12 Audibles: Where a practice-moving gas leak feels like a Montreal metaphor

Welcome to another edition of 12 Audibles, our weekly look at storylines from around the CFL. This time, we start in Montreal, where the Alouettes' practice Monday was rudely interrupted by...

1. A gas leak. Having to move their practice thanks to a natural-gas leak is just one of the many weird things we've seen with the Alouettes this season. This team has lost top receivers S.J. Green (for the year) and Kenny Stafford (for six games) and top running back Tyrell Sutton (for six games), they have Duron Carter still facing a suspension over Bumpgate (if his appeal is ever heard), they've had quarterback Kevin Glenn miss a game with an inflamed eye, they've had Boris Bede go from hitting 90 per cent of his field goals last year to 43.8 per cent this year (prompting criticism of him from Carter), and they've fined Nik Lewis for (accurate) comments critical of the team. They're 2-4 on the season and were beaten 38-18 by B.C. last Thursday, and there doesn't seem to be a lot of hope on the horizon. The gas leak feels apt for this 2016 Alouettes team: pressure is rising, and any spark could set it off. They  appear to be the CFL's expression of Murphy's Law: anything that can go wrong, will. But is there anything they can do to turn it around? Well, one idea might be some personnel changes, but....

2. Jim Popp is largely sticking with his guys. As Herb Zurkowsky writes in The Montreal Gazette, Popp is willing to do a little tinkering (including bringing in kickers to challenge Bede, which eventually led to them signing Anthony Fera and putting Bede on the six-game injured list), but isn't looking at wholesale changes at this point:

On one level, there's some logic there. Benching or cutting talented players over a single mistake is often a problematic approach. On the other hand, though, how is this "a team that can win any game" as currently constructed? The Alouettes' roster didn't look great heading into this season, and that was before losing top players like Green, Stafford and Sutton. One replacement, B.J. Cunningham, has looked pretty good, but Corbin Louks has not; he's made four catches for 42 yards on 11 targets, and his fumble last week was returned for a touchdown by B.C.'s Loucheiz Purifoy, swinging that game. Sam Giguere has also underacheived, making 10 catches for 88 yards on 25 targets. There are plenty of areas where changes could be made, and it's curious that the Alouettes haven't tried shaking up their receivers a bit more in particular. Of course, some of the focus should also be on the guy throwing them the ball, and that's...

3. Kevin Glenn. When Montreal traded for Glenn at the deadline last October, it made some sense for both parties. The Alouettes had found some success with Rakeem Cato, but he left the game the week before with a concussion, and their options of Tanner Marsh and Anthony Boone didn't inspire a lot of confidence. The team was 5-9 at that point, but they had been improving, had a strong defence and still had a shot at the playoffs. Sending a fifth-round pick to Saskatchewan for Glenn (who played well there in the early going, but fell off after a return from injury and wasn't part of the building for the future the Riders needed to do at that point) as an immediate stopgap who could potentially get them to the postseason wasn't a bad idea.

However, while Glenn was okay in Montreal down the stretch, he certainly wasn't overly impressive, and the team around him also fell off; they went 1-3 and finished 6-12, out of the playoffs. "Okay but not overly impressive" is also the story of Glenn this year; he hasn't been terrible, but he hasn't been great, averaging 281.2 passing yards per game with six touchdowns and three interceptions on the year (although his 71.8 per cent completion mark is good), and he threw for just 231 yards this past week with just a 66.7 per cent completion rate. That's not all on him, as he's taken a lot of punishment (the Alouettes have allowed 20 sacks, second-most in the league, and they gave up six this past week) and they've had receiver injuries, but some of it is about him, and it makes you wonder how long they'll stick with him. If Glenn can get back to the level he played at against Saskatchewan two weeks ago (299 yards, a 75.0 per cent completion mark, two touchdowns and no interceptions) and if the Alouettes can win some games, maybe he'll have the starting job for a while. If not, maybe they should make a change. They have some young and interesting quarterbacks, particularly Rakeem Cato and Vernon Adams Jr., and if this winds up being a rebuilding year (as it's looking like it might be), they should give them a shot. Another team potentially in for a rebuilding year is...

4. The Saskatchewan Roughriders.  There was a lot of optimism in Saskatchewan ahead of this season after they brought in Chris Jones as head coach and general manager, with the likes of Riders' radio play-by-play man Rod Pedersen predicting a first-place finish. That seemed highly optimistic from here, considering that this team went 3-15 last year and then was starting with a new GM, a new head coach, an almost-entirely new coaching staff, and a roster that was significantly revamped in the offseason. So far, the Riders are 1-5, and that seems more along the lines of where they should be given these changes. However, they should still be worried about some of the things that have gone wrong.

It's not just the losses, it's how they've happened. Saskatchewan is last in the CFL in points allowed (35.7 per game) and second-last in points scored (21.3), and they've suffered two brutal losses in recent weeks, falling 41-3 to Montreal two weeks ago and 35-15 to Calgary last Thursday despite the much-anticipated return of quarterback Darian Durant. The offence hasn't come together, and the defence has been particularly bad, which is concerning that Jones' reputation has been largely based on defence. The Riders have allowed 23 touchdowns (worst in the league), 7.0 yards per play and 9.3 yards per pass (both tied for worst), and 401.8 yards per game (third-worst). They've also generated a league-low eight sacks, and only have one interception (tied for worst). There are some talented pieces on their defence, but the unit as a whole hasn't clicked yet. This should be a building year for Saskatchewan, so as long as they can make some progress they'll be okay, but there hasn't been a lot of identifiable progress to date. We'll see how they do this week in a rematch against the Stampeders, who might be...

