I thought that when Kevin Glenn emerged from the locker room like Willis Reed in Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals, that he was going to lead the team to victory.
Unfortunately, it was not to be.
The Argos did not win this game, the Cats lost it. Hamilton beat themselves, period. Five Hamilton turnovers led to 13 of Toronto's 16 points, way too many dropped passes ended promising drives, and Sandro DeAngelis's missed 17-yard field goal proved to be very costly.
Now the long off-season begins earlier than many of us thought it would. This was a team that began the season with Grey Cup aspirations, but whose season ends, once again, in disappointing fashion at Ivor Wynne. However, I will take this every year over 3-15 and 4-14 seasons, and being out of the playoff race by Labour Day.
Changes will be made, but what will those changes be? It's possible that Otis Floyd played his last game today. He seemed to hint at this on the Fifth Quarter on AM900 CHML. Arland Bruce hinted at retirement following last season; might he be about to call it quits too? Marwan Hage did the same; will he pack it in? Will DeAngelis be brought back? Nick Setta was released because of inconsistent play; DeAngelis epitomized inconsistent play in 2010. Will there be changes to the coaching staff? Will potential free agents (like the suddenly emerging Chris Bauman) be headed elsewhere?
A team that finishes back-to-back years with playoff appearances usually doesn't see too many changes, but this is a veteran team, and the door can only stay open for so long. My gut tells me most of these guys will come back for one more chance to hoist the Grey Cup.
The 2010 CFL season is over for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. It was a fun ride. Sometimes frustrating, sometimes exhilarating, but always worth it. Hopefully 2011 will end better than 2010 did.
Done in by the same kinds of mistakes that have plagued the team all year. Some blame coaching (and we do need to seriously re-think the approach to the running game), but fumbles and dropped passes have stifled the offense. Another year of key missed FGs was a killer too.
ReplyDeleteIf you can't make the plays, the team needs to find someone who will.
I think Bauman has played his way into a new Ticat contract. He's shown that, when used in the right position, he can be a difference maker. It's McDaniel who should be thinking about where he might be next season.