Here are the Prophet family picks for week 3.
Prophet Jr - Winnipeg, Edmonton, Toronto, Saskatchewan
Rider Prophet - Montreal, Edmonton, Calgary, Saskatchewan
Mrs. Prophet - Montreal, Edmonton, Toronto, Saskatchewan
Step Prophet - Winnipeg, Edmonton, Toronto, Saskatchewan
Momma Prophet - Winnipeg, Ottawa, Calgary, BC
Be sure to have your picks in by kickoff on Friday
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Wednesday, July 9, 2014
Monday, July 7, 2014
Monday Morning Sentimonies: Eastern Embarassment
Riders 15- Argos 48
They all sucked.
If I stopped my analysis right there it would pretty much be comprehensive. About the only good thing I can about that garbage was at least they are close enough as teammates to all decide to suck as one collective unit. Honestly, there's been stuff in Prophet Jr's diapers that didn't stink that much.
What it boiled down to (I mean other than everyone sucking) was that our best players were not our best players... well maybe they were technically our best but they were the best in same way someone is the "best" player on the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Our defense was so useless I'm not sure why they even bothered coming on the field. The secondary that was supposed to be our defensive strenght looked awful. Maze had a bad day. Anderson must have some condition in getting his charges dropped whereby he can't use his hands to initiate physical contact because he attempts at tackling were embarrassing. And for me that was the big frustration. Ray, Owens and Durie are elite level talent, they are going to make plays. But we helped them with every missed tackle (of which there were many). Hard enough to beat them without making their life easier. Last week against Hamilton, our blitzes paralyzed the O. This week, you could almost see Ray laughing as he knew exactly where to put the ball to make a play when we tried to blitz.
Offense decided to show up for exactly 2 minutes of that game during which Durant surgically tore that defense apart (like i expected heading into this game). But for the remaining 48 mins of that game the O was as useless as the D. To a man, our much vaunted OL got beat. Picard, Best, Labatte, you name it, I saw them lose one on one battles all day. That put even more pressure on Durant who wasn't having a good day to begin with. He just looked flustered. Forcing passes, ignoring clear running lanes in favour or passing. Inexperienced receivers likely didn't help but that wasn't the only problem. Then there was Allen... I won't get too much into him. He fumbled (again), he needs to get better, he will.The only part of that entire game I enjoyed was Neal Hughes showing how a running back is supposed to play. Run hard, block hard, play smart. Hughes is immensely underrated in my opinion. A shame to see him injured. Hopefully he's back soon.
So there it is. We played an awful game. Doesn't mean we are an awful team just that we sucked on that day. Remember Banjo Bowl last year? That was an embarrassment too but we recovered as I'm sure we will do here. This is the worst loss in the Chamblin era so I'm confident he and the coaches will get this team back on track.
They all sucked.
If I stopped my analysis right there it would pretty much be comprehensive. About the only good thing I can about that garbage was at least they are close enough as teammates to all decide to suck as one collective unit. Honestly, there's been stuff in Prophet Jr's diapers that didn't stink that much.
What it boiled down to (I mean other than everyone sucking) was that our best players were not our best players... well maybe they were technically our best but they were the best in same way someone is the "best" player on the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Our defense was so useless I'm not sure why they even bothered coming on the field. The secondary that was supposed to be our defensive strenght looked awful. Maze had a bad day. Anderson must have some condition in getting his charges dropped whereby he can't use his hands to initiate physical contact because he attempts at tackling were embarrassing. And for me that was the big frustration. Ray, Owens and Durie are elite level talent, they are going to make plays. But we helped them with every missed tackle (of which there were many). Hard enough to beat them without making their life easier. Last week against Hamilton, our blitzes paralyzed the O. This week, you could almost see Ray laughing as he knew exactly where to put the ball to make a play when we tried to blitz.
Offense decided to show up for exactly 2 minutes of that game during which Durant surgically tore that defense apart (like i expected heading into this game). But for the remaining 48 mins of that game the O was as useless as the D. To a man, our much vaunted OL got beat. Picard, Best, Labatte, you name it, I saw them lose one on one battles all day. That put even more pressure on Durant who wasn't having a good day to begin with. He just looked flustered. Forcing passes, ignoring clear running lanes in favour or passing. Inexperienced receivers likely didn't help but that wasn't the only problem. Then there was Allen... I won't get too much into him. He fumbled (again), he needs to get better, he will.The only part of that entire game I enjoyed was Neal Hughes showing how a running back is supposed to play. Run hard, block hard, play smart. Hughes is immensely underrated in my opinion. A shame to see him injured. Hopefully he's back soon.
