Riders have talent but not depth

I’m not sure if the Bombers read this column, but this week Kennedy informed me he got the lanyards back. So, thank you Bombers for doing the right thing.

I can understand not having time to provide the autographs, although I see on the social media channel formerly known as Twitter that two of the Bombers Kennedy asked for autographs, Willie Jefferson and Kenny Lawlor, found time to ride along in a Regina uber, but if you had time to grab the lanyards, why not take the jerseys for what at most would be a 10-minute trip to grab four autographs.

Kennedy and I wore the orange jerseys to the game, mostly to be easier for Kennedy’s grandchildren to spot us in the sea of green and blue jerseys, only to find the stadium security not allow us in our usual spot in Pil Country. They were only allowing people wearing green jerseys and we were stuck beside Blue Bomber fans and even had Bomber president Wade Miller take a pix of us to file some complaint about Bomber fans not being allowed to go to the bottom of Pil Country.

Kennedy and I are both season ticket holders and I wrote an email of complaint to the Riders, stating on the one hand they claim to reach out to the First Nations community but on the other they refuse people wearing the orange jersey for residential school survivors to stand where they want.

To the Riders credit, they apologized, said the incident was a good teaching tool for their staff, and offered us on-field pre-game passes to watch the Riders work out before the game. We took them up on the offer and while I have taken both organizations to task for their actions, when they atone for those actions, that has to be acknowledged as well.

And now for the game that was.

If you had a graph for who is trending upwards, the Elk with Tre Ford have to be now looking better than they did in the first half of the season. Ford has been running effectively and hitting the odd deep pass as Edmonton has rediscovered its running game.

The Riders needed to contain Ford in the pocket to make him beat them with the long ball. The Riders managed to lose three defensive starters during the game including Anthony Lanier III, and also managed to provide pretty good examples why the Riders are the worst defense in the CFL.

In the first third of the season, the questions were all on the offensive side of the ball with quarterbacking and offensive line positions getting the most attention. Now you have to wonder if the defense is filled with nothing but talented athletes who haven’t learned to play together.

OK, maybe some of them are not that talented. The display of sloppy tackling, discipline penalties and just getting beaten like a gong deep has some pundits wondering if the problems stem from coaching, or lack of intensity in practices.

Uh, perhaps. When you are trying to make chicken salad out of chicken crap, you work with what you have and hope you can pull it off. The Riders are wonderfully inconsistent from game to game, which makes them maddening to bet on, but fun to watch from a spectator point of view.

When the Riders lost the three starters, they lost the ability to at least keep Ford in the pocket and the players they plugged in were game, but perhaps not ready for prime time. The other problems are at linebacker where Micah Tietz is slow to the dance and seems to take the worst tackling angles and defensive back where they seemed to bite at the first fake from the Elk and then look on in wonder as the Elk made big gains, especially when they needed it most. I used to play linebacker and I had to shake my head at what the heck the defensive players were thinking in trying to tackle either Ford or Kevin Brown, who ran for a career best 175 yards against the Riders.

On offense Jake Dolegala seemed to show a comfort level at quarterback, even though he gave up a game clinching safety to the Elk in the fourth quarter. Dolegala looks good hitting the deep pass, and while he has produced touchdowns, I think most of them have come after the Riders turned the ball over to their offense and they have a shorter field to work with.

In the fourth quarter when the Riders got pinned back near their goal line, I wondered about Dolegala’s ability to lead a lengthy drive, especially against the clock. I wouldn’t have problems doubting Trevor Harris’ ability to lead the club down the field, but like the proverbial girl with the curl, when Dolegala is good, he is very good, but when he is not, he isn’t.

The Riders are still in third place, although whether they can hang on is another question altogether. I suspect the prospect of a crossover to the East is fading out of the question, especially with Hamilton looking like a competent team under Taylor Powell and rising up the standings.

The thing to watch with the Riders, who more and more resemble the Rider teams under Danny Barrett, is whether the Riders can show sustained improvement in various positions. If Dolegala is in the pocket and can hit his first look receiver, that is a credit to the offensive line in adapting to the talents of their players and finally figuring out the best way to use them.

The busted coverages will happen to any team, any game, but the sloppy tackling, especially taking the wrong angle and trying to knock players down with their shoulders instead of wrapping their arms around the player is something that should be addressed through coaching.

I have been going to practices and there are those who say because a majority of practices don’t have players wearing pads, the team is a soft touch physically.

For what it is worth, practice is about putting the playbook in action on the field, turning the schematics into actual plays. Coaches and players can also address potential flaws in technique and position players like quarterbacks and receivers can address improving timing.

A lot of keyboard warriors like to say Craig Dickenson is too soft on the players, which could be true, but you have to look at this as an evolving situation. The best coaches are those who adapt to their circumstances to give their team the best chance to win, and the season is not over yet.

The Riders did kind of rebound after the Labor Day rematch, but the team is showing itself to be capable of bursts, but nothing sustained. That may not be the recipe you want for success or ensuring job security.

Toronto clinched a playoff spot with a 23-20 Montreal in a sloppy game that shows that Toronto is deep on all sides of the ball and is playing like a real team with all three parts of the game, offense, defense and special teams, contributing. Montreal though is approaching a point where if the team cannot beat a team with a winning record, can it be considered a contender.

