Riders Hold On Field Garbage Day against Ottawa

Rider quarterback Jake Dolegala didn’t help the cause with two fumbles and interceptions, but it felt he was in sync with the whole vibe of the team which was hey, nice to be in Ottawa, uh, why were we here again?

With the team giving up 11 points to Ottawa in the final minute of the first half and then Ottawa running through the Rider defense like grass through a goose, there was discussion of whether the Riders are emphasizing the right things in practice, or if the reduction of padded practices is contributing to the Riders forgetting how to tackle.

I don’t think padded practices has anything to do with it. Peter King is one of the great sportswriters who does the Football Morning in America column which comes out Sunday night/Monday morning on the NBC Sports website.

This past week he wrote about the passing of Darmouth Football Coach Buddy Teevens, who was 66 when he died from injuries from a bicycle fall. In addition to being the head coach of Dartmouth, Teevens was also a prime organizer of the Manning Passing Academy run by Peyton and Eli Manning.

Dartmouth is an Ivy League school that does not operate like say, Alabama, but what Teevens did was really interesting and kind of goes to the crux of the problem for the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

From 2005-2009, Teeven’s team was 9-41 and in 2010 he decided there would be no more tackling in practice as he was concerned about the impact that repeated hits to the head would have on players, including CTE.

You would think that with no more tackling in practice, defense would be gone out of the window in Dartmouth. Teevens went 79-31 since 2010 with three Ivy League titles.

Compare that to the Riders efforts at sustained excellence since Craig Reynolds took over as CEO.

Teevens handled the issue of tackling by having his players spend 15-20 minutes of each two-hour practice practicing their tackling technique on machines and working to ensure players had their hands and feet in the right place.

While there are those who compare Craig Dickenson to Mr. Furley from Three’s Company who was constantly trying to appear to be greater than he was, my criteria for coaches is somewhat different.

Not all coaching moves will work, but I will respect a coach that tries, and if he fails, admits it and learns from those mistakes and does better next time. It’s ironic Dickenson has problems with game management since it appeared he had that responsibility under former Rider coach Chris Jones.

Dickenson is getting more aggressive in his play-calling, even though his team may not be actually capable to getting a third and short. The Riders practices are broken up into segments which are designed on paper to be challenging to the players and keeps them mentally involved.

You can argue the intensity is lacking, but what is likely lacking is something like tackling machines or a concerted effort to have tackling technique a part of every practice. The no pads practice to explain the Riders pitiful performance is just laziness on the part of the over 1 million armchair coaches and GMs in Rider Nation.

You have to wonder if the clock is ticking on the final few weeks of Craig Dickenson’s reign in Saskatchewan as head coach. The Riders have shown some signs of improvement over last year, but the Riders have problems with healthy players, whether due to signing guys with previous medical problems or the warps in the turf at Mosaic Stadium is another question; and the question is still, are the players not that talented or is the coaching not getting the best out of the players.

So, if the Riders back into the playoffs and go one and out, then the question has to be asked, has the current management team done enough this season to justify new contracts?

The Riders loss to Ottawa did not hurt them as much as one would have thought Friday night watching the Riders shoot themselves in the foot, reload and keep shooting.

The BC Lions moved into a first-place time with the Stony Mountain Bombers with a 37-29 win over the Edmonton Elk. Montreal went into Calgary and once again beat a sub-500 team 28-11, keeping the Riders two games and four points above Calgary and Edmonton in the standings.

Toronto clinched with a 29-14 win over Hamilton and now has to manager the trick of giving their players time off over the next few weeks without losing any of the continuity that helped them to a league best 12-1 record with five games remaining and a 10-point lead on Montreal in the standings.

Toronto goes to Winnipeg for what I am sure TSN is billing as the game of the year, although the real game of the regular season will come next week when Winnipeg goes to BC.

Toronto has indicated that Chad Kelly will not be starting at quarterback although he will likely play at some point in the game. Toronto is trying to rotate players through and not further damage their current starters.

Toronto has nothing to play for in this game, other than bragging rights, but the real game for bragging rights comes in November, so for the Argos this is nothing more than an exhibition game to give some players and extended look.

Winnipeg will be focused on their next game against BC, but cannot afford the mental lapses that come with not taking an opponent seriously. Winnipeg though cannot help themselves – they do not think any team is in their league in the CFL.

I really like the Argos defense to go after Zach Collaros and an older, slower Winnipeg offensive line. Cameron Dukes starts for the Argos at QB and while you may be wondering…who is Cameron Dukes…keep in mind Winnipeg has no idea what to expect from Dukes.

That element of uncertainty is something that Toronto can use. Winnipeg will likely throw every blitz Richie Hall can think of against Toronto to rattle the young QB, but Dukes has a running game and receivers he can rely on.

If Dukes can keep cool under the lights of Incestuous Field in Winnipeg, then I see Toronto pulling out a 27-26 win

Montreal goes to Ottawa and for Montreal, beating Calgary has put them firmly on the path to second place and a home playoff game. Montreal’s win over Calgary was marked by the return to rushing form by William Stanback and if Stanback is running the ball well, then Cody Fajardo can be more effective as a passer.

Ottawa broke their seven-game losing streak with a win against the Riders featuring the running game and an opportunistic defense. The problem is Ottawa has not beaten an eastern team this year and Montreal feasts on sub-500 teams, which has worked for them to a 7-7 record and second place in the east.

I have to admire the spirit and pluck of Ottawa who even though if they are outclassed on the talent front, definitely play for each other. The issue is whether they have the talent to overcome their shortcomings.

Ottawa keeps games close and with Montreal threatening to clinch a playoff berth or at least eliminate Ottawa, Montreal takes a close game 25-24.

Calgary goes to Hamilton for the last game of the weekend Calgary lost a great chance to creep closer to Saskatchewan when they dropped the game to Montreal.

Calgary has the look of a team that will have to modify the duties of Dave Dickenson, the GM/Head Coach of the Stamps who has put together a 4-10 record.

Hamilton dropped their game to Toronto by a convincing score, and now tries to rebound to keep Montreal in their sights. Calgary has a game against the Riders next week, and if they win this game and then come into Mosaic and beat the Rider, Calgary is then in third spot in the west.

Playoff money can be a power motivator and take the stench off a terrible regular season. Calgary wins this one 28-24 as the Stamps show they are more resilient than Dracula.

Finally, we have the Riders at BC, the second game on Friday night. The Riders look like they will be tinkering with their defensive line in an effort to get contain and pressure on BC quarterback Vernon Adams Jr.

The last time the two teams played, the Riders took advantage of a resurgent defense to confuse Adams and come away with a win. The Riders have lost the element of surprise with Jake Dolegala and now how to rely on team execution to show they are contenders and not pretenders.

BC will be focused on Winnipeg, and realize that if they do not not take the Riders seriously, they lose ground to the Bombers and nobody wants to go to Incestuous Field in November.

The Riders will attempt to be competitive, but there is something seriously broken on this team and the Lions take advantage of this for a 29-22 win.

by Greg Urbanoski

Riders Hold On Field Garbage Day against Ottawa

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