12 Audibles: The Lions' surprising roar

Welcome to another edition of 12 Audibles, our weekly analysis of stories around the CFL. This time around, we start off with the season's biggest surprise so far...

1. The B.C. Lions. Heading into this season, the Lions looked like the weakest team in the CFL's West Division, and I predicted them to go 6-12. So far, they're 3-1 and on top of the division. How is that possible? Well, the biggest part of the story so far has been the defence. Through four weeks, they're allowing the least points per game (18.3), the least touchdowns (5), and the second-least yards per game (316.0). They're giving away the lowest plays from scrimmage per game (52.0), the lowest completion percentage (64.5 per cent) and the least first downs per game (18.0), which says a lot about how quickly they're getting off the field, and they're also conceding the third-least yards per play (6.1), the third-lowest rushing yards per game (60.5), and the second-lowest passing yards per game (278.8). Moreover, they're recording the third-most sacks (3.5 per game).

Interestingly enough, the Lions are more in the middle on yards given up per rush (4.7, tied for fifth) and per pass (8.1, fourth), and they've only forced 1.7 turnovers per game (sixth), so their defence isn't perfect. Itt's been very effective at buckling down and forcing punts or field goals, though; B.C. has given up just a 37.9 per cent second down conversion rate, best in the league. Individually, linebackers Adam Bighill (the reigning CFL defensive player of the year, who's tied for the league lead with 29 tackles to date and also has a sack) and Solomon Elimimian (the CFL defensive player of the year in 2014, who has 21 tackles and two sacks so far this year) are particular standouts, but the secondary's also played well, with additions like Brandon Stewart shining. The defence has been one of the strongest in the league to date, and that could bode well for the Lions' continued performance, especially given this week's improvement from...

2. Jon Jennings. One of the biggest issues with B.C. heading into this year was expected to be quarterback play, with the 23-year-old Jennings showing some potential when he got an opportunity late last year, but questions about his consistency and his ability to perform week to week remaining. Through three weeks, that was a pretty fair assessment; Jennings completed just 24 of 42 passes for 248 yards in the Lions' opening 20-18 win over Calgary, just 16 of 27 for 228 yards in Week Two's 28-3 win over Hamilton, and just 11 of 18 for 132 yards with an interception before he was pulled for Travis Lulay in Week Three's 25-14 loss to Toronto.

This week, though, Jennings looked like the star the Lions believe he can be. He completed 25 of 40 passes for 429 yards and three touchdowns in B.C.'s 40-27 win over Saskatchewan Saturday, and earned a nod as the CFL's third-top performer of the week. He did get off to a slow start agianst the Roughriders, and the Lions were trailing 23-10 at the half, but he more than made up for it later in the game. If he can keep this level of play up, that will justify the faith placed in him by...

3. Wally Buono. Buono's return to the sidelines in B.C. has gone very well so far, and he deserves major credit for the Lions' success to date in both his role as general manager and head coach. The greatest advantage of having one person fill those two roles is that there's no disconnect in why players are acquired and how they're used, something that has been somewhat of an issue for B.C. the last few years. Buono the GM has found guys who work well for Buono the coach, and Buono the coach has demonstrated an ability to inspire his players and an ability to put together a solid game plan.The CFL's all-time winningest coach also knows this league inside and out, so there's no disconnect or challenge adapting as there was with Jeff Tedford last year.

A hot start doesn't mean B.C. will dominate all year, of course, and they definitely need more consistent passing production. While their rushing offence is leading the league with 107.3 yards per game, their passing offence is fifth with 298.3 yards per game. We'll see if the Lions can keep this up, but it is notable that their ground game is doing so well without...

4. Andrew Harris. Harris has been one of the best running backs in the league in recent years, especially given his all-around ability as a blocker and pass-catcher and his Canadian nationality, so it seemed logical the Lions would miss him quite a lot when he signed with Winnipeg in free agency, especially as the guys replacing him (primarily Anthony Allen and Jeremiah Johnson) were less-than-dominant in 2015. Both have been good to date, though, collecting 168 and 120 rushing yards respectively in two games each.

Meanwhile, Harris is third in the league with 178 rushing yards, but his average of 4.1 yards per carry is definitely subpar (by contrast, Allen has 6.2 and Johnson has 5.7), and he really struggled in the Bombers' 20-16 loss to Edmonton this week (nine carries, 22 yards). He does have 256 receiving yards on 26 catches, so he's been helpful there, and he's had some good games on the ground, but Winnipeg could certainly use some more consistency from him. Of course, he's not the only issue with their offence, and the spotlight is particularly focused on...

5. Drew Willy. Willy had perhaps the weakest resume of any CFL starter (apart from Jennings, who only came to the league last season) heading into this season; he had two seasons as a backup in Saskatchewan and two seasons as a starter with the Bombers, but 2014 was only moderately impressive (3,769 yards, a 63.8 per cent completion rate, and 16 interceptions against 14 touchdowns), and while he was good in the games he played in 2015 (1,434 yards, 68.6 per cent completion rate, eight touchdowns to three interceptions), he only played eight games thanks to injury. There were plenty of viable excuses for Willy, though, from 2014's weak offensive line to 2015's lack of proven targets and issues with offensive schemes. All of those were supposed to be fixed this year, with Winnipeg having a proven offensive line, bringing in plenty of weapons (including Harris, Weston Dressler and Ryan Smith) in free agency, and paying Paul LaPolice a lot of money to leave TSN and run their offence. So far, though, it hasn't led to a ton of offensive success.

