Its been two years since the BC Lions hoisted the Grey Cup a

Preminiem Geregistreerd op: 22 Mei 2019 Berichten: 285

Its been two years since the BC Lions hoisted the Grey Cup and Wally Buono handed the head coaching reigns to Mike Benevides. Cheap MLB Jerseys Authentic . Since then the Lions have entered each season with one of the most talented rosters in the league before falling short of expectations. Two years is a short time to be sure, and its not like the Lions cant supply excuses for their shortcomings since 2011 – Travis Lulays shoulder injury last year – but in the ultra-competitive and impatient world of professional sports, the pressure is on. Bad teams feel pressure to be better; good teams feel pressure to be the best. And dont forget the added burden of a potential home field for the Grey Cup and the three-year streak of Grey Cup champs winning at home. The Lions were smart in acquiring veteran leader and “quarterback 1A” Kevin Glenn from the Ottawa Redblacks during the CFL Draft for the fifth-overall draft pick. The price was a little steep for a player few figured would actually end up with Ottawa for the upcoming season, but with Lulays shoulder still a talking point, Glenn provides quality insurance at the most important position. BC has opted for younger projects at QB behind Lulay the past couple years but the Glenn acquisition makes sense for a team that cant get derailed for even a short period of time, should Lulay miss games – for whatever ailment – this season. Especially with Thomas DeMarcos selection in the Expansion Draft, Glenn gives the Lions peace of mind at one of their most worrisome areas for 2014. Another solid move, adding to a position of strength, was the free agent signing of Jamall Johnson. Johnson returns to BC after five seasons in Hamilton, his last a down year after being asked to play in the middle, and joins a frightening linebacking corps that already includes Solomon Elimimian and Adam Bighill. BCs task in once again entering the year as one of the most talented teams on paper is replacing receiver Nick Moore and a number of large bodies on the offensive line. Not to diminish Moores impact, but the Lions receiving corps still has enough burners, and more importantly, added Canadian content, that Lulay – or Glenn – shouldnt feel frustrated for lack of quality targets. The line however, may have to rely on more youngsters than would be considered ideal. The good news is their young contingent on the offensive line is talented and the unit is still anchored by perhaps the best left tackle in the game in Jovan Olafioye. While theyve fallen short of the Grey Cup the past two years, the Lions still qualified for the postseason those years, and were just a win away from a return trip in 2012; so it feels strange to suggest the team enters the season under pressure to do more. That reality is part testament to how well the Lions organization is run, but as is the case with all good teams, being good only counts for so long; greatness sticks. Like the Argos and Riders before them, look for the Lions to go all out in 2014. Notes Parting Ways After a long tenure with the Lions as an offensive coach and coordinator, Jacques Chapdelaine left the Lions early in the off-season, the coach and team mutually agreeing to part ways. It was certainly a big shakeup on Benevides staff, getting rid of the offensive mainstay of 10 of the past 11 years. Up and coming offensive mind Khari Jones replaced Chapdelaine as well as taking on the QB coach role. Expansion Draft The Lions search for a backup quarterback began anew after the Ottawa Redblacks selected Thomas DeMarco, who gained solid experience filling in for an injured Travis Lulay In 2013, in the first round of the Expansion Draft. BC also lost guard Matt Albright and DT Andrew Marshall to the Redblacks. Free Agency With the least amount of players to hit the free market, the Lions were one of the least active teams during the free agency period. They did lose promising receiver Nick Moore to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers however, but made a splash on the other side of the ball when they brought back linebacker Jamall Johnson, who last played for the Lions in 2008, from Hamilton. Retirements The Lions offensive line took a number of big hits this off-season with the retirements of three big pieces. Veteran centre Angus Reid was the first to announce his retirement. The 13-year veteran was a three-time West Division All-Star and one-time league All-Star. Not long after tackle Ben Archibald retired. The two-time All-Canadian spent the past three seasons in BC. Then late in the off-season Patrick Kabongo joined the two in retirement. The nine-year vet was a one-time West Division All-Star. CFL Draft The Lions traded out of the first round in order to solidify their backup quarterback situation by grabbing Kevin Glenn from the Redblacks for the fifth-overall pick. The team had two picks in the second round, grabbing OL Tchissakid Player from Northwestern State and FB Pascal Lochard from Laval. With their final five selections the Lions took LB Casey Chin from Simon Fraser in the third round, DL David Menard from Montreal in the fourth round, WR Alexander Fox from Bishops in the fifth round, DL Dylan Roper from Simon Fraser in the sixth round, and RB Guillaume Bourassa from Laval in the seventh round. Khalif Mitchell Returns One of the most enigmatic players in the league the past few seasons made his return to BC late in the off-season after a year with the Toronto Argonauts. Khalif Mitchells talent and impact at his DT position are unquestionable, but his return to the Lions was surprising after Mitchell seemingly burned a lot of bridges on his way out of BC a year ago. Lions GM Wally Buono has said all the right things about Mitchells return so far, noting the player has matured over the years. Cheap Reggie Jackson Jersey . At this point, even he isnt sure when it is going to stop. The right-hander