Monday, October 15, 2018

Monday Morning Sentimonies: Embarrassing

Riders 0 - Bombers 31

Not sure how that could have gone worse short of Chris Jones getting caught making anti-semitic comments on camera. Look, I expected the Riders to lose on Saturday. It was a short week. We were banged up and missing guys. And the Bombers (who are no slouches) needed it way more than us. So the fact that we lost was not surprising. The fact that we showed absolutely no fight, effort, or knowledge of which direction the endzone was did surprise me. It was so bad that I can only assume Chris Jones spent his post game speech channeling his inner hockey coach from Letterkenny and knocking garbage cans around while yelling "F&$*$^*# Embarrassing!"

Now let me preface my comments on the game with the following. The loss sucked but this is not Armageddon (save us Bruce Willis). We still have the second most wins in the CFL. We still are 1 win away from a home playoff game. We are still heading to the playoffs. I know that standard practice in Riderville is bounce wildly from planning the parade route to sharpening our pitchforks and calling for everyone including maintenance staff to be fired but let's all just breathe a bit.

Ok, with that out of the way let's detail how craptacular that game was.

Zach Collaros must have contracted the severe case of the sucks that Nichols had on his last trip to Winnipeg because man he was awful. I get that he actually made some good throws only for the receivers to screw things up but he was awful. Maybe he needs glasses or maybe the last hit to his head caused colour blindness but he seems oblivious to opposing DBs. He wasn't the only one sucking. Kyran Moore had a brutal game. Marcus Thigpen played like he wanted to be anywhere but there. He actively avoided contact and his pass blocking was really just gentle touches as he backed out of harms way. Holley was awful. Shaw is inconsistent. What you saw was an offense that is not very good to begin with missing their best 2 receivers and using a patchwork O-line. It's been so long since we found the endzone that the last time we did the Argos were still in the playoff hunt; Cleveland beer fridges were still locked; Capital Point was still on schedule; shall I go on? We don't need much from out O but we do need something. Saturday they weren't even up to those low standards. If only we employed someone whose sole job it was to ensure our team produces offensive points? Oh wait, we do. I hope he's paid by the TD.

With the exception of that long Adams TD I thought the defense actually did pretty well in the beginning given how their O was actively working against them. Eventually they did succumb to the general lack of effort of the whole team but given the injuries they faced and the fact that they had overcome not just their opponents but also their own offense I'd say they did alright (that's the closest I'll come to a compliment)

This is the kind of game that you let sink in just long enough to humble you and then burn the tape and move on to the next challenge. As I said, the loss is not as doom and gloom as some would lead you to believe. For me, the bigger concern are the injuries to Bladek and Brooks. Both of which sound serious. Suddenly that trade for Blake becomes so much more important.

Would love to see Jones channel his inner Belichek and say "We're on to Calgary"

Other Random thoughts:
- Brandon Bridge is more awkward than a sex talk with your parents. I'm also sick of hearing about his athleticism. He runs like a baby deer learning to walk and accomplishes nothing in the process. How is that "athleticism" worth gushing about?

- Alexandre Gagne is a good special teamer.

- I'll end on a lighter note. I learned something amazing last week and anyone who follows me on Twitter will know what I'm talking about . The twitter world seemed blown away by this so I'll share it with anyone who might have missed it.

Gainer is an anagram of Regina.

I know... Mind Blown!

5 comments:

Dan said...

HAHA - Nailed it on your Brandon Bridge comment.

Anonymous said...

The lack of fight is what got me. I actually found myself wishing Kevin Glenn was still available. How many TD passes did he throw last year? Lots more than Collaros that's for sure. Bridge looks so tentative out there. Does he stare at that wrist band because he doesn't really know the plays? Here's a thought, you are down 31-0 to start the 3rd Q. Why not go into some type of hurry up offence to try to score some points? It's the CFL...anything can happen. Heck, maybe even the defence or special teams might chip in with the odd TD if you start to get some momentum. Instead, we get Mr. Tentative, Brandon Bridge. I loved the deer learning to walk analogy. Not sure if anyone else has noticed this but Jones never seems to communicate much with the guys in the press box. In other words, he is leaving total control over the offence to McAdoo. All he seems to care about is the defence. Ever notice how there are 3 guys giving signals to the defence...Jones and the two guys on either side of him. OK, if that's what's required...seems a bit of overkill to me, particularly when he's completely hands off with the offence. And what was that time out call in the 3Q with the Riders 3rd and 4 and just about to punt? Didn't look like they were short a man or anything? What a waste of a time out. Yes, something is seriously wrong with the offence. For them not to have it figured out by the time they've played 16 games doesn't auger will for their playoff prospects. What are they odds they WILL beat either BC or Calgary in their two remaining games. I say slim to none the way they played on Saturday. What a mess.

Anonymous said...

That's part of the problem, Dan. Carter (who??) touched on it when he said nobody dares question McAvoy. Should anyone be surprised by Collaros? I looked at his stats & they are worse this year than last, except for wins which I would credit more to the defence. Can't blame his woes on a bad offensive line this year. Calgary is really banged up but just added Bakari Grant. Couldn't play for us. We'll see what happens. He knows the Calgary offence. Micah might have his way with the offensive line this week.

Rider Prophet said...

Jones has made it clear that he has given full control of the offense to McAdoo and the 2 are jointed at the hip for better or worse. I applaud his loyalty but it may end up costing him.

Sasha Blackwell said...

Loved reading this thankss