I would imagine Toronto may gear down after their game with Winnipeg to play more back ups and keep their starters healthy, but definitely see the Winnipeg Grey Cup rematch as a statement game. If Toronto goes into Winnipeg and lays waste to that hive of scum and villainy, then they are the best team in the CFL heading into the playoffs.

The Bombers went into Hamilton having shot their load against the Riders in the Labor Day rematch and it showed as the Bombers lost 29-23. Scott Milanovich is working well with Powell at quarterback and while some say Bo Levi Mitchell is the starter when he comes back, I kind of doubt Mitchell will be back for longer than Aaron Rodgers with the New York Jets (four plays).

The Bombers put so much into proving the Rider win on Labor Day was an aberration they forgot there are other teams in the league that deserve respect. I wrote about the sense of entitlement the Bombers seemed to display, but the Hamilton game was an excellent example any team is vulnerable, including a team that won their last game by 45 points. If the Bombers use the Hamilton game as a teachable moment, then maybe they will be Grey Cup champions yet again. Maybe.

The BC Ottawa game was another great example of the unpredictability of the Canadian game and how teams have to play and coach to the last minute. The Redblacks were leading by two scores in the last minute when BC returned a missed field goal for a touchdown and then scored a touchdown to clinch the win.

You could fault Ottawa head coach Bob Dyce for going for a long field goal covered by lumbering offensive linemen as an error in judgement, but Ottawa has their own defensive secondary problems.

I have to love Ottawa rebounding after losing their own starting quarterback. Khari Jones has been doing pretty good working with what he has and getting the most of it on the Redblack offense.

For BC, if they lost the game, they would be in unsettled waters, but winning, especially after the Bombers lost, gives the Lions something to play for when the Bombers come to visit to determine who ends up in first place in the west.

So, this week BC goes to Edmonton and the Lions hope to pull into a tie with the idle Bombers for first place. Edmonton though is feeling the future is wide open and they will have to wear shades with Tre Ford at quarterback.

The Elk appear to be relying on their running game to break down opposing defenses and having a running Tre Ford is another threat the BC defence need to consider. The Lions, unlike the Riders, seem to be have figured out this tackling thing and if they can keep Ford in the pocket and force him to beat them with his arm, the Lions could well be in a first-place tie by the end of the game.

So, let’s set that table with a Lions 26-21 win over the Elk.

Montreal goes to Calgary and when you ask whoever cares in Calgary about why the Stampeders are uh, 4-9, one school of though is Dave Dickinson is having problems juggling the position of general manager along with head coach.

I think the injuries to the Stampeder receiving corps which prevented any sort of consistency with quarterback Jake Maier is a good place to start, along with Maier’s penchant for forcing throws which result in untimely interceptions.

But that’s just me.

Montreal needs this game to stay even with a rising Hamilton, and if they are fated to only beat teams with losing records, then they need to beat all the teams with losing records they have left and hope that is enough to prevent a crossover from the west.

Cody Fajardo plays behind an offensive line that has allowed 44 sacks, works in the CFL, and you have to wonder how many of those are due to Fajardo running around like a chicken with its head cut off looking for an escape from onrushing defensive linemen.

Fajardo has been forcing some throws as well resulting in desperate interceptions in opposing end zones, but Montreal is tied for third for interceptions given up with 12, at least according to last week’s CFL stats and who knows how accurate they are? The Riders rank first in interceptions given up with 9.

So, this could be a must win for Montreal because if Calgary wins, they are only a game behind Montreal when it comes to a crossover.

So for this reason, I expect to see a pretty competitive game with Montreal edging Calgary 28-27 because really, there is little to chose between the two and Montreal has upped its defense with the signing of linebacker Darnell Sankey who was here last year.

Hamilton goes to Toronto full of confidence after beating the Bombers and you can’t really blame them. If Calgary beats Montreal and Toronto beats Hamilton, I think the Argos clinch first place in the east.

Clinching this early is both a blessing and a curse because you can rest guys who are hurting while giving your back-ups meaningful reps. You also lose a bit of continuity but I think if you are Argo Head Coach Ryan Dinwiddie, you would rather have the luxury of being in first than fighting tooth and nail just to qualify.

The lure of first place and the promise of veteran rest days heading into the playoffs, which may be invaluable considering the Argos have no more bye weeks left, has me thinking Toronto winning 30-21 is a good score to keep in mind.

Finally, we have the Riders going to Ottawa in a desperate attempt to stay ahead of Calgary and Edmonton in the western race for third place. I think second place is likely gone, especially if BC beats Edmonton, so the Riders can concentrate on working on their execution for the playoffs.

Ottawa will not be an easy out, although they are vulnerable and the Riders beat Ottawa earlier in the season. Dustin Crum is emerging as a leader behind centre and this game will likely come down to which head coach has the fewest brain cramps.

This pits two basically non-existent defensive secondaries trying to stop aspiring offenses. As Ottawa was leading BC I was thinking the Riders were doomed to lose this game, but after seeing Ottawa blow the game against BC, I have to think the best result for both teams is a 26-26 tie.

Seems fitting for a season like this.

by Greg Urbanoski

Riders have talent but not depth

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