shots early on, look for the Alouettes to win big. If they are unable to get to the quarterback then Ray will have a big game and this game will quickly become a shootout.

My prediction is that the Alouettes will find a way to get to Ricky Ray a few times but the Quarterback will have his success in the game.

Alouettes 38 Eskimos 27

            The Alouettes have one injury going into the East Final, it appears like Luke Fritz will miss the game and will be replaced by Dave Mudge. Also, it appears as though Matthieu Proulx will start at safety over fellow canadian Etienne Boulay.

Joey

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Last post (s) by Joey Alfieri

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