1) Leonard shines in the young secondary
Tiger-Cats Head Coach Kent Austin gave his secondary some room to grow. He handed the reins over to the young group and Richard Leonard seized them.
In the first game of the season in Toronto, Leonard was the beneficiary of Will Hill’s blocked field goal, bringing it the length of the field to score the first touchdown of his CFL career.
He followed it up with a strong performance in Saskatchewan, but saved plenty of magic for Saturday’s contest at Tim Hortons Field.
The Tiger-Cats forced many turnovers, but Leonard was the most impactful of the young backs. He posted two interceptions at key moments in the first half.
Leonard’s first pick came during the first quarter, and led to the Jeremiah Masoli short-yardage touchdown.
His second interception came shortly later, putting a stopper on the Lions building momentum.
Later in the night, Leonard would add a fumble recovery to his impressive stats.
There is a lot to like about the young defensive back.
2) Offensive Line locks it down
The Ticats offensive line started the season slowly, but on Saturday, the line had a strong showing, buying Collaros more time in the pocket.
The addition of Lamar Holmes, former Atlanta Falcons right tackle, may have had an impact. He looked comfortable with the extra yard off the ball, and provided quality pass protection. Xavier Fulton also had a strong game, locking down the blindside.
Collaros looked more comfortable and was able to generate more offensive yardage, partly due to the increased time before the pocket collapsed. When he was flushed out, it was only after checking through his reads.
Another indicator of the strength of the offensive line’s performance was the improvement in the rushing game. Ross Scheuerman rushed for 58 yards, more than Ticats backs rushed for in the previous two games combined.
3) Jalen Saunders builds on CFL debut
Jalen Saunders had a memorable performance in his first CFL start in Regina. Proving that it wasn’t just a flash in the pan, Saunders returned with second impressive start in Hamilton.
In week three in Regina, Saunders posted 78 yards on six receptions and was Collaros favourite target.
On Saturday in Hamilton, Saunders was even more electric, posting 147 yards on five receptions and a touchdown.
The relatively low number of receptions and the high total yardage demonstrates that Saunders is a big play threat. His longest reception of the night was a 60 yard bomb.
Saunders has effectively leveraged his speed to pose a constant downfield threat.
The Tiger-Cats hope to build on these key areas in their upcoming game against Edmonton.