Willy has done some things well by the numbers; he's thrown for 1,239 yards, second in the league, and completed 72.2 per cent of his passes with five touchdowns and three interceptions, but he hasn't been able to consistently move the chains, and a lot of those stats have come from garbage-time play where the opposing defence has let their foot off the gas. The offensive struggles aren't all Willy's fault, but they're a big reason the Bombers are 1-3. However, an even larger issue may be...

6. The Winnipeg defence. The Bombers are incredibly bad from a yardage allowed perspective, conceding 451.8 yards per game, by far the worst in the league. Second-worst Edmonton is giving up just 415.3, which looks far better next to Winnipeg's totals. The Bombers are second-worst in yards per play (7.2 yards allowed per), allow a CFL-worst 5.5 yards per rush, and give up 9.0 yards per pass (fourth-worst). They're slightly better from a points perspective (25.5 allowed per game, fourth-worst), and that's partly thanks to the 3.0 turnovers they force per game (tied for second-best). Some of the defensive issues are also about the offence regularly struggling early and leaving them out on the field. Still, they'll have to become much better on defence if they're going to win regularly. Turnarounds are possible, though, as we saw this week with...

7. The Edmonton defence. The Eskimos' defence struggled through their first two games, giving up 45 and 36 points respectively (albeit both in overtime), and that sparked plenty of commentary about what went wrong with a unit that was so good last year. Many blamed the departure of head coach and defensive coordinator Chris Jones for the HC/GM role in Saskatchewan and suggested that new DC Mike Benevides wasn't as skilled, but a better explanation came from all the player departures and injuries in the secondary and the linebacking corps, leading to the team relying on young guys who needed time to figure it out. They did so this week, turning in a dominant performance in a 20-16 win over Winnipeg. Of course, they also got some help from...

8. Mike Reilly. Reilly has often been an underrated player in Edmonton, with Jones and the defence getting so much credit for their sucess the past few years, but he's turned into one of the best quarterbacks in this league and was deservedly named the Grey Cup's Most Outstanding Player last November. His skills were really on display in that win against the Bombers, as he threw for 465 yards and two touchdowns (albeit with an interception) and a 71.1 per cent completion rate. Yes, you'd like to see that produce more than 20 points, but that was enough on the day. Reilly has been very good all season, orchestrating an Edmonton offence that's second in the league with 475.3 yards per game and 32.0 points per game, and he's third in the CFL with 1,226 passing yards, behind Willy (who's played one more game) and...

9. Trevor Harris. Harris' dominance in relief of the injured Henry Burris has been one of the biggest CFL storylines to date this season, and it continued this week when his Ottawa Redblacks knocked off Toronto 30-20. He set a new single-game completion percentage record (minimum 30 attempts) with a 90.3 per cent mark, completing 28 of 31 passes for 392 yards against his former team and also running in a touchdown. Harris leads the league with 1,475 passing yards and also boasts a gaudy 82.8 per cent completion mark and nine touchdowns to one interception. It looks like he'll give the Redblacks a very difficult choice to make when Burris returns. There are backups who aren't doing so well, though, including...

10. Rakeem Cato and Jeremiah Masoli. Cato filled in for Kevin Glenn (eye infection) with the Montreal Alouettes this week, and took on Hamilton and Masoli, who's filling in for Zach Collaros as he recovers from ACL surgery. Neither was very impressive; Cato completed 18 of 27 attempts for 203 yards before being pulled for Vernon Adams (who wasn't better, completing four of nine for 35), while Masoli completed 19 of 27 for 208 with an interception. The Ticats won 31-7 thanks to special teams and defence, so there will be less of a spotlight on Masoli than Cato, but his play was arguably even worse, and he doesn't have the excuse Cato does; the Alouettes were missing two of their top receivers and their top running back. Hamilton's the better team right now, and there's deservedly much more optimism for them (it's hard to see this Montreal team doing much even with Glenn, while the Ticats could be very good once Collaros returns), but neither produced good quarterback play this past week. Another team that has some reason to worry about QB play at the moment is...

11. The Saskatchewan Roughriders. The injury to Darian Durant partway through that loss to B.C. Saturday really hurt Saskatchewan, as Mitchell Gale's performance in relief (17/30 for 247 yards and a touchdown) was far from inspiring. Gale could be okay, but it's notable that he and the Riders' other backups all joined the team within the last two months, and none of them has the pedigree or the experience of Durant. Durant has a severely-sprained left ankle that could hold him out again this week, and that could be very bad news for the winless Riders, especially with them taking on the high-flying Redblacks. Yes, Durant hasn't been dominant in the two and a bit games he's played, but his numbers (731 yards, 67.7 per cent, six touchdowns and no interceptions) certainly aren't bad, and he's a veteran quarterback who gives his team an excellent chance to win. Two other guys who fit that bill are...

12. Ricky Ray and Bo Levi Mitchell. These guys have been two of the CFL's best quarterbacks in past years, so it's a little surpising to see them sixth and seventh on the yardage chart respectively with 1,000 and 910 yards. (Granted, Mitchell has only played three games; Ray has played four). Both have been pretty good despite the lack of dominant yardage totals, though, posting six and five touchdowns respectively with one interception each and posting completion percentages of 70.0 and 64.5 per cent respectively. Yes, their teams could stand to see them throw for more yards, but the quarterbacking situations in Toronto and Calgary really don't look too bad. Both could light up the league this week, too, going up against Montreal and Winnipeg respectively.

Tune in next Tuesday for more 12 Audibles, and stay tuned to 55-Yard Line all week for all sorts of CFL coverage!