ekansekans's blog: "df"

Cory Boyd, the leading rusher in the CFL was released on Sunday, which surprised many, enraged some, and even had at least one analyst wondering aloud if there is something else behind this move. If you just examine the numbers this looks like a crazy decision, but numbers can be deceiving. After six games Cory Boyd leads the CFL in rushing by seven yards over Kory Sheets of the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He was on pace to rush for 1,341 yards on the season which would have been better than last year and just shy of his personal best in the CFL, which was 2010, his first year in Canada, when he rushed for 1,359 yards. In both 2010 and 2011 he ended up finishing second in the league in rushing behind Fred Reid and Brandon Whitaker. That kind of production over the last two years combined with the fact that he was leading the league this year, is obviously why most football fans across the country were scratching their heads when they heard the news. Moments after the Argos made the official announcement, Gareth Wheeler of TSN Radio1050 in Toronto had head coach Scott Milanovich on to explain why, with numbers like Boyd has produced this year, and over the last two years, this decision was made, and two of the head coaches answers were very interesting. When asked, how this move makes the team better? Milanovich said: "That remains to be seen, numbers are one thing, and what Chad (Kackert) will do with this opportunity nobody knows at this point, but there are other things that go into playing tailback, other than just how many yards youre carrying it for." Three questions later, when Wheeler asked what so many football fans were thinking, which was: "Im just trying to understand what would have gone behind this kind of decision, six games into the year, to cut a guy that is leading in the CFL in that position?" Milanovichs response again was revealing: "Yeah, I can say the same things over and over again, theres more things that go into playing tailback than just how many yards youre carrying it for." He went on to say, "Like I told Cory today, regardless of how it looks on the outside, the reason we didnt play well offensively last week (a loss to BC) wasnt just on Cory, theres a lot of things that need to be fixed and we felt like tailback was one of those things." There has already been all kinds of theories as to other possible reasons behind this move that have been put out there by everyone from fans on twitter, to almost everyone covering football in the media. Some have suggested, Boyd was a problem in the room, that he was different in front of the media than he was in real life. TSN analyst Milt Stegall tweeted, "Cory Boyd was not let go for reasons pertaining to football. There is something else to this story." And fan reaction has ranged from anger, directed towards the team, to confusion as to how the leading rusher could get cut. However, maybe there is no conspiracy behind this move. Maybe to understand why this move was made, we just have to listen to Scott Milanovichs answers. Twice in the interview with TSN 1050 he said that there is more to the tailback position than the yards he is rushing for, and that the coaching staff felt that the team could improve in that position by making this move. Milanovich will not publicly divulge exactly what it was that Cory Boyd wasnt doing well, and you would have to watch him on every play on film to even make a fair personal opinion, but maybe football fans really dont have to inquire any deeper than to listen to the head coachs explanation. A defensive back could be leading the league in interceptions and not playing well, and a quarterback could be leading the league in yards passing, but if he is turning the ball over four times a game he isnt playing well either.  In fact, there have been plenty of years where QBs have passed for over 4,000 yards and not made the playoffs. Numbers are useful in a lot of ways -- especially in football --  but they dont always tell the whole story. When listening to the Milanovichs explanation, and taking into consideration all that is required from the tailback position, it sounds like Boyd wasnt playing well enough, and maybe it is as simple as that. That doesnt mean that Boyd is done or that he cant help another team in the league in a big way, in fact just hours after he was released the Eskimos announced that they have come to a verbal agreement with Boyd and he will fly into Edmonton on Monday. And while it will be easy to make the argument that the Esks just got better, for the Argos pass oriented offence that is led by future Hall of Famer Ricky Ray, it wasnt working out, and it sounds like Boyd wasnt playing well in that system, and therefore, the team is moving on with Chad Kackert as their starting tailback. Milanovich said he isnt even sure what Kackert will do with this opportunity, but at the end of the season when you compare numbers, remember that at times, numbers can be deceiving. Authentic Peterson Jersey . The Raptors announced Wednesday that they have signed the seven-foot centre rookie contract. Adrian Peterson Womens Jersey . Evans finished the 2012 Tour de France despite being ill through much of the race. He was unsure if he would recover in time to contest the Olympic road race and time trial. http://www.azulvirtual.org/new.html . Santana is going to have an MRI on his back Tuesday, putting in jeopardy his scheduled start against the Colorado Rockies two days later.Scott Harrington will play a key role on Canadas world junior hockey team during the next few weeks. He is considered one of the teams top shutdown defencemen and on Thursday was named an alternate captain. And, yet, the London Knight spent most of the selection camp in the shadows. Last year, he received the fewest media requests at the selection camp before making the team and then, finally, getting some love from the reporters on site. This year, you would think, would have been different considering Harringtons status as one of two returning blueliners. But Harrington, a quiet guy on and off the ice, was once again left mostly alone. "I wasnt looking forward to having an abundance of interviews so it doesnt bother me at all," said the native of Kingston, Ont. "Its kind of funny. We joked about it yesterday. I think I had a couple more than last year. Last year I was shutout completely. It was funny last year and its good that the joke continued this year." One of the reasons Harrington did not get many requests was because his spot on the team was assured coming in. He only played one game, on Tuesday, and spent the rest of the camp watching other players battle it out for the precious few roster spots up for grabs.  "I didnt know Id be sitting out for the last two days, but we still got on the ice and practised in the morning before the games, but definitely different from last year when I played every game," said Harrington. "This was a bit of a blessing that I didnt have to play so I could save the legs a little bit. Its been a busy month in London." A busy and wildly-successful month. London has won 18 straight games and will try and break the franchhise record for consecutive victories when they face the Owen Sound Attack on Friday night.dddddddddddd Harrington will be monitoring the game closely from Calgary where Canada will practice on Saturday morning before hopping a plane to Europe. "I dont know if I can watch it," he said. "Ill for sure be refreshing the OHL website. Ive already talked to some of the guys today and its been special the last month and I think our team has really bonded well together. Winning 18 straight is, I dont think, something any of us dreamed of. Its difficult to do, especially in the OHL and the conference were win. Hopefully the guys can pull it off tonight." Harrington is Londons captain this season and that experience should help him with his leadership role on Team Canada. "Hes starting to understand the times that he needs to say something and the times he doesnt need to say something," said Knights assistant GM Rob Simpson earlier this month. "In the dressing room you wont hear much from him, but at key points, like going into the third period [in a tie game], we need a little bit of inspiration, he wont say a lot, but a sentence or two here and the guys really respect that and everyone in the dressing room will kind of perk up and be ready to go after that." Harrington is remaining humble despite his new leadership role both in London and with Team Canada. "Its a huge honour to represent some of my teammates and to be the defenceman wearing the A is pretty special," he said, "obviously there are a lot of guys on this team that wear letters and are captains on their club teams so to be chosen out of the group of them is pretty special." ' ' '