Beverette headlines 3 matchups to watch on NFL Friday Night Football
MONTREAL — The Montreal Alouettes and BC Lions opened the season as two of the favourites to achieve the 111th Gray Cup. After 13 weeks, their seasons have taken completely different instructions.
The Alouettes have confirmed their favouritism by successful 10 of their first 11 video games behind a powerful defence and an environment friendly offence able to withstanding accidents to their star gamers. Even with out Cody Fajardo and Tyson Philpot, the Als have continued to win sport after sport by showcasing a depth at key positions that only a few groups can match.
BC in the meantime began the season on fireplace, successful 5 of their first six, however have been unable to beat accidents to gamers like Vernon Adams Jr. and Ben Hladik earlier than occurring a five-game dropping streak. The sequence lastly got here to an finish final weekend with a win over the Ottawa REDBLACKS on Landing Pacific.
Quarterback Nathan Rourke registered his finest sport since returning to the CFL, opening up an intriguing matchup in opposition to the Alouettes on Friday.
CFL.ca brings you three matchups to observe on Friday Night time Soccer.
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That is a simple one. The Lions pivot is all the time an intriguing piece in any sport he takes half in, whereas Beverette is as versatile a defender as you’ll discover within the league.
The 2 may meet in each the operating and passing sport, as No. 26 patrols the center of the sector seeking to clog passing lanes whereas additionally having the ability to fill in dashing lanes to cease Rourke from taking off.
The quarterback presently boasts the perfect dashing grade (80.3) amongst beginning pivots and is coming off a sport that noticed him use his mobility to create all types of issues for the Ottawa REDBLACKS. Beverette in the meantime boasts a 76.1 run defence grade as top-of-the-line hybrid linebackers within the CFL.
How in regards to the high dual-threat operating again of 2024 going in opposition to a superb protection linebacker?
Fletcher merely leads all gamers (together with receivers) in receiving grade (90.0) as the perfect pass-catching operating again of the season. The tailback has registered a whopping 21 receiving first downs, pressured 22 missed tackles on receptions whereas catching 62 passes for 461 yards (419 after the catch) and two majors.
Lee in the meantime has helped the Lions preserve opponents underneath 100 dashing yards per sport (94.4) whereas additionally contributing in protection with a 72.0 protection grade in line with PFF. He’ll have one in every of his hardest assignments on the season with Fletcher popping out of the backfield at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium.
Peters continues to be top-of-the-line defensive backs within the CFL and could possibly be added to any intriguing matchup on this sport. That’s as a result of he’s one of many solely defenders within the CFL to grade above 80 in each protection (80.8) and run defence (86.1).
We’ll have a look right here on the matchup between him and quarterback Cody Fajardo although, who has taken one more step ahead in his second yr with the Alouettes and has positioned his crew for a second post-season run.
Fajardo returned to the lineup in Week 12 after spending weeks rehabbing an harm and instantly threw for 336 yards and two touchdowns. The pivot additionally registered three big-time throws to just one turnover-worthy play within the Week 12 win over the Elks, shaking off any rust to maintain the Alouettes offence firing on all cylinders.
The Lions in the meantime have struggled considerably to comprise the go, permitting 293.3 passing yards per sport in 2024. The unit is coming off one in every of its finest video games of the season although, retaining Dru Brown and the REDBLACKS in test to the tune of 206 yards and solely 12 factors. If BC desires to deal with Montreal its second lack of the season, Peters and the remainder of the defence goes to need to cease Fajardo from throwing it all around the yard.