What exactly is Brandon West's roll with the team, I havent seen him on the field for at least 4 games, maybe i missed him?
:twisted: protect your QB at all costs and put the fear of god in theirs :twisted:Maybe Boyd will be brought in to replace West? Small chance but you never know.
I AM KINDA CURIOUS WHAT THE REAL STORY IS WITH BOYD... NOT TOO OFTEN WOULD A TEAM CUT THE LEADING RUSHER IN THE LEAGUE... WAS HE GOING AFTER THE COACH'S WIFE OR SOMETHING? PUNCH AN OLD LADY AT AN AUTOGRAPH SIGNING?
Nice to see my complaining / questioning is either making others question this or at least it is good to see I am not alone in this thought. He has fumblightus on kick returns (recall them using Dressler late last year instead of him, plus he fumbled a couple in preseason), and has not carried that ball one. I actually do not believe he has stepped on the field in the regular season, though I am not sure. What really puzzles me is that he is RB/KR and Sheets is listed as only RB, yet sheets is always on kick returns. What confuses me to no end is why clubs don't kick off to Sheets...burn some of the energy from the starting RB....it is simply idiotic that Sheets is on the KR team. They clearly have lost faith in West, so why is he there?
As for Boyd, my belief is that there was likely a squabble about RB blocking. I don't think Boyd was too high on it. It would not shock me to see him in Hamilton, but it is likely going to be for the Esks. As for him signing with the Riders...they have Sheets, and 100K for a backup RB is not money well spent...they would be better off waiting on an NFL flunky as an extra DB, because really, that is the club's biggest issue at the moment.
Oh, and here is a great post on Boyd from the main forum.
I think we need some perspective about Brandon West.
He is learning about CFL. He's young. Came to CFL without toiling in and out of NFL circles like Sheets and Rankin.
So, Brandon is learning from these guys. They may not have the CFL tenure behind them but they have 2-4 seasons of NFL/pro football experience. This is likely why Brandon isn't playing? These guys are better, more experienced.
Brnadon's time will come. He showed some upside last year. His career path is looking like a Hughes Charles pathway.........backup and PR for 2-3 seasons until somebody see's his worth a trade or FA signing?
I don;t think he'd be here unless the riders felt he has big upside and is working hard at practice and getting better at the little things, in his case blocking the big linebackers.
He is one play away from a roster spot. Not only does he backup the RB's but he also is a utility guy like Jock Sanders. That is why he's around............be can play RB and can return kicks.
He's here for a reason.
If he was there for development:
- He would not have been viewed as Cate's successor, only to be one-upped in preseason
- He would have had a touch through SIX games...he hasn't
- He would be returning kicks, like he was last year, but he fumbles it too much. Last year they lost enough faith in him returning that they started using Dressler on returns
- Taking the above point...they should have enough faith in their backup to return kicks...your starting RB should not be racing down the field, then potentially taking a hand-off on the next play half gassed.
- Has he even stepped onto the field?
You may be right, they may be developing him, but if that is the case he needs to get in the game. Sheets is only a couple years older, so it is not like West is a successor in the making, barring injury. My point is this...if you want to develop a backup RB, that is great...I applaud it, but have them contribute in some manner...ie having your here and now starter not returning kicks. If you can not entrust a second year player to be the 2nd returner on KOs, then he is not the guy to develop.
Well, what should the Riders do with West? Depop I understand where you are coming from but here is the dynamic as I see it.
Last season they had Stu Foord. ST guy mainly, returner but also 3rd string backup. Made the roster with versatility and Nationality. Brandon is no different except the maple leaf thing.
Brandon has showed he does many things pretty good. He always got decent running yardage. was good as a receiver. What works against him is he didn't get the tough yards because he isn;t a heavy guy. Blocking was always listed by the coaching staff.
I cut him a break because he was a rookie last year. He's still 2 and 3 years younger than Sheets and Rankin.
Sheets gets hurt.............then Rankin.............then West but maybe the utility guy Sanders?
West provides depth..............otherwise he would be gone. If they release West then they need to bring back another back Yvenson Bernard or other?
Brandon is around for a reason and i maintain it. If we trade him there won;t be any takers! If we cut him we have to go out and find another unknown young RB? I see it as a very good thing that Sheets won the job, he's good. He is getting better. It is up the West to keep up and get better or he'll be gone. But when his time comes he has some experience and he has some talent that will serve the club well. In my opinion.
I am not saying cut him...I am saying utilize him or cut him. At the end of the day my biggest concern in this area is that Sheets is lining up to return kickoffs, then lining up as RB...this is ridiculous. Use West there, or bring in someone to do it. By bringing in someone else it would likely mean displacing West.
Furthermore, Rankin is a nice sized RB, and would add diversity and a whole new play package to the O. Personally, I thought it was a mistake keeping West over Deshawn Wynn. Wynn is a bruising RB...someone you want on a cold day if you make it into November...someone who I really don't think is not going to get that 1 yard very often. West is a decent RB, but brings nothing overly special to the table. He is not super fast, nor big. He does not have nimble agility nor superb hands/ball control. He is a respectable runner...that's it. I don't care if he is a couple years younger...realistically you are typically going to cycle RBs within 6 years anyways.