5. The league's best team? Calgary currently leads the CFL with a 4-1-1 record, and their dominance has extended beyond the standings. At the moment, they look like the West Division favourite for the Grey Cup. Despite a league-high in opposing plays from scrimmage (62.3, thanks to the effectiveness of their offence), the Stampeders have allowed just 23.7 points per game, third-best in the league, and just 6.1 yards per play, tied for second-best in the CFL. They're conceding a league-best 7.6 yards per pass and just 4.3 yards per rush. Their offence has been good, too, leading the league with 32.0 points per game and placing third with 6.6 yards per play. Some of that has been about the excellent play of quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell, who's thrown for 1,896 yards with 12 touchdowns to three interceptions and a 66.4 per cent completion rate and has had Calgary average 8.3 yards per pass (tied for fourth), but a lot of it is also about...

6. Jerome Messam. The ground game has been down across the CFL so far, with few teams electing to run the ball regularly and most not finding that much success when they do, but Messam and the Stampeders have been the exception in terms of efficiency. Messam leads the league with 404 rushing yards, and he's done that on only 67 carries, an average of 6.0 yards per carry that's well ahead of second-place Winnipeg RB Andrew Harris (who has 382 yards, but on 92 carries, an average of 4.1 yards per carry). The Stampeders only have the CFL's fourth-most carries (112), but they average 5.4 yards per rush and 101.2 yards per game, both league-highs. Messam has been critical to Calgary's offensive success so far, and he was deservedly named the CFL's top player of the week Tuesday after rushing for 109 yards and adding 36 receiving yards against Saskatchewan. Another player of the week was...

7. Loucheiz Purifoy. The B.C. Lions' defensive back did very well in just his sixth CFL game Thursday night, returning a Louks fumble 47 yards for a touchdown and providing a key spark in B.C.'s 38-18 win over Montreal. He also had a career-high five tackles in that game, and he's been a key part of the Lions' defensive dominance. They've allowed a league-low 22.5 points per game so far, and while some of that's been about great play from CFL veterans like Adam Bighill and Solomon Elimimian, it's also been thanks to younger players like Purifoy. B.C. has had a lot of young guys emerge this year, and that's a big part of why they're 4-2 and defying many predictions. We'll see if the Lions can continue their run Saturday against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and...

8. Zach Collaros. Collaros' return to practice alone was noteworthy a few weeks back, and now it seems he may be set to return to game action. That could be very good for the Ticats, as Jeremiah Masoli has been highly inconsistent, mixing some great showing with some very poor ones. A key question may be Collaros' mobility; much of his past success has been about his ability to evade pressure, but will he still be able to do that after recovering from a major knee injury and while wearing a knee brace? We'll find out. Another team facing quarterback questions is...

9. The Toronto Argonauts: Yes, Logan Kilgore got off to a great start last week in Toronto's 23-20 win over Ottawa Sunday, but he still has a lot of work to do. The completion percentage in particular needs to improve, as Kilgore only completed 59.5 per cent of his passes in that one (with two interceptions to boot). The Argos have lots of intruiging QBs looking over Kilgore's shoulder, including Adrian McPherson, Cody Fajardo and new signing Dan LeFevour, so he'll need to keep improving if he wants to keep his starting spot for the weeks ahead while Ricky Ray's out. It's interesting that Toronto faces Winnipeg this week, as the Bombers have their own intriguing QB in...

10. Matt Nichols. Nichols has been very good so far this season since getting the opportunity to relieve Drew Willy, and his 74.2 per cent completion mark with 246 passing yards and two touchdowns was a key part of Winnipeg's 37-11 win over Hamilton last Wednesday. He's helped provide the Bombers with some substantial optimism, which they'll need against Toronto Friday. A team that's in a bit rougher shape is...

11. The Edmonton Eskimos. Edmonton had a strong start to the season, especially on offence, but they've now dropped three straight games to Hamilton, Winnipeg and Ottawa. The Eskimos' defence has fallen a long way since its dominance last year, and that's somewhat about the personnel attrition and injuries they've faced, but it also suggests their players may be having some issues adapting to defensive coordinator Mike Benevides' system. They'll be an interesting team to watch going forward, as they have a lot of talent, but are only 2-4 on the season. We'll see how they do against Montreal Thursday. While they're off this week, another team to watch is...

12. The Ottawa Redblacks. Henry Burris and the Redblacks came up with a big victory over Edmonton this past week, but there are still plenty of questions about this team, especially at quarterback. Will Burris be able to keep delivering good performances while Trevor Harris is out, and if so, what will happen when Harris comes back? Moreover, will Burris be able to maintain his composure? He's already indicated substantial distaste with the media, and that's not going to get any easier going forward. It will be interesting to keep an eye on Ottawa during the bye this week and see how they set up for their next game, against Montreal on August 9.

Thanks for reading 12 Audibles! Stay tuned to 55-Yard Line for CFL coverage all week long, and come back here next Tuesday for the next installment of this column. You can also contact me with feedback on Twitter or via e-mail. Enjoy the games this week!