Riders See First Fans in Almost Two Years

One of the interesting questions would be whether the players would be in shape for camp, which will last for about a month and with no preseason games. Preseason games are another tool to evaluate players, but with just two games, sometimes a shot for players would depend on how a particular play turns out.

With COVID-19 protocols in effect, the Riders along with other teams have about 100 players in camp and there will be an expanded practice roster to make it easier for players to fill spots created because of injury without waiting for players to clear the 14-day quarantine before being allowed to play or practice.

The loss of linebacker Larry Dean and first round draft pick Bo Lokombo to Achilles injuries, along with projected defensive end starter Freddie Bishop Jr., leaves a number of potential holes on the defense following the departures of Charleston Hughes and Cameron Judge.

The month long training camp, which appears to be run mostly without pads until the players get into better shape, will help answer the question of who will step into those vacant positions and more.

The shock of losing four players to injury just before camp sent shock waves through the league and while one could ask questions as to whether the team should have been doing such drills on the first day or so of camp, the team has enough time to identify potential starters and back ups and the onus continues to be on the players to be in shape in order to grab an opportunity at a starting job.

Watching the Riders on Saturday, there were signs the team will be attempting to go deep to receivers like Shaq Evans and Kyran Moore. Codey Fajardo gave glimpses of his talent by even attempting alley-oop passes while under pressure.

While the defense is usually ahead of the offense at this stage of camp, the challenge for defensive coordinator Jason Shivers will be getting a system that his players can execute that gets the most from the players.

While it is unfortunate for four such injuries to start camp, there is enough time to adjust and evaluate to determine how the defense will look. The Rider defense is not complete either with players like Elie Bouka who are suspended until they complete their training jobs they took on to make ends meet during the pandemic.

The defense on Saturday did a very good job of the tip drill with a few interceptions so the perception before the injuries that the back end of the Rider defense is ready is a valid one. The questions come at linebacker and on the defensive line where there are questions to be answered.

Sitting out practice was defensive back Ed Gainey, defensive end Keion Adams, Nick Marshall, defensive end Jordan Reaves, defensive lineman Micah Johnson.

On offense William Powell was sitting out practice along with Jake Harty and offensive lineman Mattland Riley. The Riders are looking forward to the arrival of defensive tackle Sterling Shippy and receiver Carlos Henderson who will join the team after completing seven day of quarantine.

Those absences allowed for players like running back Jamal Morrow to show his stuff on a couple of nifty plays. Morrow seems slotted to filled the Marcus Thigpen role of a returner and running back.

Most of the fan attention seemed focused on who would be the Rider back up quarterback. Fajardo is set as the starter and showed some nifty moves, but when you do moves like an alley-oop pass to avoid being sacked, there is some question about the offensive line and its ability to keep Fajardo on his feet and off of the injury list.

Part of the problem was the decision by Brendan LaBatte to sit out this season due to the Covid-19 restrictions. The Riders brought in free agent Evan Johnson on the O-line, but what shape the line will be in and how well they operate will dictate whether offensive coordinator Jason Maas will be able to implement his deep passing game.

Paxton Lynch, the 6’7” former Denver Bronco first round draft pick at quarterback is an imposing presence and even managed to scramble a few times. He has an impressive fastball and can deliver a pass, but whether or not he can cope with the extra defender and the motion before the snap are questions yet to be answered.

Isaac Harker is the incumbent back up quarterback and used his time to better understand the playbook and his grasp of that showed on Saturday. In his rookie year Harker looked pretty slight, but seems to have put more muscle on and gets the pass off quickly.

Tom Flacco did OK, but he and Mason Fine had some challenges with getting dealing with the pass rush. If the Riders can’t put up a decent offensive line capable of at least pass protection, then the team is going to have to rely on the run because the pass protection will not last long enough for Fajardo or whoever to make the deep passes and the Riders will have to rely on either a scrambling quarterback, who runs a greater risk of injury, or a stable of running backs to take the pressure off.

The Riders brought out officials to give a greater authenticity to the practice and brought in what appeared to be a five second rule for quarterbacks to identify and get the ball out before being whistled down – a pretty realistic depiction of the time quarterbacks would have in actual game conditions.

The defense had some great moments with Blace Brown, a DB making a killer knockdown and a great tip interception from Jacob Janke, which seems to show the Riders defensive backfield is in good shape.

The fans who showed up appreciated the effort from the players and while the media would have a better idea, the presence of fans, and vocal fans at that, seemed to give the players more of a feel for playing in actual game conditions.

In a gesture that spoke volumes at the end, Rider Head Coach Craig Dickenson thanked the fans for coming out and the team turned to applaud the fans, who in turn applauded the team for its efforts.

Bottom line – we have been waiting a long time for this moment and it was worth it.

by Greg Urbanoski

Riders See First Fans in Almost Two Years

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