Riders beat Argos…now what?

Add to this QB Cody Fajardo coming off concussion protocol and the weirdness of AC Leonard getting a third game of suspension due to his berating of an official looking for his urine sample, the Rider injuries in the defensive secondary and the stage was set for a potential upset.

The absence of Ed Gainey and Mike Edem set the stage for the Argos to try a bunch of deep passes which if they were occasionally caught, would have changed the complexion of the game.

The Riders though with the defensive line and linebacker play more than made up for that, particularly in two goal line stands where the Riders turned the Argos away without scoring a major touchdown.

The Riders also managed to address some offensive line concerns by having the linemen concentration on running the ball instead of constant pass protection. The result was William Powell rushing for 122 yards in what has to be his best performance of the year.

However, Christian Campbell and Eli Bouka looked like fish out of water, lacking the ability to make basic communication as they consistently allowed receivers go deep and help Argo QB Nick Arbuckle sustain drives.

The Riders may not have options here, at least not yet since new players coming in have to pass the Covid quarantine first before they get onto the field. In the meantime, it depends on coaching and the players’ ability to understand what is being asked of them.

There are some other things that kind of nagged at Rider fans. Brent Lauther made two of four field goals, both with the wind, which was kind of strange.

However, the emergence of Kian Schaffer-Baker as a bona fide Canadian receiver and even better, someone who can stretch the field vertically was a welcome surprise and his touchdown in the fourth quarter was the thing of which legends were born.

It may seem sacrilegious to suggest this, but it reminded me of when Ray Elgaard was punishing defensive backs back in the day.

So the Riders now find themselves tied for second place with the BC Lions and four points behind the Bombers. The Bombers own the season series with the Riders with the two wins and realistically the Riders should be more concerned with getting ready for the playoffs.

The Riders and Lions are trailed by Edmonton Chronic Wasters owning a 2-4 record and the Calgary Stumps who have a 2-5 record.

It’s kind of a strange week in the CFL with a Wednesday night game between the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Ottawa Redblacks, then on Friday there is a double header with Montreal at Toronto followed by the Riders at BC.

In the east Hamilton and Toronto are tied for first with 3-3 records, followed by Montreal at 2-3 and Ottawa at 1-4. There is the possibility of a crossover, but for the first time in a long time, it seems that there will be just three playoff spots claimed by western teams.

So with Hamilton at Ottawa, Ottawa has brought in some receiving talent, but their problems extend to QB with Matt Nicholls and his arm and leg problems. Nicholls cannot throw the ball deep, leaving Dominique Davis at the helm.

Davis has mixed reviews and while I remember how he had the seemingly perfect game against the Riders in 2021, but when he came to Mosaic Stadium, threw interceptions on his first three possessions.

Hamilton for their part took out Calgary 23-17 with former Rider back up QB David Watford taking the controls for Hamilton after Dane Evans went down with injury and Jeremiah Masoli not yet being able to come back off the injury list.

Ottawa is only going to win based on the guile of their coaching staff and lyrical work by their defense and special teams. The likelihood of that happening, well, it is possible, but not on Wednesday night. Hamilton wins 25-17.

On Friday the first game is Montreal at Toronto with Montreal coming off a 27-18 loss to BC while without head coach Khari Jones. That seems to sum up Montreal, full of promise but with no discipline.

Montreal has the offense while Toronto has Chris Jones making his first appearance as the uh, defensive consultant with the Argos since resigning as the coach of his former high school.

Maybe Toronto pulls this off at home, but I think that is not likely because the Argos while talented, do not have the consistency to win together – yet. However, keep your eye on the Argos toward the end of the season, I think they are the verge of accomplishing something like being a realistic Grey Cup contender.

But until the Argos can muster up the consistency to do so, then I do not see them beating Montreal. Montreal wins this one 25-22.

Finally, we have the game of the week with the Riders going out to BC. The winner moves into second place and this is a rematch of the season opener where the Riders run roughshod over the BC Lions in the first half, but barely hung on in the second half.

The Lions with Michael Reilly are a better team and the Riders without Gainey and Edem are not that good in the defensive secondary. The Lions have a good receiving corps, but no real running game and while their defensive secondary is very good, their defensive line is not.

So for the Riders to win, they will have to run and run well with William Powell. The Riders short passing game will not impress the Lions, but if the Riders can at least stretch the field, there may be room for a short possession passing game.

I suspect the Lions will be up for this game, which will not resemble the first game between these two, and the Lions should come out of this with a 23-20 win because the Riders have not given any sign they are ready to deal with their league leading penalties.

Bring Em Out Against Toronto

Fajardo looks for Schaffer Baker Against Toronto

Fajardo Passes to Moore at Toronto Game

Lenius TD Against Toronto

by Greg Urbanoski

Riders beat Argos…now what?

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