Biggie's GC Role

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

It just dawned on me that everyone who says Biggie is washed up and had a bad 2023 and needs to retire, needs to remember one thing about Biggie in 2023:

How many 3rd & 1's did Biggie stop in 2023?  I don't think I've ever seen a MLB stop so many.  Even Henoc when he was that beast in MTL a few years ago, wasn't stopping that many.

Biggie was so effective at it in 2023 the league had to "change the rules" by fining him for H2H.  So what did Biggie do?  He changed his method slightly (hands between helmets) and then kept on stopping people on SY.  This is simply amazing, and something not captured in any stats because a sneak-plunge by its nature must give the DT stat to many people.  And in any event, a +1 to DT stat doesn't capture the enormity of a 3rd down sneak stop.

I haven't watched the GC loss yet... but did Biggie get us that massive momentum-stealing goal line stand?  If so, I rest my case.

I'm 100% happy with Biggie being our MIKE in 2024, especially at cap-friendly prices.

Biggie wasn't on the field for that play, it was Gauthier.

[J5V]

Biggie wasn't on the field for that play, it was Gauthier.

Correct

It just dawned on me that everyone who says Biggie is washed up and had a bad 2023 and needs to retire, needs to remember one thing about Biggie in 2023:

How many 3rd & 1's did Biggie stop in 2023?  I don't think I've ever seen a MLB stop so many.  Even Henoc when he was that beast in MTL a few years ago, wasn't stopping that many.

He'll be hard to replace, however, that doesn't mean you don't try. My concern is what I believe is a loss of foot speed. Too many times he was washed out and ineffective at stopping the run. I often found myself asking, where was Bighill on that play? Father Time is undefeated and it will be the case with many of our aging Bombers. To continue to be successful we must continue to retool. Our D is not championship calibre and hasn't been for a couple of seasons now.

Mike O'Shea is fiercely loyal to his veteran players and rightly so. That is why Wade Miller must insist on changes being made if we want to continue to vie for Grey Cups.

[dd]

Ya, MOS can play good cop, but Miller and Walters have got to make the tough calls on who stays and who doesn't.

[TecnoGenius]

Biggie wasn't on the field for that play, it was Gauthier.

Wow!  Gauthier the hero of the 1st half!!  I really look forward to watching it, when I can stomach it.  At Tim Hortons Field you couldn't really tell much from the single, smallish jumbotron, and a replay guy who looked like he apprenticed under the IGF replay guy...

Gauthier sure steps up to save the day in big games, doesn't he.

[TecnoGenius]

CorrectHe'll be hard to replace, however, that doesn't mean you don't try. My concern is what I believe is a loss of foot speed. Too many times he was washed out and ineffective at stopping the run. I often found myself asking, where was Bighill on that play? Father Time is undefeated and it will be the case with many of our aging Bombers. To continue to be successful we must continue to retool. Our D is not championship calibre and hasn't been for a couple of seasons now.

Ya, but besides speed, what issue can we possibly take umbrage with against Biggie?  And I think he was faster in 2023 than 2022... was it the WDF he chased down VAJ and found that extra gear to force him OOB?  That was a big save, and we got to be pleasantly surprised Biggie found the speed to pull it off.  He was really slow in 2022, so it was nice to see him regain it some.

But the funny thing is the MIKE doesn't always have to be fast, and you can scheme around it.  Henoc isn't very fast.  I don't think Sankey is very fast either.  The bigger the MLB, the slower they tend to be.  You want run-stop beef, or you want a fast/lanky chaser?  I prefer a guy that can shed OL blocks and still stop the run when it comes by him.  A guy who can sometimes get home on a pass rush.  And a guy who can still drop back and play extra-DB.  Biggie can still do all of those things.  You scheme to have fast Wilson around if it's a chase-down straight-speed situation.

[dd]

Bighill is a MAC LB not a MIKE LB

[TecnoGenius]

Bighill is a MAC LB not a MIKE LB

It's both:

Wikipedia: The middle or inside linebacker (MLB or ILB), sometimes called the "Mike" or "Mac"

I tend to prefer Mike.  The funny thing is, on this forum most people all-caps MIKE/MAC, WILL, SAM, even though they are not acronyms, and it's not common to do so.  However, by all-capsing, it does save us from typing "LB" after the name... Because if we just said Mike or Will, newer forum members / football fans would be searching our roster for a guy named Will.  At least with WILL you get some clue it's not a name.

