By Greg Urbanoski

Riderville

Still in Shock over Rider Win

Sep 27, 2021 | 8:41 AM

I’m still in shock.

It was an amazing 31-24 win by the Riders over BC Friday night which gave them sole possession of second place, but it was the way the Riders did it that was incredible.

While the BC Lions scored on big plays, and seemingly nothing else, the Riders dinked and dunked their way down the field, finally breaking through to the end zone. BC kept pace and held the lead when QB Cody Fajardo led Mitch Picton by too much and was interecepted late in the fourth quarter.

I was getting ready for work, and when the interception took place, was grabbing things to go when Deion Lacey ran down Michael Reilly from behind and forced the Lions to punt. However, their punter shanked the punt and left the ball at mid field with just over a minute.

Work was going to have to wait.

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Fajardo hit Ricardo Louis for a couple of receptions. Louis had scored a touchdown in the third quarter and this game showed Rider fans why the team kept him around even though he had nothing in receptions last week. The Riders then drove to the one yard line where Fajardo went over to tie the game and then Brent Lauther made the extra point to get the Riders the lead.

The Riders then added an insurance touchdown on the kick off when Lucky Whitehead, who had two TDs but also fumbled a punt earlier in the game, fumbled yet again and Damon Webb picked the ball up and ran it in for the point spread saving TD.

The Riders to date had either gotten ahead of other teams and stayed ahead or if it was Winnipeg, the Riders played it close for a half and then folded in the second half. In this game the Riders showed patience in overcoming penalties and bad calls and were methodical in moviing the ball.

Unlike BC there were not a lot of long passes, but BC either hits it big or they consistently go two and out. For whatever reason, BC did not try to establish a running game and when you pass on pretty well every down, it becomes easier to defend.

The way the Riders went on the road, kept it close and closed the game out on a winning note is something that can be considered to be a character win. The Riders, at least in the minds of their fans, have been wondering if this team could respond to adversity after being dominated by Winnipeg.

The Riders proved to themselves they can respond and even without a deep threat receiver, they can move the ball more consistently than their opponents. Their defense, with the return of Ed Gainey and Loucheiz Purifoy was much better in responding to deep balls.

Fajardo showed the nerve of a cat burglar as he used his receiving corps that BC probably thought they could bottle up very easily down the field. Even if the Riders had lost, which I thought they would before the game because I was not sold on their defensive secondary and the threat that is Lucky Whitehead, it was a tremendously entertaining game and the Riders can now tell the Bombers, yeah, we beat someone with a decent record.

The Edmonton Toronto cancellation has seemingly forced some strange shifts in the CFL schedule , but for the Riders, they now have three games in a row against the Godless Calgary Stampeders. Craig Dickenson has yet to beat brother Dave in head coaching matches, but Dave this year has seen his Calgary team, compete, but not for long and not very well, against their opposition.

The Stampeders are in last place in the west, which has been a long time coming, but even with it’s underperformance of the team and Mitchell in particular (although he has apparently a broken fibia) the team is still the only one who beat the Winnipeg Major Crimes Unit this year. You get the feeling watching Calgary that if they have the chance to work together, they will be better and likely contending for a playoff spot.

It seems that shakey offensive line play is one of the few constants of this 2021 CFL season and the Stampeders are not the only victims of this. In BC while their offensive line has improved since 2019 when Michael Reilly was nearly declared an endangered species because opposing defense preyed on him so much, they still haven’t got a running game worth blocking for.

The Riders have a young inexperienced line and I thought that would be the Achilles Heel (or tendon ) for the team this season if Fajardo was not able to get time to get rid of the ball. Hoever for the most part the line has done better than expected and the true test of how far they have come will come in the western final when they meet the Winnipeg Major Crimes Unit.

Hamilton also has a young offensive line and considering they have lost two quarterbacks already this season, this is not reassuring to a team looking to play in the Grey Cup game they are hosting in December. So the winner of that game will be the team that has the least injuries and the best offensive line coach.

For the Riders, the next three games against the Stumps could well clinch second place for the Riders in addition to driving a stake through the Stumps hopes of making the playoffs this year. The Riders do get AC Leonard back this week from his three week suspension for not being able to provide urine for a drug test and then verbally abusing the official sent to get the sample.

