Quarterback Ricky Ray directs the Edmonton Eskimos offense.
The 2009 season was a mixed bag for Edmonton. The Eskimos' 9-9 regular season record was good enough for third place in the West and a berth in the playoffs but inconsistencies, especially on defense, prevented the team from ever seriously competing for the Grey Cup.
In their first playoff appearance since 2005, the Eskimos were eliminated in the West semifinal by Calgary, 24-21.
Heading into the 2010 season Edmonton was listed at 6/1 odds to win the Grey Cup. These are the same odds as the B.C. Lions with Calgary, Saskatchewan and Montreal all having better odds to win it all.
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After losing their first three regular season games you would have to think the odds just got somewhat steeper given the fact they are already in a bit of a hole.
The Eskimos' offense is led by QB Rickie Ray, who was first in the CFL last year with 4,916 yards passing, completing 67.3 percent of his throws. His 22 TD passes were ranked third in the league and his 96.4 efficiency rating was ranked second.
The number one player on the other end of his throws was WR Fred Stamps. He led the CFL with 1,402 yards receiving and was named to CFL All-Star team.
Another emerging star for Edmonton is RB Arkee Whitlock. As a rookie in 2009 he was activated off the practice roster the second week of the season when Jesse Lumsden went down with an injury. After a rough start in his first game when he only gained 29 yards, Whitlock was able to turn things around and ended up running for a total of 1,293 yards, third best in the league. He also added 392 yards receiving, making him all the more valuable to Edmonton.
Many of the Eskimos’ problems still lie on the defensive side of the ball. The unit struggled to keep opposing teams out of the end zone, and ranked near the bottom of the league by allowing 27.9 points per game. The pass rush was almost nonexistent as the Eskimos finished last in league in sacks with 32.
Injuries took their toll as LB Maurice Lloyd was hampered by a hamstring injury all season long and DL Dario Romero tore a bicep midway through the year, ending his season.
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This past offseason they added DB’s Chris Thompson and Lenny Walls and LB Javier Glatt, but they lost DT Jerome Heywood, DB Kelly Malveaux and S Scott Gordon. This year’s unit should be somewhat better than last year’s, but it is doubtful it will be good enough to compete with the top teams in the league.
Special teams feature a solid pair of return men in Tristan Jackson and Skyler Green. Jackson led the team with 1,167 kickoff return yards and Green returned a kickoff 93 yards for touchdown in the playoff game against the Stampeders.
The overall outlook for 2010 is mixed. This team has the ability to put points on the board, but so far not as many as the defense is giving up. In their first three games Edmonton has scored 53 points and given up 82, not a good recipe for winning.
While it is still a long season with 15 games remaining on the schedule, the early returns do not favor the Eskimos playing in the Grey Cup Championship which their city will be hosting in late November.