So there it is. We played an awful game. Doesn't mean we are an awful team just that we sucked on that day. Remember Banjo Bowl last year? That was an embarrassment too but we recovered as I'm sure we will do here. This is the worst loss in the Chamblin era so I'm confident he and the coaches will get this team back on track.
Friday, July 4, 2014
Riders vs. Argos: On The Road
Saturday the Riders face their first road test of the year as they travel to Toronto (likely to play in front of less people then were at our first preseason game) to face the 0-1 Argos. The Riders will be looking build off an impressive win at home. The Argos will be looking to have their defense try and stop something.
They got worked over by Winnipeg's Willy and while I do not put too much stock in one game, it's hard not to openly wonder just how bad this Argo defense will be... at least early in the season. They lost their Defensive Coordinator and Pat Watkins to Edmonton, they lost Robert McCune to retirement, they lost David Lee to us and they took the bold strategy of releasing pretty much everyone else on that D who had talent (Mitchell, Ball and Thorpe). Sure they signed Shea Emry but last time I checked he can`t play every position on the defense. Best he can do is hold down the MLB spot and designated nut puncher simultaneously. They are essentially starting a brand new defense and predictably they have more gaping holes than a whore house. If Willy can throw for 300 yds and 4 TDs on them behind a mediocre OL, just imagine what Durant can do behind our line. Expect another heavy dose of Allen (just like how Winnipeg used Grigsby) and that will open things for Durant. Even with our lack of experience at WR, Durant and Cortez will find ways to score. I expect at least 30 points for us.
That essentially means that the game will boil down to whether we can the Argo O and Speical Teams to 4 majors or less. I like those odds.
Ricky Ray actually played a decent game last week inspite of the results... it was just overshadowed by turnovers and an embarrassing defense. I expect Ray to be his usual ridiculously accurate self. With Owens and Durie at his disposal our secondary will have a much tough task. Also the Argos OL is far better than whatever the Ticats tried to pass off as an OL last week so don`t expect our DL to be as dominant. They will still be the key though. The way to stop Ray is to make life miserable for him in the pocket. Foley and Chick (with support from George and Walker) will need to have big games. Also, I expect the Argos to try and establish a run game. If Hurl and Peters can stuff that early and make them one dimensional then our pass rushers will be able to dial it up again and go on the attack.
The Argos`ability to score on kick returns is well documented so we need to play smart on coverage and ensure we don`t allow any game altering plays there.
Feels wrong being this cocky when facing Ricky Ray but I see no reason we should lose this game. I doubt we blow them out like Winnipeg did but their D in a mess and our O is still potent. Our D is solid enough to hold the Argos O in check.
Riders by 14
They got worked over by Winnipeg's Willy and while I do not put too much stock in one game, it's hard not to openly wonder just how bad this Argo defense will be... at least early in the season. They lost their Defensive Coordinator and Pat Watkins to Edmonton, they lost Robert McCune to retirement, they lost David Lee to us and they took the bold strategy of releasing pretty much everyone else on that D who had talent (Mitchell, Ball and Thorpe). Sure they signed Shea Emry but last time I checked he can`t play every position on the defense. Best he can do is hold down the MLB spot and designated nut puncher simultaneously. They are essentially starting a brand new defense and predictably they have more gaping holes than a whore house. If Willy can throw for 300 yds and 4 TDs on them behind a mediocre OL, just imagine what Durant can do behind our line. Expect another heavy dose of Allen (just like how Winnipeg used Grigsby) and that will open things for Durant. Even with our lack of experience at WR, Durant and Cortez will find ways to score. I expect at least 30 points for us.
That essentially means that the game will boil down to whether we can the Argo O and Speical Teams to 4 majors or less. I like those odds.