The Rider defense still leads the league in quarterback sacks, which makes the decision to release Charleston Hughes easier to swallow. The addition of Leonard brings more to the defense who are up against a better offensive line and a diminished quarterback.

Rider offensive coordinator Jason Maas is now sporting glasses, which may help as he tries to improvise an offense that is trying to move the ball while making it easy for an essentially rebuild offensive line. The short passes may not gets fans out of their seat, but given a choice between a seven second play resulting in a 75 yard touchdown (like Lucky Whitehead against us) or a 10 minute drive resulting in a touchdown, I’ll take the clock killing drive every time.

So this week in the CFL starts on Tuesday when the Edmonton Chronic Wasters wander into Dysfunctional Male centre in Ottawa to play the cursed Redblacks. Paul La Polilce may be wondering what Dark Gods he has offended when forced to field a wide receiver after both is QBs go down because the CFL only allows two to be dressed.

That is sort of the tip of the iceberg for LaPolice who is hoping to uncover some receivers and maybe a running back, what the hell, an entire offensive unit would be nice. Ottawa went down to Hamilton in th erain, but maybe what could be described as a too little too late airlift by GM Marcel Desjardins may help lay the foundation for 2022 including maybe a quarterback.

THe Chronic Wasters for their part are starting a quarterback named Cornelius and the last time I heard that name he was one of the smarter chimp scientists in Planet of the Apes – which Redblack fans would argue is what their team has become. I’m going to assume the Redblacks will start Russ Jackson who could do no worse than Matt Nicholls but the Chronic Wasters will rut their way to a 25-20 win.

THe Winnipeg Major Crimes Unit comes to BC Place where QB Michael Reilly and the Lions have established they are either a team that hits big plays or nothing at all. When Reilly is not hitting Lucky Whitehead on a deep pass, Reilly and the non-existent BC running game are consistently hitting two downs and out.

Winnipeg has their dominant offensive line and talented defensive line that may create opportunities for BC to exploit. Winnipeg also has a defense that creates their own opportunities to score.

BC had a defense that is rounding into shape but when the Riders can move the ball on you with under a minute to win the game, BC’s secondary may have to deal with not being the best thing since sliced bread. BC will hit big plays to keep it close, but the Winnipeg Major Crimes Unit emerges with a 22-20 win.

Montreal can claim to be close in their games this season, but a combination of over confidence and lack of discipline had brought Montreal to a 2-4 start. Montreal does have the talent to challenge for first in the east, but they have not made the step from relying on their talent to playing like a team to be regarded as true contender.

Hamilton has been snakebit with injuries this year, but last week David Watford had his Rocky Butler moment (if you are unsure what I am referring to, please ask the nearest Rider fan near you) and is a better game manager than Matt Nicholls. However, Watford beating Ottawa in a torrential downpour should not be considered a Rocky moment.

The reason is my 17 year old Himalayan cat could have led her team to a win in those circumstances. Montreal may have a talented team but with no idea of what to do while Hamilton may not have a starting quarterback b ut they have a team around him except for maybe the offensive line.

Montreal has the defensive options to make life difficult for Watford so in a stretch we have Montreal 22 and Hamilton 20.

Finally we have the Riders go to Calgary where the Dickenson Brothers can continue their running argument on which one Mom loved best.

Dave in Calgary has a team which has beaten Winnipeg this year but now looks like a shadow of its former self, even with Bo Levi Mitchell back in camp. The Riders off their first road win of the year now have experience in coming back against talented teams and after securing the tie breaker against BC could conceivably clinch a playoff spot with three wins in the next three games against the stumps.

Mitchell has been looking off in his passing which raises questions that maybe his shoulder has not fully recovered from two years ago. Calgary seems to have pieces in place, but a lot of those pieces belong to guys coming back from major injuries and sometimes players come back, like Rob Bagg, and sometimes they don’t.

Speasking of comebacks, AC Leonard is back for this one, and the question I have is will Kian Shaffer-Baker inherit the Chris Getzlaf title as stump killer? (they both wear #89). The Riders lead the CFL in sacks and I suspect they will add to that total as they try to throw Mitchell off on his timing.

Calgary will be trying to save their season, the Riders are looking to beat the Stumps for the first time since Craig Dickenson took over the Riders. I think Mom will like Craig best after this game with the Riders winning 23-20 on a walk off Brent Lauther field goal.

Which will likely keep me in shock….