An Eight game schedule? The CFL Commissioner live on line answering questions? Will the Riders go black or blitz?

So let’s say the first wave of the pandemic breaks here in April/May and depending on where you are, will either hit heavy or not at all. The idea of going to a stadium and being beside someone who may or may not be a carrier of Covid 19 may not be all that attractive to people and depending on how public health authorities handle the situation, may not be possible.

So in that case, do teams hand out refunds to fans who may be older or may have underlying health issues which would make them suspectible to Covid-19? Do the teams have an idea of how to maintain spacing between people to try to minimize the risk of infection?

Here is another thing to consider – what if Covid-19 runs wild through the United States and the border remains closed? Unless you have American or global players living in Canada, it may be pretty difficult to bring in your original roster and what happens then?

So while training camps open in May, I suspect that will not be possible. Depending on what happens, July might be a stretch, but if the CFL started on Labour Day weekend, played an eight game schedule – it works pretty easy in the west with playing each western team home and away, in the east it gets a bit more complicated – then you could still end up with a Grey Cup in Regina assuming the next wave of Covid-19 is not as devastating as it seems now.

Those are awfully big dice to be rolling, even if you play in empty stadiums to reduce the health risk. The NFL is continuing with their off-season schedule, although modifying it with their draft to be a conference call instead of the massive party in Vegas they had envisioned last year.

The CFL is still signing players, but team facilities are currently closed because of the limits on gatherings and other health reasons. The Riders have signed Terry Swanson, a 5’9” 209 lb running back from Toledo who was a free agent signing of the Texans.

Equally as interesting was the signing of offensive lineman Cyrus Kouandjio, 26, a 6’7” 320 lb offensive lineman who was drafted in the second round by the Buffalo Bills. Kouandjio played at Alabama but considering he is from Africa, did not get the same football experience as his counterparts so while he has the size to be a bulldozer, he may not have the footwork to be good in pass protection.

The addition of running backs and defensive backs makes one suspect if the Rider coaching staff can come up with cost effective replacements for say, William Powell or perhaps Ed Gainey, the Riders may well go that route if it frees up for potential NFL cuts or perhaps XFL types.

Speaking of which, XFL players will be able to sign with teams other than XFL on March 31 when their league contracts expire. Since the XFL was forced to cancel its season because of Covid-19, they are still paying their players and if they sign CFL or NFL contacts, they forfeit whatever money might be left on their XFL payments.

The NFL has picked up a few promising XFL candidates and CFL teams with their negotiation lists are probably keeping an eye on the situation, but with the border closed and all that, it might be premature to say the CFL will be swamped with XFL refugees.

One CFL player who might be looking to come back and probably with Edmonton is receiver SJ Green. That signing will come about as a result of the Scott Milanovich taking the lead in Edmonton and Green and Milanovich’s prior connections in Montreal and Toronto.

There is also Armanti Edwards who apparently did not see any game time in the XFL, and offensive lineman Derek Dennis, both of whom at one point or another played in Riderville. I wouldn’t make too much of the XFL player flood, what is more interesting is what will happen with the NFL draft .

The Covid-19 pancdemic has resulted in NFL and CFL teams being forced to rely more on film than personal visits. This means those players who are unable to get the interest of NFL teams through a workout will be looking for jobs and opportunities to play.

So while the NFL CBA increases regular and practice roster sizes and increases pay for those positions, there are going to be a lot of players who fall through the cracks this year because they did not get an opportunity to display their wares in either a combine or Pro Day setting.

So the Riders may be in a position to find some diamonds in the rough who if they were not drafted by NFL teams would not be getting an opportunity to play except for the CFL. Contacts will be everything when it comes to identifying players in the US or perhaps even in Canadian University football.

The Riders will be able to use whatever time they get from the season not starting to get some players back in the groove. News came out that Charleston Hughes had a bone chip in his elbow which made it painful for him although he still made sacks in the second half of the season. Hughes has had the surgery done and the extra time should have him fresh for the eight game rush the CFL season may well become.

Punter Jon Ryan came out and said he had skin cancer and would be operated on but should make a full recovery. Seeing he is a ginger and lives in the off-season in California, that’s a good warning to look after yourself.

With the bottom falling out of the economy and people not sure if they have jobs or can make a mortgage payment or rent, the Riders decided to shave some of their prices on their online site to try to stimulate business. Some have read the price cuts to jerseys – from $224 to $157, as being indicative the Riders are looking to bring in new jerseys, perhaps even the retros as the main jersey in 2020.

There is a vocal element who feel the Rider colors are green and white and should stay green and white and preferably the retros many of us remember from the 60s-mid 80s’. While I am a fan of the classic Riders jersey, changes in the way jerseys are made have made reproducing that next to impossible. Players prefer the jerseys to be tight to prevent opposing players from grabbing onto them and very few have the sleeves that would make the circles on the old Rider jerseys possible.

Fans are being given a choice between the black jerseys that came out in the mid-2000’s and Blitz green or what I call the signature jerseys. In an on-line poll, the blitz green seems to be leading the blacks, although if they bring the signatures back, make them not so busy with the little sheaves of wheat and the watermelon green colors.

The Riders will be trying to recoup some of the money they will be losing through the season being shortened and let’s be honest, if you have a Rider jersey that looks like the same Rider jersey for the last three years, why would you blow $150 to buy another one?

The Riders are going to find that Covid-19 will make it easier for people to dump tickets considering the expense involved. It will also make it easier to avoid being marketed every little thing that the Riders can slap a logo on.

However, in the interest of trying to build interest, all CFL teams will likely come out with a third jersey this year. But whether or not the demand is there is going to be an interesting question to answer for the Riders, the CFL and you the fans.

by Greg Urbanoski

An Eight game schedule? The CFL Commissioner live on line answering questions? Will the Riders go black or blitz?

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