McLeod Bethel-Thompson recorded his first victory of the season on Thursday night, but he doesn’t want any praise from his critics at the CFL’s exclusive television broadcaster.
The Montreal Alouettes’ backup quarterback took a clear shot at the TSN panel following his 23-21 upset win over the first-place Calgary Stampeders, pointing out all the mistakes that they should continue to criticize.
“There’s so many things I can do better. Right there at the end, I could read to the boundary there. Missed a comeback there. Early in the game, pick — can’t do it. You’ve got to stay true to your colours, TSN panel. Don’t say anything good about me,” Bethel-Thompson told sideline reporter Shantelle Chand after the game.
“There’s plenty of stuff. There’s a slant right there, there’s a pick, about four or five plays. Stay true. Stay true. Don’t say anything good about me, all right? Even you, Henoc, my brother. I love you, fam.”
Bethel-Thompson completed 30-of-40 passes (75 percent) for 280 yards, one touchdown, and one interception in Calgary, helping to lead three field goal drives in the fourth quarter and secure the comeback. Despite that success, the panel was generally unapologetic regarding their previous criticism.
“Listen, you’re a Grey Cup-winning quarterback. You’ve got high expectations going into every single game, and you pulled it off tonight,” responded Henoc Muamba, who spent three seasons as Bethel-Thompson’s teammate in Toronto and was named the MVP of his championship win.
Entering this week, Bethel-Thompson had struggled in two previous starts for the Alouettes in place of injured starter Davis Alexander, resulting in the team’s only two losses of the year. The 37-year-old veteran has now completed 75-of-112 passes (66.9 percent) for 752 yards, four touchdowns, and three interceptions since joining the team via trade in the offseason.
According to Davis Sanchez, the TSN panellists were simply doing their jobs by pointing out the quarterback’s previous struggles.
“We’re football analysts, and we analyze the game,” he said. “We analyzed last week, and we analyzed this one. Last week you weren’t good, and this week, you were better.”
Bethel-Thompson has never shied away from stirring the pot during his seven seasons in the CFL, notably taking shots at former commissioner Randy Ambrosie and incurring multiple fines over his criticism of the league’s schedule last season. He has also provided plenty of fodder for analysts across the media landscape, who have routinely debated whether he deserved to be considered an elite quarterback during his best years in Toronto or if he should have been benched last year in Edmonton in favour of Tre Ford.
Those types of discussions won’t be disappearing any time soon, as Milt Stegall made clear while giving the QB his props.
“He was good, and for the most part, we thought he would play well. But if he does not play well… I’ll leave it at that,” the Hall of Fame receiver shrugged.
The Alouettes (5-2) will return to action on Saturday, August 2, when they host the Saskatchewan Roughriders. With Alexander still on the six-game injured list, Bethel-Thompson is expected to get another opportunity to stick it to his haters.