dropped his fourth straight decision in Los Angeles 6-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night, leaving his status very much in doubt as the Dodgers prepare for the stretch drive. Cheap Angels Jerseys Authentic . Both had to wait out a rain interruption lasting nearly five hours before taking comprehensive third-round victories to join Carling Bassett-Seguso (1983, 1986), Patricia Hy-Boulais (1996-97) and Daniel Nestor (1999) as Canadians who made it into the second week of a major. http://www.cheapangelsjerseys.com/ . The Wild, playing their first game since leading scorer Mikko Koivu broke his ankle Saturday at Washington, have won three straight for the first time since Nov. 1-5. Koivu underwent surgery on Monday and is expected to miss at least four weeks.MASON, Ohio -- Milos Raonic advanced to the third round of the Western & Southern Open on the same day fellow Canadians Vasek Pospisil and Eugenie Bouchard were knocked out. The 12th-seeded Raonic beat Janko Tipsarevic in straight sets, 6-4, 7-6 (4) on Wednesday. Its his third win in as many tries over Tipsarevic, and comes a day after he struggled somewhat in a three-set first-round match over American Jack Sock. "I played better than yesterday," Raonic said. "I was better from the baseline and created more opportunities for myself. It was a pretty clean match." Raonic will face American John Isner next. Isner won their only other match in the Toronto quarter-finals a year ago. "Isner will be tough, it will come down to a few points," Raonic said. "I have to serve well and keep the pressure on him in that sense. If I create opportunities I have to make the most of them and play as disciplined as possible." Raonic, a native of Thornhill, Ont., became the first Canadian man to be ranked in the top 10 in the world after reaching the final of the Rogers Cup in Montreal. He lost to Rafael Nadal after beating Pospisil in the semifinals. Pospisil, who rose to 40th in the world rankings after reaching the Rogers Cup semifinals, was upset Wednesday 7-5, 1-6, 7-6 (6) by Belgian qualifier David Goffin, whos ranked 80th. Pospisils prediction that he would have a tough time with Goffin proved to be correct, despite 13 aces and the Belgians nine double faults. He failed to convert on four match points. "It was a tough match with a lot of ups and downs," said Pospisil. "I didnt start great but I played better in the second set. Serving for the match and then in the tiebreak I played some shots too passively." Pospisil fell on a late break in the opening set but roared back to sweep the second. The third set was tight, with Pospisil grabbing a 6-5 lead on a break and moving into position to serve out victory. But the outcome was never secure as Goffin saved a match point in the next game and then forced Pospisil to salvage a break point before finally dropping to 6-6 on a forehand that went long. In the tiebreaker, Pospisil had three more match points and failed to convert on all of them. Goffin seized his opportunity with his first match point, converting it to send Pospisil out after nearly 2 1/2 hours. "He hit his best shot of the match on the last match point, too good," Pospisil said. "There are a lot of things I would have changed. But now I need to get some rest before the U.S. Open." Pospisil said he was feeling "a bit burnt oout" and needs to sharpen some things in practice. Cheap MLB Jerseys. "Im a little emotionally drained," he said. "Maybe its good to rest before the Open." Bouchard will get some rest after putting a scare into world No. 1 Serena Williams. Bouchard won the first set before Williams asserted herself in a 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory. Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli was knocked out of the tournament with her loss to Simona Halep in three excruciating sets that left Bartolis Achilles, shoulder, hips and back aching. After the match, the 28-year-old announced her retirement from tennis. "Its been a tough decision to take," said Bartoli, who won her first Grand Slam title less than two months ago. "I dont take this easily. I mean, Ive been a tennis player for a long time and I had a chance to make my biggest dream a reality. I felt I really, really pushed through the ultimate limits to make it happen. "But now I just cant do it anymore." Back on the mens side, the fourth-seeded Nadal defeated German qualifier Benjamin Becker 6-2, 6-2. Nadal has now won 11 straight on hard courts. "I should be very happy with the way that I played since the beginning," Nadal said. "Just for a few games, the serve was down a little bit. For the rest, I think I played a great match." Wimbledon champion Andy Murray had an easy time in his opening match at the tournament, which he has won twice. The second-seeded Murray needed only 69 minutes to beat Mikhail Youzhny 6-2, 6-3. Murray, who is also the defending U.S. Open champion, was coming off a third-round loss last week in Montreal, his first action since becoming the first British male to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936. Hes using the tournament in Cincinnati to get ready to defend his Open title. "He made more mistakes than I expected," Murray said. "I just want to play as many matches as I can. Its important to get a few matches in before New York. I didnt make too many errors and hit a high percentage of first serves." His volleys were erratic, something hell work on the rest of the week. "I just missed a couple," he said. "Hopefully, Ill get that going as the week goes on." Murray will play 36th-ranked Julien Benneteau in the third round. Top seed Novak Djokovic defeated Juan Monaco of Argentina, 7-5, 6-2 while Juan Martin del Potro took down Nikolay Davydenko 7-5, 7-5. Eleventh-seeded German Tommy Haas also advanced, beating No. 46 Spaniard Marcel Granollers, 6-4, 6-1. He earned a matchup with fifth-seeded and five-time tournament champion Roger Federer. 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