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At Least the Riders Didn’t Get Blown Out

Aug 27, 2016 | 7:42 PM

OK, today on the open call line we have Derek from Winnipeg. Derek, what is your question?

Hi, long time listener, first time caller. Watched the game Friday night and the way the Riders started, I started drinking early to kill the pain. Then in the second half they almost came back and if that Caleb Holley guy hadn’t dropped a touchdown pass, we could be 2-7. What the hell do you do think of that game?

Well Derek for those who say that Darian Durant needs to be moved out, let’s look at that game as an example and compare it to his playoff run, especially the western semi-final against BC. In that game Darian ran and willed the team to victory. That is something people forget about Durant is that when he started for the Riders, he was winning games and as Ron Lancaster once said, that is the only statistic that matters as a quarterback.

Now the army of cats I am amassing for Halloween could probably play offensive line better than what the Riders have now, with Xavier Fulton and Dan Clark playing with injuries, Chris Best still on the injury list and a long shot to return and Brendan LaBatte considering retirement after having his helmet kicked off his head means the Rider offensive line at 1979 levels when Lancaster started coaching and blew up the O-Line and brought in Roger Aldag and Bob Poley.

On the plus side, the Riders receiving corps is better with Namaan Roosevelt, Holley and Ricky Collins Jr. The Riders have screwed up in not landing a running back, but with that offensive line, I`m not sure if Kory Sheets returned with healthy knees that it would make much of a difference.

On defense the three man rush is not working, but neither has the defensive backfield. The addition of Fred Bennett helped the defensive backfield last night and so did Shane Herbert at safety in place of converted receiver Kevin Francis. In retrospect, perhaps the Riders, if they are serious about using Francis at safety, should have platooned him with someone who has already played safety so Francis can learn how to step in and play in various situations. Throwing someone into an entirely new position with no experience was just asking for problems.

The defensive line bothers me with the three man rush but the Riders are dropping as many people into coverage as possible because they aren`t very experienced or good at playing coverage. Eric Norwood, a former Hamilton defensive lineman who is good when he isn`t injured is expected to come off the nine game injury list, and if he comes back, then perhaps people like Justin Cappiciotti can actually perform as people thought he would.

The disappointing part of free agents like Cappiciotti and Shawn Lemon is while the Riders signed these guys, they had them doing things that didn`t take advantage of their talents. Lemon is a straight ahead pass rusher who balked at dropping back into coverage and was traded to Toronto where he has seemed to do well. If Norwood has a rushing buddy who can help spring him, then maybe the anemic Saskatchewan pass rush will rack up some sacks.

What was encouraging about Friday was when the Riders had Mike Reilly in the pocket and forced to pass or pass quickly, the Riders enjoyed some success. When Reilly was allowed to roam free, that bought time for his receivers and the Rider defensive backs are unable to cover effectively if they have to do so for longer than seven seconds because then they panic and touch the receivers and draw a penalty.

I finally had an idea of what the Riders are trying to do Friday night and also understand how far away they are from being where they want to be. In the year-end review, maybe Chris Jones will tell Craig Reynolds that the Riders went further than common sense would dictate and moved more players than was necessary because continuity has been and will likely continue to be a problem.

OK on line 2 we have Darren from Calgary with a comment or a question.

The Riders are 1-8 and have Winnipeg coming in for Labour Day, have the fans given up on the team yet?

Well Darren, yes and no. The Labour Day game will be a sell out and while the Riders are eight points out of a playoff spot, there is no doubt a win will help spark some far fetched playoff run that hasn’t been suggested yet by the team play.

It would be fair that fans feel they have been fed a line of crap by the Riders about having a competitive team and after getting rid of fan favorites like Weston Dressler, Ryan Smith and John Chick, the improvement people said would come hasn’t shown up on the field.

The last season of Taylor Field has brought in a lot of fans to take in their last game in the building and that has helped the Rider sales to track above last year’s levels. However if the Riders blow the Labour Day game and fall out of the playoff rush by the Banjo Bowl, the team will definitely be in a position of either losing money again or just treading water.

I think fans are ticked at the stupid fines from the cheating because those were totally unnecessary. Speaking as an owner and someone who has supported this team since 1976, I have spent enough hard earned money on helping to keep this team afloat without them throwing money on fines like it was an impulse buy or move, which the player moves might have been.

Of course there are those who support the team no matter what and anyone who speaks out against the team is nothing but a bandwagon jumper. That’s fine Darren, but like I said, I put my money where my mouth is in supporting this time and with two ownership shares, I feel I have earned the right to see the team be smarter in the way it operates than say Winnipeg.

The Edmonton game was important because it proved a glimpse of what the team might look like and it provided a classic example of Darian Durant’s leadership ability, which I haven’t seen in other quarterbacks except maybe Brent Smith, but Smith had a problem with making reads.

However, the true test of this team is beating Winnipeg. I hate Winnipeg, I hate their toothless fans, trying to hump my leg like feral dogs. I don’t care if the Riders go 2-16 as long as those two wins are against Winnipeg.

I don’t think I am alone in that and if the Riders are going to salvage something out of this season, they need to beat Winnipeg in the Labour Day game. That would send a signal the team is on the right track and there is a method behind all of this madness.

Friday was a hopeful sign. But moral victories won’t count on Sunday. Rider fans have suffered enough. Thanks for tuning in and catch the show later on this week.