Riders are in uncharted waters following win over Bombers

The Riders would face the Bombers talking determined about not letting the Bombers push them around and the Bombers would end up doing just that in beating the Riders and going to the Grey Cup. Last year in Cory Mace’s first year, the Riders were competitive, and they did make it to the western final, but the Bombers blitzed the Riders to go to the Grey Cup again, where they lost again.

This year the Riders have their acts together on offense, defense and on occasion special teams. For the Riders to believe they are actual Grey Cup contenders, sweeping the Bombers was a necessary first step in proving to themselves they could do it.

Labour Day was an entertaining 34-30 win and while the score was close, being at the game it never really felt that close, and the feeling was the Riders had matured enough to take care of business and finally handle the team that had made fans lives miserable across Canada these last five years.

In the Rematch the Bombers came out strong and gave Rider quarterback Trevor Harris some different looks, but eventually the Rider defensive line managed to make Zach Collaros’ life miserable including a sack by CJ Revis that left Collaros on the ground not moving and afterwards had people from Milt Stegall on down stating Collaros should retire for the sake of his future health.

The Riders got five field goals from Brent Lauther that has stopped discussion about taking him out of the line up. Whether Lauther’s inconsistency was due to his impending fatherhood and anxiety over that, or dealing with a new holder who is no Adam Lorshak, is probably something best left between Lauther and his sports psychologist, but the Riders cannot afford to have a shaky kicker as they zero in on clinching a home playoff game.

The secret sauce in the Riders defensive showing is where the Riders are using Malik Carney. Carney is being lined up over the weakest link in the opposing offensive line and it is either Carney or his defensive line teammates who are stacking up the sacks and taking the Bombers offense out of the picture with Carney getting penetration and either he or his teammates capitalizing.

The Riders have a four-game lead on the Bombers with six games remaining and one more game between the two teams. Collaros has not yet been cleared to play Friday night in Hamilton and if Collaros does not play, it will be either Chris Streveler or some baggage handler from the Bomber stadium handling the quarterbacking duties.

In terms of offensive weapons, the Bombers have Brady Olivera and Nic Demski. They used to have Dalton Shoen, but he came back probably too early from a knee injury, reinjured it and is gone for the season.

Shoen and now Collaros are now exhibits in how the Bombers handle their player personnel in a place where winning taking priority over players health. Depth is a problem in all football leagues and when teams lose starters to injury and when you have increased expectations because your team, which has taken part in the last five Grey Cups and is hosting this one, you cannot be seen as falling behind your competitors.

In last year’s Grey Cup, Collaros injured his finger, apparently splitting it open and when the Bombers did a Gorilla Glue job on the finger to get him back in instead of maybe letting a back up handle things until they had a better handle on Collaros’ hand situation, Collaros went in and threw three interceptions, and the Bombers lost their third Grey Cup in a row.

The Bomber problems are more profound than just the state of Collaros’s head, their receiving corps inspires fear only among their fans and their defense is no longer the intimidating force it once was. The Bombers lost players and coaches in free agency and this year, when they could have given their fans the once in a lifetime experience of cheering for their home team in a championship game, the Bombers are falling short.

So, for Friday’s game where the Bombers face the Tiger-Cats who ran a lot against Montreal in a 26-9 win, the Bombers are looking potentially at Chris Streveler trying to demonstrate he is more than just a guy who likes to wear women’s fur coats.

Streveler though is not the answer at quarterback and while the Bombers may be looking at options like maybe pursuing Dru Brown, they are limited in their response for Friday.

The Bombers still have a competitive team, but part of their reign was based on the fact they could dominate the Riders at will. The Riders may at times be competitive, but in the end, the Bombers would prevail.

This could still happen, but on Friday night Hamilton will use a balance of running and passing, especially to their receivers, some of whom are well known to Bomber fans. Hamilton is leading the east and there is a chance at a western cross over, which could be Winnipeg or BC, and Hamilton would probably prefer to see a team it can dominate, like Ottawa, finish third rather than face BC or Winnipeg in the eastern final.

Hamilton will win this game 30-27 due to the uncertainty around Winnipeg’s quarterback situation and the real possibility Collaros may be done. The CFL trade deadline should approaching soon and maybe Winnipeg is in the mood to try to find another quarterback who appears down on their luck but with a change of scenery could spark the Bombers.

Ottawa plays BC in a rematch of the game last week where the Redblacks came back from behind in the fourth quarter to win 34-33 over the Lions. The Redblacks did it behind the running and throwing of Dustin Crum but the real story is how bad the Lions pass defense is.