Ricky Ray actually played a decent game last week inspite of the results... it was just overshadowed by turnovers and an embarrassing defense. I expect Ray to be his usual ridiculously accurate self. With Owens and Durie at his disposal our secondary will have a much tough task. Also the Argos OL is far better than whatever the Ticats tried to pass off as an OL last week so don`t expect our DL to be as dominant. They will still be the key though. The way to stop Ray is to make life miserable for him in the pocket. Foley and Chick (with support from George and Walker) will need to have big games. Also, I expect the Argos to try and establish a run game. If Hurl and Peters can stuff that early and make them one dimensional then our pass rushers will be able to dial it up again and go on the attack.
The Argos`ability to score on kick returns is well documented so we need to play smart on coverage and ensure we don`t allow any game altering plays there.
Feels wrong being this cocky when facing Ricky Ray but I see no reason we should lose this game. I doubt we blow them out like Winnipeg did but their D in a mess and our O is still potent. Our D is solid enough to hold the Argos O in check.
Riders by 14
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Are You Smarter Than A Toddler - Week 2 Picks
Here are the Prophet family picks for week 2. There is still time to enter if you have not already done so. Just email me your picks and you are in the contest and eligible to win cash prizes
Prophet Jr. - Winnipeg, Edmonton, Montreal, Saskatchewan
Rider Prophet - Winnipeg, Hamilton, BC, Saskatchewan
Mrs. Prophet - Winnipeg, Edmonton, BC, Saskatchewan
Step-Prophet - Winnipeg, Edmonton, BC, Saskatchewan
Be sure to have your picks in by kickoff on Thursday
Prophet Jr. - Winnipeg, Edmonton, Montreal, Saskatchewan
Rider Prophet - Winnipeg, Hamilton, BC, Saskatchewan
Mrs. Prophet - Winnipeg, Edmonton, BC, Saskatchewan
Step-Prophet - Winnipeg, Edmonton, BC, Saskatchewan
Be sure to have your picks in by kickoff on Thursday
Monday, June 30, 2014
Monday Morning Sentimonies: Soggy Afternoon Edition
Riders 31 - Ti-Cats 10
Forgive the lateness of this post, in addition to us winning the home opener, it also happened to be my birthday... so I had a few reasons to celebrate. Needless to say my sentimonies this morning were limited to pain-filled grunts. Oh man have I missed the feeling of my voice being absolutely shot.
Despite mother nature's attempt to turn the Riders into a water polo team, 19,000 strong showed up to Mosaic to witness a good old fashioned ass kicking to open the 2014 season. I say strong because all those people who stayed in their seats were tough as nails. One of the advantages of sitting up on the second deck is that we were dry as can be once we got to our seats. But full credit to those who withstood the waves of water they were pelted with.
I figured the Riders would do better in this game than many were expecting (particularly the offense) but I did not expect us to completely dominate the Ti-Cats like that. Our O-lines and D-lines were dominant, there's were not. Our QB was calm and dialed in, there's probably made the days of yelling at Henry Burris seem not so bad by comparison to Coach Austin. Those were the deciding differences in the game. Actually for a team coached by Austin, they looked woefully unprepared and unable to adapt. It was surprising. It wasn't just the elements, it was football fundamentals. They had no answer for our blitzes and seemed to have a deer in the headlights look every time we ran one. They have one of the better RBs in the league in CJ Gable yet he ran the ball 3 times... 3 times! They have premiere DTs in Bulke and Laurent yet you wouldn't know it looking at what Allen did (and he by no means a shift, speed back).
I won't spend too much time extolling the virtues of Anthony Allen... his game speaks for itself. I thought he showed great vision and that combined with his powerful north/south running and our O-line led to big gains all night. I also liked how he recovered from that early fumbled and played solid the rest of the game. Given that I thought Toston outplayed Allen in preseason evidently the coaches saw potential in Allen that they really liked and he fully justified their faith. I love the prospect of a big power back running behind our stud O-line
I have been high on Brett Swain all preseason and my borderline man-crush is proving justified. I see him being an integral part of the offense in the weeks to come.
Defensively, I think the only thing sadder than watching Hamilton try to block our pass rush was watching Troy Smith try and complete a pass. Before we get all crazy about our D-line dominance bear in mind that the Ti-Cats have O-line issues and their top OL (Dyakowski) is still hurt so some of what we saw was taking advantage of a weaker line. Still credit to our DL they looked fierce. Walker looked solid at DT and the nonexistent run game and sack totals would indicate a job well done. If they can keep up the strong play along with George, then Chick and Foley may be in for big seasons. I also thought Hurl and Peters looked good. And our secondary should have have way more picks then they did, they were in great coverage positions all night but just couldn't squeeze the ball (on a dry day, the results could have been even worse for the Ti-Cats).
