BC Lions In the Midst of Tight Western Division Points Race

By Aleem Peermohamed

The BC Lions currently sit tied with the Saskatchewan Roughriders for second place in the West. The Leos have won four straight contests including a 40-10 drubbing of the struggling last place Hamilton Ti-Cats in their most recent tilt at BC Place.

The four straight wins have been very timely for the Lions, since the tight Western division features a spread of only four points between the first place Calgary Stampeders and the fourth place Edmonton Eskimos.

BC Lions Fans at BC Place

The Lions will hit the road to face another Eastern opponent this week, the Toronto Argonauts. The Argos are another team that’s had very little success lately and have posted four straight losses.

With two teams that have been heading in different directions lately squaring off, it would appear that the Lions have an excellent opportunity to continue their winning ways. As we know however, taking any team for granted in the CFL can have costly consequences, and with only 5 games remaining, it’s critical that the Lions capitalize on these types of opportunities.

In other CFL news, league commissioner Mark Cohon announced Thursday that the league has created new player safety rules. “From now on, any illegal act that creates substantial and unnecessary risk of injury to an opposing player will be subject to a mandatory suspension,” stated Cohon.

The decision comes less than a week after Edmonton Eskimos linebacker, Agustin Barrenechea, was assessed a penalty after a helmet to helmet collision with Winnipeg Bluebombers quarterback, Kevin Glenn. A fight developed on the field following the incident and fines were handed out, but no suspensions were given.

Cohon decided it was time for the league to set new standards. “By setting this new standard, we are striving to give players clear advance and fair warning of the penalties that they will face for acts that have no place in our game.”

While it’s very surprising that Barrenchea could get off from a dangerous hit like that with a small fine (thought to be around $1,000), a move like this is a step in the right direction.

If the CFL and Cohon want to be taken seriously as a professional league, it will need to enforce standards that ensure that dangerous acts will not be tolerated.

What do you think on the CFLs new suspension policy. Let us know in the comments below: