Game 3...Vs BC Lions

Great game…my ears are sore…

I have loved the Rider’s approach thus far this year:
Hamilton - Prolific O in the preseason…attack hard and build up points. The Cats O didn’t get going, but the Riders went all out offensive in preparation for a shootout.
Edmonton - Focus on ball management…the Esks have a top notch D…maintain possession, control the game.
BC - Concentrate practice on taking away the return game, just allow the underneath passes

All great strategies…all have worked. Their ability to execute a game plan ins impressive thus far!

3 games, NO turnovers!
The Riders have been content with taking what is being given…trusting that if they win field possession their D will keep the score low (even though they are allowing a pile of yards.
DD is making smart decisions…throwing it away, mixing it up, running a bit.

In this game:

  • Loved that they mixed the Getzlaff play package up a bit
  • their ST was the difference…containment was great, returns were superb. This was awesome to see. BC won their last game in large part to their return game.
  • They got good pressure on Lulay, but couldn’t drag him down
  • only 1 broken play in coverage. There was consistent weakness in that one spot all game, the only real concern on D.
  • They had a couple near picks early…you just knew one was coming soon when Butler stepped up.
  • They had a tough break with the “catch” that lead to the TD in the 4th. It was great to see that it did not shake them! I can not fault the refs call on the play…the ref right there could not see the ball at all because it was shielded by the body, and called upon another ref to pass judgement. The 2nd ref was like 35 yards down field, looking straight on at the ball…touch to see a bounce with no angle. I was happy to see them get together on it, even if they did get it wrong…again, great to see the Riders keep composure.
  • with ~1-1/2 minutes left they ran the ball, but not with Sheets…I really question that call…Sheets was a force on the drive. I was in dismay when the sent the FG unit out…it was a long gamble, but a punt would have been more appropriate. You saw BC miss from from that range, and the wind was a slight bit stronger at this point. Great coverage, and lucky break.
  • DD was just off on his timing on the deep ball…he came close a couple times. The one overthrown in the endzone was by like 1-1.5 yards… could have made this a bit of a lopsided affair early.
  • 2 Beautiful returns by Jackson!
  • Drops…the Riders had a couple bad drops…one inside the 30. Rob Bagg made a wonderful catch, but also dropped a really bad one, right in the numbers. There were a few bad drops. Sisco looked great! wonderful to see, and this showing could win him some game time over Rob.
  • Again, DD looked really confident. I wasn’t sure with LaBatte out, but the line was fantastic. While he didn’t have huge numbers, he had no mistakes, and never really jeopardized the ball. Had a nice run called back, and a couple bad drops that would have easily put him over 200 yards, probably 250. There was also the big pass for PI in the endzone…so he played great despite the low yardage.

Concerns:

  • drops
  • penalties early
  • inability to drop Lulay, despite great pressure
  • one hole in secondary, but hey, the Lions are a formidable passing team, so fair enough
  • The last drive towards the 40 (FG, Run)

All in all, great outing though and a great game. This was viewed as the big test, and they answered. Not saying the Riders are going to win the West, not saying they won’t, but they just showed they are capable of it.

And kudos to the fans!

[url=http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/cfl/story/2012/07/14/sp-cfl-football-saskatchewan-roughriders-bc-lions-highlights.html]http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/cfl/s ... ights.html[/url]

"Lulay threw for 345 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions but the Lions offence put up its lowest scoring total of the season. After two straight home games in Vancouver, Lulay said his team struggled with the noise inside Mosaic Stadium.

"It was a sour first road test, I think that got to us just a little bit," he said. "There was a handful of time we had a little bit of confusion on the offensive side of the ball.""

It has been quite a while since we were able to say that.

Awesome game by the Riders. Beautiful to see a return for a TD - great job Tristan! I was also very impressed with how we closed out the game. That last drive by the O ate up time and put us in position to kick a FG. The D closed it out shutting down the high flying Lions. One concern I do have about the Riders at this point in time is Milo. His field goal kicking needs serious improvement - that last one he missed could have been the difference between OT and the win(as it turned out it didn’t matter) - and it was a short one. If he doesn’t find more consitency it might come back to bite us in later games. Go Riders!!!

The noise was a big problem for the Lions. I live in BC and heard the “Lions Den” today on the TEAM 1040 co-hosted by Angus Ried, the outspoken and well spoken center for the Lions. He’s a veteran and very familiar with the stadiums in the league and he gave major kudos to the fans for making the difference. I paraphrase …One, he said the closing of the stadium end zones with seats created so much noise at field level “I couldn’t hear Travis in the huddle when he was 18 inches from me” and two, “I had a difficult time barking out blocking assignments on audibles at the line…no one could hear me.” Three, “you’re not going into that stadium and just play pretty good and come out with a win, you’ve got to be very good”. These are big kudos from a guy who carries a confident swagger everywhere he goes. Well done, Rider fans!!!
He also called a clip on the Jackson TD runback which TSN called legal but I had Rider fans here agree that it was a clip. My take was that because he made first contact with his arm and not his back, it was determined not to be a clip.

Anyway, Rider Nation, we’ve awoken the sleeping Lion and we’ve got more games to go in their den…it’s going to get ugly but entertaining! KUDOS to Rider Nation!!

I've always said the 13th man in a domed stadium would be amazing. I hope we get that roof on the stadium.

I finally watched the game.

Defense won this game. Loved how aggressive our DB's are. First time in a long long long where I actually saw Geroy get smashed a few times. He's a great receiver but i don't care for his I'm going down before I get hit style (which has allowed him to play injury free for years so he must be smarter than I). Loved Butler smashing him.

D-line had good pressure for sure. All 4 played well. Backers keep going strong and Brackenridge is starting to really excell.

Did not see Shomari very much...............looking for him to be big against Cornish.