The Ti-Cats must be glad they do not have to return here until next year because they have
been flat out embarrassed here over and over again. I don't think they are as bad as they looked and I don't think we will be as dominant as we looked but I love what I've seen so far from the 2014 Riders.
Other random thoughts:
- How awesome was it to have not only Jerrell Freeman but also Weston freakin' Dressler in the house!!
- You knew it wasn't Hamilton's day when they managed to even screw up us missing a FG... for the record that kick never had a chance of making it , not sure why we even tried.
- Ainsworth had a solid day on special teams
- I was honestly surprised that the Riders didn't buy Canadian Tire our of rubber boots, stick Rider logos on them and sell them at a ridiculous mark up... opportunity missed.
- I'm sure more than a few people were wondering why we let Jordan Sisco in at QB late in the game.
Forgive the lateness of this post, in addition to us winning the home opener, it also happened to be my birthday... so I had a few reasons to celebrate. Needless to say my sentimonies this morning were limited to pain-filled grunts. Oh man have I missed the feeling of my voice being absolutely shot.
Despite mother nature's attempt to turn the Riders into a water polo team, 19,000 strong showed up to Mosaic to witness a good old fashioned ass kicking to open the 2014 season. I say strong because all those people who stayed in their seats were tough as nails. One of the advantages of sitting up on the second deck is that we were dry as can be once we got to our seats. But full credit to those who withstood the waves of water they were pelted with.
I figured the Riders would do better in this game than many were expecting (particularly the offense) but I did not expect us to completely dominate the Ti-Cats like that. Our O-lines and D-lines were dominant, there's were not. Our QB was calm and dialed in, there's probably made the days of yelling at Henry Burris seem not so bad by comparison to Coach Austin. Those were the deciding differences in the game. Actually for a team coached by Austin, they looked woefully unprepared and unable to adapt. It was surprising. It wasn't just the elements, it was football fundamentals. They had no answer for our blitzes and seemed to have a deer in the headlights look every time we ran one. They have one of the better RBs in the league in CJ Gable yet he ran the ball 3 times... 3 times! They have premiere DTs in Bulke and Laurent yet you wouldn't know it looking at what Allen did (and he by no means a shift, speed back).
I won't spend too much time extolling the virtues of Anthony Allen... his game speaks for itself. I thought he showed great vision and that combined with his powerful north/south running and our O-line led to big gains all night. I also liked how he recovered from that early fumbled and played solid the rest of the game. Given that I thought Toston outplayed Allen in preseason evidently the coaches saw potential in Allen that they really liked and he fully justified their faith. I love the prospect of a big power back running behind our stud O-line
I have been high on Brett Swain all preseason and my borderline man-crush is proving justified. I see him being an integral part of the offense in the weeks to come.
Defensively, I think the only thing sadder than watching Hamilton try to block our pass rush was watching Troy Smith try and complete a pass. Before we get all crazy about our D-line dominance bear in mind that the Ti-Cats have O-line issues and their top OL (Dyakowski) is still hurt so some of what we saw was taking advantage of a weaker line. Still credit to our DL they looked fierce. Walker looked solid at DT and the nonexistent run game and sack totals would indicate a job well done. If they can keep up the strong play along with George, then Chick and Foley may be in for big seasons. I also thought Hurl and Peters looked good. And our secondary should have have way more picks then they did, they were in great coverage positions all night but just couldn't squeeze the ball (on a dry day, the results could have been even worse for the Ti-Cats).
The Ti-Cats must be glad they do not have to return here until next year because they have
been flat out embarrassed here over and over again. I don't think they are as bad as they looked and I don't think we will be as dominant as we looked but I love what I've seen so far from the 2014 Riders.
Other random thoughts:
- How awesome was it to have not only Jerrell Freeman but also Weston freakin' Dressler in the house!!
- You knew it wasn't Hamilton's day when they managed to even screw up us missing a FG... for the record that kick never had a chance of making it , not sure why we even tried.
