The BC Lions took out a little revenge on the Montreal Alouettes on Sunday, riding a strong defensive effort on their way to a 36-14 win. But whether or not they lost Travis Lulay in the process remains to be seen, after a fourth quarter TD run knocked him out of the game with a shoulder injury. Here’s how I saw it, From the Stands.

The Blitz

The Lions did a much better job dealing with the blitz this week, utilizing Andrew Harris more and using screens and quick passes to exploit it. The Alouettes only recorded two sacks on the night and while Lulay was hurried on occasion the protection was night and day compared to the last game the two teams played and last week’s effort against Hamilton.

Steve Myddelton seems to be slowly taking over the right guard spot of Patrick Kabongo and had more reps than he’s had on his previous appearances.

Offence

Lulay’s favourite target on the day was Courtney Taylor and with good reason. Taylor is quickly becoming the premier receiver on the club, mainly because of his reliability, but also because he can burn you so many ways.

Lulay spread the ball around fairly well to his receivers, but was certainly guilty on at least two of his three interceptions on the day.

Nick Moore dropped a couple more balls that he probably should have had, and according to the post-game show got into it a bit with Jacques Chapdelaine on the sidelines. After a solid start to the year, Moore is starting to show signs of the inconsistency that plagued him in his earlier Lions auditions.

Of course the biggest play of the game came in the fourth quarter when Lulay was forced to run the ball into the endzone and take a hit to his throwing shoulder that threatens to keep the Lions starter out of the lineup for the foreseeable future. Thomas DeMarco didn’t look out of place in relief, but with the Lions heading into a hostile Mosaic Stadium next week, it will be a daunting task for DeMarco to undertake. It makes the Buono deal for Buck Pierce look that much more valuable right now.

You would think the Lions will give DeMarco the nod next week if Lulay can’t go and then go to Pierce should DeMarco falter in a difficult road environment.

Defence

Despite a better showing by the offence overall, it was the Lions defence that were the story of this game. The Lions completely shut down the Alouettes for the most part and chased Tanner Marsh from the game who gave way to  Troy Smith and later Josh Neiswander

The defensive line was much more effective and as a result so was the secondary. Newcomer Chris Wilson showed that he is going to be able to contribute and picked up his first sack of the season and Jermaine Reid also had a strong game with two sacks.

Dante Marsh had another strong outing but it was just unfortunate his fourth quarter interception combined with the fact he needed another couple of inches on the sideline during the return led to the  Lulay injury after the offence had to finish the job.

Special Teams

The Lions did a good job on returns for most of the night, and Tim Brown continued to provide productive work on returns. Brown’s juke move in the open field is a thing of beauty and he used it Sunday to his advantage. His teammates hurt the cause with some penalties on occasion giving the Lions offence a longer field than necessary.

Roof Closed

The Lions opted to leave the roof closed for the game with the afternoon sun that was forecast never materializing I’d love for the roof to be open all the time but I think if you asked the club and got an honest answer, they like it closed as they feel it gives them an extra advantage with the added noise. The crowd of over 27,000 was fairly loud, but I’ve heard the place louder with the roof open. It was also time to make a note to not schedule Lions game during prime time in the NFL after 3,000 or so fewer fans took in this game compared to the game versus the Ticats.

Fun Stuff

• Prime Minister Stephen Harper was seated in our section and posed for pictures with fans during all the breaks in the game. I’m not going to make this a political piece but it was kind of nice to see him sit with the people. I’m sure he could have been in a suite if he had chosen to do so.

• Andrew Harris’ third quarter touchdown had a little extra flair to it. After crossing the goal line Harris ran towards the back of the endzone kneeled to one knee and flipped the ball to newlyweds and Lions super fans Monique Gendron and Jeff Green. The two were married a week ago but the bride wanted to celebrate at the game in her wedding dress, complete with Lions accessories of course.

What were you thoughts on the game? Are you confident about a DeMarco/Pierce tandem is Lulay is out for an extended time? Leave your comments below and follow me on Twitter @BCLionsDen.