
The Montreal Alouettes look to bounce back at home Saturday night as they host the BC Lions. Montreal absorbed its first loss of the season last week on the road in Hamilton, losing to the Tiger-Cats 17-35. McLeod Bethel-Thompson will be again under center for Montreal in place of Davis Alexander, who remains sidelined by a hamstring injury.
For the Lions, Nathan Rourke will be back starting at quarterback after missing time due to injury, over which we saw Jeremiah Masoli start in the last 2 games. BC is looking to end a 3-game losing streak, with the most recent loss being 18-37 in Saskatchewan.
Game Details:
Date/Location: Saturday, July 5 / Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, Montreal, QC
Kickoff Time: 7:30 PM ET, 4:30 PM PT
Channel: CTV, TSN, RDS (Canada), CBS Sports (USA), CFL+ (Global)
Odds:Â
Spread: Montreal -2.5 (-110), BC +2.5 (-110)
Moneyline: Montreal -146, BC +122
Over/Under: 50.5 (Over -108, Under -112)
If you place bets, please do so responsibly in moderation.
Montreal Alouettes: The Montreal Alouettes will have McLeod Bethel-Thompson starting at quarterback for the 2nd week in a row as Davis Alexander continues to heal from a hamstring injury. Last week saw MBT complete 24 of his 41 passes for 203 yards and 1 touchdown with 2 interceptions. Following the game, he bore much blame from fans for the loss. He could have been better, but the criticism of his way was unfair. Only 1 of his interceptions was truly turnover-worthy, while another was a deflection, and there were 4 drops in the game.
A most concerning aspect of Montreal’s loss was the fact that Montreal completely abandoned the run very early, which has been a pattern under Jason Maas throughout his tenure as head coach of the Alouettes. The first run play saw the running back slip, and the play resulted in a stop. At the end of the game, Montreal had only run 4 plays in which they handed the ball to their running backs, which amounted to 14 yards.
This is a recipe for an imbalanced offense and defeat. It also led to Montreal having by far it’s worst game of the season in pass protection, which has also been a pattern to struggle in pass protection when abandoning the run for Montreal.
BC Lions: The BC Lions have struggled to really get their offense going so far this season and have scored 20 points or less in each of their last 3 games. Last week, a key negative in the loss was struggling to shut down Saskatchewan’s rushing game. However, there was a positive aspect that BC had a very successful game on the ground themselves with James Butler rushing 17 times for 123 yards (7.2 yards per carry) and a touchdown.
Alouettes Keys to the Game
Run the Ball
If they don’t want to lose in a similar fashion to last week, they should incorporate balance into their offense as explained earlier in the article.
Get Pressure on Rourke
Last week was BC’s first game without right tackle Dejon Allen, who was placed on the 6-game injured list, and the team really struggled in pass protection at what was previously his spot on the field. Montreal has to have their defensive ends on that side exploit this and have a very big game.
A Big Game From MBT
MBT showed some flashes of what he can do last week, such as on his touchdown pass to Cole Spieker deep in the end zone, in which he took a hit, or on a well-placed ball deep downfield to Charleston Rambo earlier in the game that was nearly a big play near the right sideline.Â
Lions’ Keys to the Game
An Intelligent Game From Nathan Rourke
The Alouttes have great pass defense, and Rourke will need to make smart reads to give his team success and avoid turnovers against an interception-hungry secondary.
Pound the Rock
If BC can get James Butler cooking it will create a comfortable situation, providing run support for Rourke as he returns from injury and get the defense on their heels.
Stop the Run Early
Montreal’s kryptonite is abandoning the run. If BC can help persuade them to do so, I expect them to win the football game.
5 Alouettes to Watch
#30 RB Travis Theis
Theis rushed 1 time last week for 11 yards. He has proved hard to bring down earlier in the season, and Montreal should give him the ball frequently in this one.
#17 WR Cole Spieker
Spieker caught 6 of his 11 targets last week for 57 yards and a touchdown.
#14 WR Charleston Rambo
Rambo caught 5 of his 10 targets for 49 yards last week.
#82 WR Jalen Wayne
With Austin Mack out, Wayne is appearing in his first CFL game.
#12 LB Najee Murray
Murray is coming off a big game last week in which he had 7 tackles, including, by my count, 4 solo run stops and an assisted run stop.
s="wp-block-heading">#91 DE Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund
Bergland could be poised for a big game this week with a favorable matchup on the line after a quieter game from him last week.
#48 CB Kabion Ento
Last week, Ento had only 1 target come his way, resulting in an 11-yard completion. He continues to be an area of the field that quarterbacks avoid.
5 Lions to Watch
#20 RB James Butler
Butler is third in the league in rushing yards at 262 and has 2 rushing touchdowns.
s="wp-block-heading">#4 Keon Hatcher
Hatcher is third in the league in receiving with 17 catches for 338 yards and 2 touchdowns.
# Justin McInnis
McInnis is second on the team in receiving with 20 catches for 213 yards and a touchdown.
#40 DT Tibo Debaillie
Last week, Debaillie was credited with 2 tackles, including a sack. By my count, he was in on the most run stops for the team last week with 1 solo run stop and was in on 2 shared run stops.
s="wp-block-heading">#0 DE Sione Teuhema
Last week, Teuhema had 2 tackles, including a shared run stop. He had the most pressure for the Lions by my count, creating pressure on 4 plays (1 of which was a secondary source of pressure).
#46 LB Ben Hladik
Last week, Hladik had 4 tackles, including 2 solo run stops.
Injury Report:
Depth Charts:
Score Prediction:
If Montreal runs the ball, then I think Montreal will win; if BC gets Montreal to abandon the run, I think BC will win. Surely Montreal will not abandon the run 2 weeks in a row, so I predict Montreal to win 31-27. I also expect McLeod Bethel-Thompson to have a strong bounce-back game.
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