There’s still half a season to be played, but the Alouettes clearly are the CFL’s best team. Of course, in this crazy league that doesn’t necessarily mean Montreal will be the last team standing come November.
Not only does their league-leading 8-1 record state the obvious, this club has proved no obstacle is too onerous to overcome.
Cody Fajardo suffered a hamstring injury on July 25 and the team has continued winning with Davis Alexander behind centre, going 3-0. On Saturday night, it was Canadian Tyson Philpot, the Alouettes’ leading receiver, who suffered a lower-body injury on the team’s second offensive series.
Many teams might have crumbled following such a devastating loss, but not Montreal. Instead, it was import rookie receiver Charleston Rambo who elevated his game. He caught six passes for 124 yards along with two touchdowns in the Alouettes’ 33-23 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats before 22,137 Molson Stadium spectators.
It marked the second time in eight days Montreal defeated the woebegone Ticats, who are last in the East Division at 2-7 after losing their opening five games.
While the extent of Philpot’s injury wasn’t immediately known, he left the dressing room with his left foot in a walking boot for precautionary reasons. More will be known following an MRI in the coming days, but non-import receivers Nate Behar and Shedler Fervius appear ready to step in. The Alouettes seemingly never miss a beat.
“I would never concede one loss, that’s not in our mentality,” head coach Jason Maas said. “Our mentality is to work and we feel like, with the group we have, if we’re able to put the work in, the expectation is we win. We have a great connection, a great locker room and our guys compete every single day.”
Despite producing 33 points on the Ticats for the second consecutive contest, this game belonged to Montreal’s defence — a unit that has now been without veteran rush-end Shawn Lemon for five games. Lemon has been suspended by the CFL for gambling on CFL games in 2021 while with Calgary, including one in which he played. Lemon is awaiting an independent arbitrator’s decision following his recent hearing.
And don’t be fooled by Saturday’s final score; Hamilton couldn’t get into the end zone until the fourth quarter, when the visitors scored two touchdowns, its final one coming with 80 seconds remaining.
“We just want to go out there and establish that we’re the best defence in the league,” middle-linebacker Darnell Sankey said. “We play with our head high and know what we’re capable of. As the leader on the defence, I want to go out there and make it known to my team I’m all-in. Every single play I’m all-in.”
Montreal’s defence set the tone from the opening play when Sankey forced fullback James Tuck to fumble and the ball was recovered by Avery Ellis at the Ticats’ 34. Tuck, you’ll remember, fumbled last week as well, only to have the play unbelievably overruled by the Command Centre. At least lightning didn’t strike a second consecutive time.
On Hamilton’s next possession, Sankey intercepted Bo Levi Mitchell’s pass over the middle, which put an end to the veteran quarterback’s night. Mitchell was replaced by second-year pro Taylor Powell.
While Alexander completed 17 of 24 passes for 247 yards and two touchdowns, it was an inconsistent offensive performance by the Alouettes, who had trouble completing drives.
Alexander connected with Rambo for a 51-yard touchdown at the end of the first quarter to give Montreal a 15-0 lead. But the Als struggled at times in the second period and generated little offence following the intermission, and were held to nine plays and one first down in the third quarter.
Mind you, the final play of that period was a 48-yard screen pass-and-run to Fervius, who broke tackles all the way to the Ticats’ eight-yard line. Two plays later, newly signed short-yardage quarterback Dominique Davis scored on a one-yard run, giving Montreal a 26-9 cushion.
While Hamilton finally scored a touchdown on its next series, Alexander then directed an eight-play, 80-yard drive, capped by Rambo’s 10-yard score. He made a nice reception against middle-linebacker DQ Thomas following a pretty 11-yard reception while straddling the sideline earlier.
Rambo won a job out of training camp making Tevin Jones, a free-agent addition last winter, expendable. Rambo started the season slowly, seemingly an afterthought in Montreal’s offence, but has been more productive of late. This was his first 100-yard effort after catching four passes for 86 yards at Hamilton. Rambo now has 31 receptions for 410 yards, along with four touchdowns.
“We saw it in training camp, we saw it in pre-season. He makes play after play after play,” Alexander said of Rambo. “If you give him the chance you know he’s going to come down with the ball. That’s what he’s proven.
“We had some really good field position in that first quarter,” Alexander added. “For whatever reason we couldn’t find a way to get six. I’d say that’s a good sign. We’ve got a lot left to show off. You’re not going to be perfect and we left some points out there. It doesn’t matter about the (statistics). As long as we come out with the win, I’m the happiest person on Earth.”
The Alouettes begin the second half of their schedule Friday night at Saskatchewan. While Fajardo is a former Roughrider and undoubtedly would love to play, he remains doubtful for the encounter. And why rush him back? All Alexander does is win.