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Trevor Harris threw an interception in his first series, but that was a result of a good hit by the defensive player popping the ball out on an attempted reception. Adding to this kerfuffle was Harris throwing the ball higher than most receivers could extend and Kian Schaffer Baker and Samuel Emilus playing tentatively with injuries – ankle for Emilus and oblique for Schaffer Baker.

Throw in a blocked punt which led Ottawa to a 10-0 lead before the Riders started to get their collective act together. In previous years this type of start by Ottawa would give them the game, but this year’s edition of the Riders are different – they know how to win, they just don’t make it easy on their fans.

While the Riders were figuring out how to use their offense, Harris started a display of passing which saw him hit receivers in very small windows. The result was incredible to watch and if you are an Ottawa fan, painful to watch.

The Riders were facing a team desperate for a win both on and off the field. Off the field, years of lousy teams have taken the shine off the Redblacks and how Ottawa handled the situation with Dru Brown, trading him to Winnipeg and not giving him a shot at leading the first time, would have me wondering if senior Ottawa management knows what they are doing.

The number of empty seats in Calgary, Edmonton and Ottawa makes one wonder if the CFL embrace of gambling is bringing in enough money to make teams profitable without having to resort to things like marketing to bring fans into the stands.

It was an interesting week in the CFL with the Calgary Stampeders embarking on a epic 58-36 win over Toronto. After the seeing the Argos handle the Riders, I was expecting to see them pass all over Calgary but the Argo defense that showed up should have had the Benny Hill theme on a perpetual loop to demonstrate their incompetence.

Calgary has been fascinating to watch because you can’t escape the feeling the bottom is going to fall out of the Stampeders sooner or later. The Calgary defensive line is first rate, the secondary less so and the receiving corps is charitably described as anemic, so Calgary is basically a Jekyll and Hyde team depending on which Vernon Adams Jr. shows up.

The question that remains is whether Toronto is as bad as they looked. The Argos were done no favors by the World Cup as they drift from stadium to stadium, looking for hopefully some cheering fans while coming to grips with a management that is not quite invested in their wellbeing.

The BC Lions finally got out of the winless column with a 36-24 win over the Edmonton Elk whose storybook season just hit a pothole. The game was held in Kelowna and looked gorgeous especially as you contrast the Lions approach to being kicked out by the World Cup by looking for fans in the BC interior while Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment treats the Argos like an encampment of homeless people with cardboard signs asking for money.

Edmonton’s fall from grace in a performance that suggests if you can handcuff Justin Rankin at running back, you can cripple the Elks offense. What made this even more impressive was BC has five players making over 23 per cent of the salary gap and GBC managed to find players to fill in for the injured without crippling the team.

Whether this starts a trend in the Lions locker room is something only they can decide. The Lions need more depth, and they went to their running game because their receiving corps is decimated.

For the Elk, if they can’t find a way to diversify their offense, their three-game winning streak to start the season may be all there is. They desperately need to get their passing game going so their opponents will have to do more than just stop the Elk running game to stop the Elk.

I hesitate to call the Bombers – Tiger-cats game the game of the week, but considering what happened to Bo Levi Mitchell and Zack Collaros, you had the feeling you were watching the end of an era. With Mitchell going down with an ankle injury, vowing to return before the end of the season, it looks like Hamilton’s Grey Cup hopes are on the slag heap.

As for the Bombers and Collaros, his apparent concussion resulted in the Bombers throwing out Tyler Elgersama as a starter since Dru Brown hasn’t even unpacked his boxes in Winnipeg following his trade.

Hamilton tried roating Jake Dolegala and Tre Ford through the game which had me wondering how overrated Scott Milanovich is as a quarterback whisperer. Expect to see more stunts like this from Milanovich as he brings the Cats in to Mosaic for a game Sunday night.

If Tre Ford cannot find his way back to a starters position, especially considering it was an injury that made this possible, then Hamilton needs to find a new back up quarterback. Dolegala and Ford are limited, and Ford is so outside Milanovich’ s comfort zone I doubt he will ever find a way through.

So on Thursday Ottawa goes to Edmonton to try yet again for a win and get back into a wider open playoff structure in the east. Dinwiddie’s off the rails interview after the Rider game where Dinwiddie showed off his lack of rule knowledge which probably explains why Ottawa’s punter refuses to push opposing players out of bounds.

Ottawa needs a win in any shape or form. Edmonton is looking to show it can bounce back after a loss and be a contender. If Ottawa is smart, they will throw everything in the playbook at the Elks and work to take the Elks running game out of the equation.

Edmonton should win this one 30-26.

Toronto goes to Winnipeg to convince Bomber fans their season was over three years ago. If Collaros is out with a concussion, the Bombers will have to roll out the next one to take over after Collaros calls it a career.

With no proven passer, the Bombers may elect to go to Plan B and use Brady Olivera as a running back to batter down the Argos paper Mache defense. If Toronto can come up with some continuity on defense, they could help the Bombers achieve the Endangered Species designation due to their efforts to go back and maybe win a Grey Cup.

Which version of the Argos and Bombers will show up and in keeping with the vibe of this season, I am going to have a shot and say Argos 31 Bombers 30.

Calgary goes to Montreal feeling very positive about Adams six touchdown performance. That was against Toronto and news flash for the Calgary Separatists – Montreal is not as bad as Toronto.

Mitchell’s injury makes the prospect of Montreal taking first place in the east easier to conjure up. For Montreal to move to true contender status, they need to demonstrate a running game that works and that they stick to through the game.

If Montreal is going to unveil a running game, there is no better team to test it against than Calgary with their defensive line. If Montreal can run it against Calgary, they can run it against anyone. Just remember, Adams is a streaky passer and Calgary should win 36-33 in another shootout.

A week ago, the prospect of the Hamilton Rider game would have people talking about a Grey Cup preview. Now with Mitchell in a cast following his ankle surgery, the Tiger-Cats may need an act of God, or a call from Donald Trump to Commissioner Stew to get into the Grey Cup game.

Ford would be the only player to bother me because he gave us trouble when he was in Edmonton and the Riders have problems with back up quarterbacks moving into starter positions. The Riders have a bye week after this game and considering their history of choking to second and third string quarterbacks, a Hamilton upset is not that much of a long shot.

Hopefully this week the Riders will let their injured players rest and test out the rest of their roster. The Riders won last year because of their depth and with new players seeing significant playing time, the team will only get better.

Maybe this is the superstitious Rider fan in me, but this is a potential trap game for the Riders. I suspect the Riders will do what it takes to stack up another win, this time 36-30 over the Cats.

by Greg Urbanoski

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