Maybe the format used on many CFL depth charts would be better: WLB, MLB, SLB.  Easier to type (but not to say!), and is fairly unambiguous, and most people would "get it".  Meh, I'll just keep using MIKE. 

[J5V]

Ya, but besides speed, what issue can we possibly take umbrage with against Biggie?

I'm not gonna pretend I'm some kind of expert because I'm definitely not. I just know Biggie *seemed* to disappear at crucial times this season and when I looked for him he appeared to be chasing the play. I do believe he's on the down-side of his career and is no longer the dominant player he once was. He's not alone in that regard. My biggest concern with this team is that we play the best players possible to give us the best chance to win. I'm not convinced we do that.

[Jesse]

Bighill has a lot of responsibilities that some other MLBs do not have.

He is not flying to the ball on every snap regardless of anything else. Someone like Sankey, that's all he does. So he racks up a lot of tackles. Bighill could do that too, and keep getting those 100 tackle seasons, but that's not his responsibility in this defence.

I could stand to see more snaps out of a guy like Cole or another prospect the we scout in the off-season. And I definitely would have sat his butt down in the Grey Cup. But count me as on the side of letting Bighill play as long as he's able to.

[dd]

It's both:

Wikipedia: The middle or inside linebacker (MLB or ILB), sometimes called the "Mike" or "Mac"

I tend to prefer Mike.  The funny thing is, on this forum most people all-caps MIKE/MAC, WILL, SAM, even though they are not acronyms, and it's not common to do so.  However, by all-capsing, it does save us from typing "LB" after the name... Because if we just said Mike or Will, newer forum members / football fans would be searching our roster for a guy named Will.  At least with WILL you get some clue it's not a name.

Maybe the format used on many CFL depth charts would be better: WLB, MLB, SLB.  Easier to type (but not to say!), and is fairly unambiguous, and most people would "get it".  Meh, I'll just keep using MIKE. 

You?ve clearly never played football before.

In a 4-3 defense, you have Sam, MAC, Will

In a 3-4 defense, you have Sam, Mike, MAC, Will

We play a 4-3 defense , so Sam-mac-will, biggie is a mac linebacker.

Pass this on to Wikipedia will ya

[TecnoGenius]

You?ve clearly never played football before.

In a 4-3 defense, you have Sam, MAC, Will

In a 3-4 defense, you have Sam, Mike, MAC, Will

We play a 4-3 defense , so Sam-mac-will, biggie is a mac linebacker.

Pass this on to Wikipedia will ya

I've said before that I've never played football beyond elementary.  Doesn't mean I can't learn the terms.

I dug a little more and there are some places that break out Mike vs Mack (note: Mack with a K seems to be what they use, strange).  However, it still appears that in a 4-3 the terms for the middle is interchangeable between Mike/Mack.  And since the CFL is almost always a 4-3 concept (except on obvious long passing downs or when your name is Chris Jones), then saying Mike/Mack would seem to be a preference choice.

It looks like you're referring to the differentiation of a scraper/chaser vs a beefcake bruiser in a 3-4.  But the CFL really doesn't do that except on special sets and schemes: like when we have Gauthier and Cole in, or other assorted spellers instead of Biggie.  All this stuff seems to apply more to the NFL concepts which in many ways are vastly different.

As for Biggie, I don't really think you could pigeonhole him as just a scraper/chaser or a beefcake... I think he does all the jobs, is tasked with doing all the jobs, and is pretty good at all the jobs (excluding pure speed).

So I'm pretty sure it's not required to correct people if they call Biggie a Mack or a Mike.  CFL Potawto vs CFL Potayto.  I dunno, maybe some others want to chime in.  Depressingly, I can't remember pressers with Hall or D people ever labelling our MLB as either!  So no help there.

[dd]

The difference between a Mike and Mack is lost on you but there is a difference, not going to argue, couldn?t care

[TecnoGenius]

The difference between a Mike and Mack is lost on you but there is a difference, not going to argue, couldn?t care

Thanks for helping the forum members less knowledgeable than yourself fully understand a new concept, especially something as nuanced as the difference between Mike and Mack!

[blue_gold_84]

It must be the off-season.

[dd]

Thanks for helping the forum members less knowledgeable than yourself fully understand a new concept, especially something as nuanced as the difference between Mike and Mack!

That means a lot coming from someone who?s never played the game before. And it?s not a new concept, I was introduced to it in 1975, you and likely your dad wasn?t even born yet