- Ainsworth had a solid day on special teams
- I was honestly surprised that the Riders didn't buy Canadian Tire our of rubber boots, stick Rider logos on them and sell them at a ridiculous mark up... opportunity missed.
- I'm sure more than a few people were wondering why we let Jordan Sisco in at QB late in the game.
Friday, June 27, 2014
Official 2014 Predictions
Twas
7 months since the Grey Cup and there was much debate
“Where
is Prophet with his predictions? It’s getting quite late
Does
he not know that the season is starting?
Shouldn’t
he be here making jokes about farting?”
Last
year was surreal but the fans want to know what’s in store.
Should
they be happy with one Cup? Could they hope for more?
Well
fear not faithful readers, for I am here
To
prophecy on what will occur this year.
It’s
back to reality, the Grey Cup hangover has ceased
There
have been departures, we are no longer the beasts
Gone
Sholo, gone Butler. Sheets and Dressler too
But
it’s not all bad news, Sisco’s gone too.
We’ve
got holes to fill, our roster is less stacked
But
that’s no reason why you shouldn’t be jacked.
Our
core is still solid, some second to none.
We’ve
got all the tools to make another run.
With
Cortez making calls, Durant will continue to be a star
Under
DD’s leadership the offense will go far
We’ve
got less big names but that’s no reason to fret
We
will still have a top 3 offense I bet.
Taj
will set new career highs as the go to guy
Getz
will get another 1000 but at times make you need rye
The
other receivers will share the ball
They’ll
all get their touches but Swain will the best of the all
Toston
will provide a credible run attack
At
least until September when Sheets will be back.
Defense
will need to be our strength and win us some games
As
the offense goes through early growing pains
I
would put our secondary up against any one
They’ll
have the most INTs when it’s all said and done.
We
will show early weakness up front and get burned by the run
Richie
Hall will be cursed heavily by some.
But
someone not on our roster will step in at DT
And
Kilgore will be solid upon return from injury.
The
battle for top defensive player will be
Between
Weldon Brown and Ricky Foley
On
teams our coverage will start shaky but improve
Woldu
and McHenry will lead them back into a groove
Milo
will be rock solid and as for Bartel
His
kicks will be so good that “Crikey” will we yell (for that line to be even remotely humorous you need to say Crikey in
your best Crocodile Hunter voice)
As
for predictions on teams, I’ll give you one more
Marshay
Green will take a kick to the house by game 4.
We
will start slow and people will doubt
They’ll
be happy with last year and count us out.
At 3
and 4 most will admit defeat
And
give up on the dream of a repeat
But
the players and coaches will not give up
They
will not be satisfied with just one cup
The
roster will be tweaked and our record will start mending
And
from the down in the standings we will start ascending.
Though
we will be counted out early we will finish 2nd. Great!
A
home playoff game at 10 and 8.
In
what will seem like déjà vu, the Lions we will slay
In
the West Semi on a cold November day.
Then
it’s back to Calgary, a familiar scene
Some
speckles of red amidst and sea of green
It
won’t be as dominating as last year but we will again prevail
With
Durant leading by action, we will not fail
It
will be the Argos as opponents we will find.
The
game will be close but we will fall short in the end
Our
championship status we will not defend.
So
that’s how I see 2014 going, cue the ovation
An
up and down season that exceeds expectation
But
don’t worry that I’ve picked a sad end, that’s alright
For
in 7 years of predictions I’ve never got the end right
So
in predicting that we won’t win the Cup
The
odds of us doing so has actually gone up.
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Are You Smarter Than A Toddler - Week 1
Rider Prophet - Toronto, Calgary, BC, Saskatchewan
Prophet Jr. - Winnipeg, Calgary, BC, Hamilton
Mrs. Prophet - Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatchewan
Step-Prophet - Toronto, Calgary, BC, Saskatchewan
There is still time for you to get entered into the contest. Free to enter, cash prizes. Just email your week 1 picks to Riderprophet@hotmail.com by kickoff on Thursday
Prophet Jr. - Winnipeg, Calgary, BC, Hamilton
Mrs. Prophet - Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatchewan
Step-Prophet - Toronto, Calgary, BC, Saskatchewan
There is still time for you to get entered into the contest. Free to enter, cash prizes. Just email your week 1 picks to Riderprophet@hotmail.com by kickoff on Thursday
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