Aug
Trestman has the faith
Courtesy Montreal Gazette:
It was a different time and place, the conditions drastically altered. But it was hard on this night not to allow the mind to drift, drawing some sort of parallel.
In September 2005, an Alouettes team coached by Don Matthews scored late in the fourth quarter at B.C. Place Stadium – a site where Montreal rarely wins – to pull within a point, 27-26. Rather than kick a convert and extend the game to overtime, Matthews gambled, going for a two-point convert and the win. The play failed. Matthews was severely criticized and second-guessed.
But, as usual, he got the last laugh. The play turned the Als’ season around. Montreal, 5-6 at the time, won its next four along with five of the final seven, good for a 10-8 record. The Als defeated Saskatchewan in the first-round of the playoffs before going into Toronto and upsetting the Argonauts in the East Division final.
Saturday night at Winnipeg, the opponent not nearly as formidable as those Lions, Marc Trestman called his own gamble. It was only the first quarter, hardly the game’s pivotal play. Faced with third and four at the Blue Bombers’ 25 – the score tied 3-3 – the Als went for it, rather than kicking a virtually automatic field goal.
Anthony Calvillo passed 11 yards to Kerry Watkins, connecting with S.J. Green two plays later for a touchdown. The Als never trailed again en route to an easy 39-12 victory.
Was the play pivotal? Not likely. The Little Sisters of the Poor likely could have defeated the Bombers. But it spoke volumes about the confidence Trestman has in Calvillo and the offence, and the message wasn’t lost in translation.
“We’ve gone for it a couple of times and (Trestman) talks about being aggressive,” Calvillo said. “The defence … the way it’s playing … makes those decisions easier. That’s what you want to see. It shows the confidence he has in the team.”
If Trestman was sending a message, he wasn’t sharing the information with the media. But nothing this head coach, meticulous and detailed, accomplishes isn’t done with idle thought. Everything has been calculated and dissected.
“I believe in our group, their ability to run routes and protect the quarterback,” he said. “I felt good about the
defence. It was a good time to extend ourselves. There are calculated and good risks. I have a lot of confidence they can execute.”
Calvillo, who had gone 10 quarters without a touchdown pass, threw for four against the Bombers – three on successive plays, something that’s virtually unheard of – giving him 11 in seven games. But for all the Als’ success this season in forging to a 6-1 record, their offence remains a work in progress with plenty of room for improvement.
Calvillo completed 23 passes for 261 yards – an average of 11.3 yards per reception. Good but not great. And he was intercepted twice.
Remove a 71-yard pass-and-run Watkins touchdown – the Bombers were guilty of shoddy tackling and the play never should have gained that amount of real estate – and the average becomes 8.6 yards. That’s why Calvillo has been completing an unheard of 77 per cent of this passes this season; the Als generally continue running short routes that always will have a high success rate.
Montreal had a short field against Winnipeg, thanks to four Bombers’ turnovers that resulted in 24 points. But that’s not always going to be the case. Not every Canadian Football League team stinks. And in the fourth quarter, the Als had four cracks at the end zone from the Winnipeg five-yard line, yet had to settle for a field goal.
Perhaps we’re nitpicking here; grasping at straws. But this offensive inconsistency has been a recurring theme, one that will eventually catch up to Montreal.
“This year, it’s more difficult to score,” said Calvillo, talking about a general theme throughout the league. “We appreciate every touchdown pass and win. It’s tough.”
Calvillo’s nowhere near the pace he established last season – his first year under Trestman – when he had 43 touchdowns in 17 games. And it’s not like the passing game’s being sacrificed in favour of the run. Avon Cobourne had a modest 11 carries against the Bombers, gaining 49 yards. To put that in perspective, backup QB Adrian McPherson alone gained 34 yards on one rushing play.
The wound hasn’t been exposed more because the Als continue being carried by their defence, which now hasn’t allowed a touchdown in two full games and limited the Bombers to 232 yards’ total
offence and only 12 first downs. Michael Bishop appeared lost, completing only 13 of 35 passes for 155 yards. He was intercepted twice, but could have been pilfered many more times.
“The defence played at a higher level than their offence,” linebacker Diamond Ferri said. “We could have had six interceptions. The way we were coming off the ball was like a horse at the track coming out of the gate.”
“The guys pursued the ball and played basic,” said safety Matthieu Proulx, who returned from a pinched nerve in his neck to record an interception and fumble recovery. “Man in the secondary and four-man pressure. We were disciplined in our lanes.
“Bishop definitely didn’t have his best game.”
