Head 2 Head: Brown/stewart

While Stewart has enjoyed success from virtually the opening kickoff of 2009, it has been a bit of a different story this year for his Eastern counterpart DE Jonathan Brown.  The undeniable emotional leader of the Argos was relegated to cheering and motivating from the sidelines for the first nine games of the season as he nursed a back injury.

However, the man that fans and teammates affectionately call “JB” has been working hard to get back into the lineup and has given the Argos not only an emotional lift but depth along the defensive line in the second half of the season.  Despite only recording three sacks and 10 defensive tackles, #97 seems to be in the grasp of an opposing QB on more plays than not when given the opportunity.

Brown’s play has increased dramatically in the last two weeks as Claude Harriott has been missing in action with a leg injury.  Prior to Harriott’s injury, he, Brown and Ronald Flemons were part of a three-man rotation which saw them all get their turn at trying to pull down the quarterback.

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Age is but a number in the case of Montreal Alouettes defensive end Anwar Stewart.  The 33-year-old defensive menace is in his ninth CFL season and is one sack away from matching a career high of 10 quarterback sacks in a season.

A five-time East Division All-Star, Stewart has been a mainstay on an Als defence that has seen numerous changes over his tenure but rarely dropped in production. Perhaps equally as impressive as his longevity with the Als is the fact that he recently eclipsed a career high in tackles, with 39, bettering his previous benchmark set back in 2003.

However, with all of his success, the Kentucky product has only recorded seven career sacks on Argo quarterbacks dating back to his first meeting against the Double Blue on August 21, 2003.

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