Ottawa is tied with Toronto for third in the east with a 4-8 record, one back against Montreal and a win for Ottawa would put them into a tie with Montreal and definite playoff contention. The problem is picking Ottawa to do this again is risky because you would think BC defensive coordinator Mike Benevedes would have addressed the problems that allowed Ottawa to come back.

Then again, there is a reason BC has a 5-7 regular season record. BC may have Canadian quarterback Nathan Rourke, but they have not got either the right support or the coaching to help him move to the next level. BC is tied for fourth in the west with Edmonton and BC cannot afford to lose any games because with how tight the standings are, a loss at this time of year may cast you out of the playoffs.

This will be another close game, even though Ottawa must pass through several time zones to get to Vancouver. I suspect I may be giving Benevedes too much credit for correcting problems in the BC secondary, but he is coaching, and I am not.

BC to win this game 29-28.

Edmonton had a monster game running on an injury depleted Stampeder defense for a 31-19 win and now the Elk face a playoff level game against the Argos who are making a case for Nick Arbuckle as the eastern nominee for most outstanding player. Arbuckle has been holding the Argos together as Chad Kelly recovers from a broken leg and doing an excellent job in keeping his team competitive.

Edmonton is likely going to continue with their focus on a running attack as they make a move on playoff contention and Edmonton and Toronto are the two teams that will make life difficult for their competitors in the CFL.

Toronto is coming off a bye and has had time to absorb and plan for the offense the Elk are going to bring. It is not tough to be impressed by how competitive Toronto has been, even with losing their entire defensive line to free agency.

Toronto will have to pay attention to how Edmonton may be trying to spring loose their running backs, and Edmonton’s defense does not do much in terms of getting turnovers.

In other words, advantage Toronto offense and considering the stakes involved in this game, such as positioning for a playoff spot, expect to see another tight and exciting game. Toronto will win this one 30-23

Finally we have Montreal coming to Riderville in an effort to finally shake off the losing streak the team has been on since starting quarterback Davis Alexander went out with a hamstring injury. McLeod Bethel Thompson was unable to move the team and went on the six game list for what was said to be a hand injury but was obviously more of a pouting issue.

McBLT may well be starting Saturday night against the Riders and with Austin Mack and Tyson Philpot in the lineup, Montreal’s offense should be looking much better than it did when the Riders came out of Montreal with a 34-6 win.

This is predicated on McBLT finding out his hand can handle throwing the ball. Montreal rushed Alexander back from injury too soon and he reinjured his hamstring and even though Montreal is barely hanging on to second place, they cannot afford to not have a healthy Alexander in the lineup for the last third of the season.

If the Riders face McBLT, the Rider defense will eventually break through the Argo offensive line and make McBLT rue the day his father met his mother. The Riders will be probably run the ball more because of a forecast for rain Saturday and the Riders will look very different when they come back from their final bye week of the regular season.

The Riders after the break will likely have receivers Kian Shaffer-Baker and Samuel Emilus back in the lineup and their additions will result in changes across the roster. With those two receivers, the Riders get big play capability, but when you look at how Winnipeg and Montreal have handled or mishandled players on the injury list, the Riders are fortunate enough to not have to rush those two back onto the roster.

The game against Montreal marks the end of the gauntlet of tough teams the Riders faced in their stretch which has left them with a 10-2 record and almost clinching first place. If the Riders are looking ahead to their bye week and ignore the talent Montreal has, they can easily lose this game.

The Riders will win this one 28-22 with most of the uncertainty over who Montreal will start at quarterback. If McBLT does not start, the Riders odds of winning go up quite a bit, but there are things like what shape McBLT’s injured hand is in.

All the CFL teams are in playoff contention with a third of the season remaining and several upsets already taking place. The Riders were fortunate with Edmonton beating Calgary and providing the Riders with some buffer space in the race for first.

The Riders have systematically met the challenges being set in front of them as they have battled to win the west. The Riders can make things easy for themselves with a win over Montreal, but then again, when has making things easy for their fans ever been the Rider way?

The Riders are an underdog team who are more used to fighting their way to first place instead of riding the waves to first place. Rider fans are used to seeing promising teams before, but this year, this team seems different.

There is still the riddle of Calgary to overcome, but somehow, I don’t think that will be something that will fluster this coaching staff. Being in first place by such a margin gives the coaching staff options when it comes to after they clinch a playoff spot, preferably a home playoff game.

The Riders have rarely been in these heights in the standings so this is all new to Rider fans, but in the meantime, they seem determined to enjoy every moment of a season no one had ever expected.

by Greg Urbanoski

Riders are in uncharted waters following win over Bombers

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