Lions beat Argos 16-13 on Leone buzzer-beating FG, keep division races open

The B.C. Lions' 16-13 road win over the Toronto Argonauts Wednesday night came down to the final seconds, but it gave them a much-needed result. It also showed off their impressive defensive play, even while suggesting that their offence still isn't perfect. The result may be the most important part here, though, as it adds intrigue to both divisional races. In the West, the 7-3 Lions are within striking distance of the 7-1-1 Calgary Stampeders, and in the East, the 4-5 Argos remain clumped with the 4-5 Hamilton Tiger-Cats, just ahead of the 3-6 Montreal Alouettes, and just behind the 4-4 Ottawa Redblacks. The Lions' win shows they're the top contender to take on Calgary (Edmonton and Winnipeg are both 5-4), while the Argos' loss adds to their struggles at home (they're 1-5 at BMO Field this year) and suggests they're not a dominant East player yet even with Ricky Ray's return.

For the Lions, this was a pretty strong performance in most areas. The passing defence was dominant, forcing Ray into short passes and holding him to 213 passing yards with a touchdown and an interception. (He did complete 82.8 per cent of his passes, but was often forced to throw underneath rather than take shots down the field.) The rushing defence was strong, too, restricting Brandon Whitaker to 35 yards on nine carries (3.9 yards per carry). B.C. picked up plenty of offence on the ground with 92 total rushing yards (Anthony Allen only had 56 on 13 carries, 4.3 per, but QB Jon Jennings had 20 on three carries and Chris Rainey and Shaq Murray-Lawrence chipped in with a nine-yard carry and a seven-yard carry respectively), and while their passing offence wasn't great (Jennings only threw for 199 yards with no touchdowns and an interception), it was good when it needed to be.

The 24-year-old Jennings looked great under pressure inside the final three minutes, leading a 10-play, 70-yard drive that set up Richie Leone's game-winning field goal from 30 yards out with no time left on the clock. Jennings effectively kept the sticks moving and found the right balance between chewing up time (to prevent Toronto from getting another chance) and moving quickly (to give them a chance to win before overtime), and the distance he was able to get to ensured that the Lions were likely to win regardless of Leone's kick (from that distance, even a miss was likely going through the end zone for a rouge). Jennings also completed 71.0 per cent of his passes on the night, which certainly isn't a bad mark. He'll need to improve his yardage totals for B.C. to keep winning, as 199 passing yards and 16 points don't equal a victory in most CFL games, but his final drive here was masterful and belied his youth. Jennings has obviously shown great talent, but some of the questions about him before this year were on how he would handle adversity and if he could keep his composure in the clutch. He hasn't been perfect this season, but he's shown terrific potential, and he keeps maturing and getting better all around as the weeks go by. He and the Lions aren't at Calgary's level yet, but they look like the best Western challenger out there right now.

Meanwhile, the Argos' performance showed that Ray's return hasn't fixed all their issues. Ray played reasonably well in this one, but the playcalls and/or Toronto's receivers weren't able to give him much to work with down the field. That needs to improve. The ground game also has to get better, and while the defence was largely good, it couldn't come through when they needed a stop most inside those final three minutes. Fortunately for the Argos, the other teams in the East have shown plenty of vulnerability too, and they're still very much in the mix for the division title. They're not going to get there without major offensive improvements, though, and those are still needed despite Ray's return.