People who should not be returning kicks but are at times:
- Dressler
- Sheets
- Jackson (if he is in the secondary)
People who should be returning kicks:
- Jackson (in not playing secondary)
- West (or whomever is backup to Sheets)
- Sanders
- Moss, if he returns
- Smith, prehaps
Would agree on the returner aspect.
Agree, returners are Jackson, Sanders...........West.
Don;t throw Sheets, Dressler back there! Ever.
If Woodny can go I think Tristan will focus on return game? Sanders has shown ball security, good returning and also can add in at receiver.
Related to use West or cut him.........I guess he has 3-4 weeks to make that happen or the team will? He stays on the 46 man meaning he's an injury away from getting used. But with NFL cuts coming and other stuff he might get dropped? Hard to say. But I maintain that he's good enough to be here............not good enough to start. I don;t think the Riders will cut him. You might be frustrated with this but I think he'll be around all year. If he gets cut you can remind me about this and I might owe you a beer!
Right now Korey Sheets is just playing too well. Sheets is a classic feature back that gets stronger as the game goes on and with the amoung of carries he has. The Riders have kept his touches in a confort zone for Sheets as not to where him out. West will be a valuable comodoty for the riders down the line either this season or next and if sheets does get worn a bit either he or rankin who is also a quality back may be packaged into the offense.
It is a product of the Riders Braintrust that have built depth and competition at every position this year. You may not be hearing much from him but he is still a valuable menber of the riders whose role now is to learn a little more from a veteran TB such as sheets and does not need to be rushed at this point.
Good insight about West as I was wondering the same thing so I began to look into it and this is what I had found out.
Look for the Riders who have used the first 6 games to get a good look at everyone on the roster, practice roster, and even some of the players that were released late. Chamblin now has a feel for every player at every position and look for a more steady line up and more plays going back to Dressler and Getzlaf as Chamblin has been calling lot of other receivers numbers to make sure they have the best 6 on the roster especially with Bagg out again.
I like the Riders to have people scrtchingtheir heads as they beat BC in this week
or not
West finally got a touch against the Stamps....aaaand lost 2 yards.
West started the season as the kick off returner. then they sorta ditched that idea i dunno why or what the reason was. He definitely has skills as a RB and those skills usually extend to kickoff returns. That is one thing I have noticed about the Riders is that they have not really had any big play makers on ST or even defense for that matter.
Someone correct me if I am wrong but I can not remember any especially in returns.
Dressler appears on the Depth Chart each week as a return man but they seldom use him. I do remember him haveing a big play now that I think of it on a missed field goal.
Perhaps putting him back on punts and FG attempts would give them some spark as well as getting the football in his hands something that is not happening on offense
West has not stepped onto the field as a returner since he was yanked after a couple fumbles trying to catch the kick in a game late last year. He fumbled lots of kicks…it was the final straw. If he has the skills he would have more than 1 touch…even as a backup.
No big returns? Jackson has been impressive.
Why would you put your best receiver on kick returns, especially when the receiving corps has been a concern?
ST has been the most consistent part of this team all season. Jackson ran back the first punt return in many years. Hurl and others have contained alot of the big name returns all year. As previously noted, Dressler is resting by not returning punts, same as Jackson not playing the secondary.
I would really love to see Moss return as our KR/PR guy.. As well as a nice deep threat! He is so effin fast as well as has NFL kick return experience which IMO is much harder than CFL with the giant field, I still think he could be a great CFL KR guy! Then we could have Jackson and Turrenne on The corners, Russ and either Maze or McKenzie as our Halfbacks. I miss Jackson when we play man coverage! Not so much in tackling.
just thinkin of ways for the riders to get a spark. when I talk about big plays im talking about big returns you are right he has done solid on returns but no game breaking returns TDs etc.
Dressler May be their best receiver but he has barely touched the ball on offense in recents games. If you cant get the ball in his hands due to double coverage etc. you place him as a returner. I have not checked the stats but i do remember him have a pretty big return on a missed FG possibly the longest all season of any player. Would you tell Hamilton to pull Chris Williams as the Punt returner because he is one of the best receivers or how about chad owens he is the Argos leading reciever and he returns everything so it is not out of the question to put your best receiver as a punt returner if he is your best return man. with 42 man roster often guys pull double duties if needed. with the disaray on offense the last two games often a special teams return can help. ask Hamilton or Toronto with starters. BC and Calagary are lucky enough to have specialists to do it
West was returning KO in pre season and I believe he did in game one but I am not 100% on that one.
Chamblain must be thinkin about it because he is down as one of the return men each game when the rosters are set.
Thats y I asked di not realize Jackson ran one back. The coverage teams have been outstanding and the return teams and defense have been solid but big plays for TDs as often as some other teams
Yes Moss was supposed to be the guy they raved about how fast he was since the first mini camp. Problem is he has had nagging injuries all pre season and even when he was returning. He would have definitely been lighting things up im talking TD returns geting into enemy territory on punts missed field goals. he has done it everywhere he has played. It was a blow to the riders when he was injured