Riders Onslaught on CFL Continues

This leads me to the biggest intangible and gamble of the Chris Jones hiring – the ability to recognize talent. Chamblin at the end of his reign of terror over the Riders was playing favorites and scaring players with benching or sticking on the neg list if he didn’t like the way they walked. There are players who tried out for the Riders – case in point quarterback John Jennings now with the BC Lions, who were not recognized or given the opportunity to show their talents at the various camps Chamblin and Taman ran.

So now the pressure is on Jones and Murphy to identify the talent and make sure the Riders get full value for their investment. In addition the Riders, Toronto Argonauts and Winnipeg Blue Bombers will be holding a joint free agent camp on April 1 in Carlsbad California.

Now this is interesting, if only because Chris Jones was formerly on the staff of Scott Milanovich in Toronto and Mike O’Shea and that staff were pretty tight. The other interesting thing about this is a joint camp like this, sponsored by something called the California Sports Institute, is a money saver and gives the three teams a great chance to not only evaluate their own free agents, but also negotiation list players. There may be multiple deals coming out this camp as teams decide which negotiation lists better suit their organizations.

The Riders on Friday signed defensive lineman Caesar Rayford who is 29 and has played at various levels of professional football including stints with Calgary when Chris Jones was there. The key to the Rayford signing and probably to the rest of the Rider defensive signings is size. Rayford is 6’7”.

The Riders made an interesting signing with Michael Campbell, a receiver who was the practice roster of the Ottawa Redblacks who the Riders nabbed in something called the waiver draft. Yeah, I wasn’t aware of anything like that either. Campbell is 6’2” 225 pounds and adds size and perhaps speed to the receiving corps. Prior to coming up to Ottawa, he had been with the New York Jets and St. Louis Rams.

The Riders also signed Melvin Abankwah, who they drafted in the fifth round of the 2015 draft and has a bit of question mark due to his use of performance enhancing chemicals which the CFL doesn’t check for. Abankwah is 5’9” and 190 pounds and it appears the Riders are bolstering their running back spot with Canadian talent.

The Riders also signed Nick Taylor, a defensive back previously with the New York Jets and Minnesota Vikings who signed on the Rider practice roster in October. Taylor is listed as 5’9” 190 pounds.

The Riders also signed S.J. Haidara, a Canadian receiver who saw some impressive action at the end of the season. Haidara is 6’1” 215 pounds. They also signed Brandon Deschamps, a running back from the Vanier Cup Champion UBC Thunderbirds. Deschamps is 6’ 215 pounds and with the running back collection the Riders are putting together, it might be time to ask the question if the Riders are looking to sign Andrew Harris?

The Riders signed Canadian defensive back Kwame Adjei who was drafted by the team last year. Adjei is 6’1 205 pounds. Rider fans may be wondering why I am posting their physical stats, but there is a pattern developing here that I want to share and that is how the team is at least getting physically bigger.

The Riders also signed Aaron Picton, a University of Regina Rams player who was drafted by Calgary in the sixth round of the 2015 draft and was traded to Saskatchewan in the Jerome Messam trade. Picton is 6’4” 295 pounds and follows Murphy’s plan of building an All-Canadian defensive line, or at least an offensive line with Canadian depth on it.

The Riders also signed American offensive tackle Jarriel King, who they got from Toronto in a trade for Andre Monroe, who loved to rub his belly after tackling a quarterback but who was apparently too short for a Chris Jones defense.

Now in other CFL news, Marcel Bellefeuille who got axed as the Winnipeg Blue Bomber offensive coordinator, caught on as the receivers coach in BC. Bob Dyce, the Rider interim head coach who had a thankless job, caught on as the special team’s coordinator in Ottawa. Dyce may have gone 3-6, but he had a thankless job after Chamblin and Taman ran the club into the ground.

Jaimie Elizondo, formerly of the Toronto Argonauts, was names Ottawa’s new offensive coordinator following the departure of Jason Maas to Edmonton. Edmonton’s effort to nab Noel Thorpe was shot down by the CFL who stepped in when Thorpe was named Edmonton’s defensive coordinator and Montreal complained that Thorpe was under contract to them for two more years as their defensive coordinator. The move by Thorpe was a result of Popp naming himself head coach, shooting down Thorpe’s aspirations in that regard. Montreal should be hilarious to watch this year.

Dominic Picard got released by Winnipeg when a huge bonus was due his way. Picard kind of helped Winnipeg’s offensive line, but not really as the Bombers seem prepared to go younger under Paul La Police as the returned offensive coordinator. Picard probably still has some mileage left, but more so as a back-up, so he might be Montreal bound because Popp likes his veterans, especially those French speaking ones who can talk to the media.

One signing that hurt was Zach Evans signing with Ottawa for two years. Evans and Keith Shologan were left dangling by the Riders in the Ottawa expansion draft while the Riders kept Dominic Picard, whom Winnipeg just let go. Evans came up through the Regina Thunder and losing two Canadians on the defensive line was the first sign the Riders were idiots following their Grey Cup win. I would have loved to seen Evans and Shologan back in Saskatchewan, especially since I have Shologan’s 2013 Grey Cup jersey.

Another signing which hurts, but is not unexpected is Ben Heenan signing another contract with the Indianapolis Colts. Heenan signed last year with the Colts, but injured his knee and was rehabbing it looking for another shot with the NFL team. That shot looked tenuous when Colts Head Coach Chuck Pagano was rumored to be losing his job after this season, but right after Pagano and Colts GM Terry Grigson were re-signed for a four year contract, Heenan was signed to a new contract afterwards. If Heenan comes available, it won’t be until after Labour Day.

Now the Riders signed Markus Howell as a receiver coach. Howell is coming off a five year stint as a Blue Bomber coach, including interestingly enough linebackers. Not sure how this helps or hurts, but its’ the final coaching nail to be hit and the Riders coaching staff is now complete.

There has been a lot of discussion about the status of Chris Getzlaf and Rod Pederson, who seems to have marginalized following the hiring of Jones, reports that Getzlaf will likely re-sign with the Riders, but likely at a reduced amount from the $250 K he made last season. Getzlaf injury history makes the pay to performance level not really viable, but he is a Canadian receiver, so a more cap friendly number will help the Riders in free agency where they may plan to go after Canadian defensive lineman Ted Laurent if rumors are correct.

Free agency by the way starts February 9. Prepare for some major changes.

The Rider rebuild is underway and it is looking very interesting.

Happy 2016!

by Riderville

Riders Onslaught on CFL Continues

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