Fresh off one of the biggest upset wins of the season, the B.C. Lions may be staring a quarterback controversy square in the face.
Lions general manager and head coach Wally Buono faced the media on Sunday, one day after Casey Printers was pulled in favour of Travis Lulay in a 29-10 win over the Calgary Stampeders at McMahon Stadium.
Buono is concerned with Printers' affinity for fumbling the ball in crucial situations and may have a tough decision on his hands as to who to start against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Saturday. Despite their early struggles, the 4-8 Lions are in a playoff spot and a win over the Bombers could go a long way to a post-season berth.
"The move to put Travis [Lulay] in was just ball security," Buono told the Vancouver Sun. "It cost us last week, and [Saturday] a game that was well under control almost got out of control because of it. What I'm declaring today is, because of what's occurred, and because of how ball security has hurt this club, I'd better consider the options."
With the Lions leading 9-0 in the first half, Printers put the ball on the carpet three times before Buono decided to make the change to Lulay. This came on the heels of Printers fumbling twice in the late collapse against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats the week before.
"That's enough for a year, never mind two games," Buono told the Sun. "Turnovers have been our demise from the beginning until today. That's not changed. It's just too frequent now."
Lulay wasn't outstanding in relief of Printers on Saturday, completing 5 of 12 passes for 85 yards and picking up 22 yards on three rushes, but he did come out on the winning end of the decision, something Buono values more than anything.
"How do you get measured, by stats or by wins? I'd rather get measured by wins," Buono told the newspaper. "So we lose pretty, what does that mean? I'd rather win ugly."
Should Lulay get the start on Saturday, he will have to show more than he did in his first stint earlier this season when Printers was out due to injury. The Montana State product threw five interceptions in three starts, all losses.
"Hopefully he has learned [from the interceptions] but they haven't paralyzed him," Buono told the Sun. "Sometimes, you only learn through pain, not necessarily physical pain."
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