Milo

Looks like he needs some competition to get him to refocus. With our poor offence we can't afford to miss any field goals. Tough to see Paul McCallum still kicking the ball better then Milo is doing right now.

We just need another kicker. We don't need to tie up a roster spot for competition to focus another.

before the Argos Lions game on TSN they had a report on Dressler and Sheets. According to a sports guy from Winnipeg rumor has it Dressler will likely be available with the Ottawa being interested and of course the Riders. He said Tahman says there is room for one more big salary and Dressler is the one they are after. So no room to bring in another kicker either Milo produces or we get another. I would still think if Sheets also is available then we start dumping some of the excess and take a shot at him too.

he was what…46 of 52 last season?
Some people just have unrealistic expectations and complained about him when he hit 28 in a row.
Barring 2011, when double duty really messed him up, he he has been in the mid and upper 80s.
Paul Mccallum, who many see as one of the best of all time, just creeps over an 80 average while Milo, in only his 4th year, is at 81%. Paul never even broke 80% until a few years in.

did he miss a 40 yarder yesterday…yup…there was also a damned good crosswind that carried balls bad (welcome to Regina and kudos to ANY kicker that can have a lifetime average of 81 there!) and he almost didn’t even fn dress for the game!

People need to step back down to earth. He’s missed a few…he has proven he can get the job done and have numbers on par or better than some of the league’s all time greats. Go ahead and cut him…another team will thank the Riders for a decade to come.

Yes he wasn’t bad last year but this year has been a guessing game. I don’t think anyone expects him to make everything but to miss inside the 30 yard line like he did in Winnipeg? That is unbelievable. The job requirement is to make a good percent of your attempts and that is not happening this year. I’m not saying they need to replace him I’m saying he needs to be better or replace him. We can’t afford to have another player on the roster taking up cap space if we are going to go hard after Dressler if he becomes available. So far he hasn’t cost a game but that time is coming if he can’t get his crap together especially the way the offense is not putting up points right now. It is even more necessary to get at least the 3 points when the opportunity is there. We can’t rely on the defense to both stop other teams and score points too. When they do get points that’s a bonus.

It happens
Mccallum has missed those to. He has went on record saying how he has a bucket of kicks he’d like back.
You don’t ditch a great kicker because of a few misses. If ANY fan base should know this it should be the Riders.

Mccallum didn’t start getting regular kicking duties until 1997. And if for those that say…oh, but his average kick was further…no, it wasn’t…it has always been mid 30s and under…same as Milo. As a kicker, Mccallum took 3 years to break 80%. As a regular kicker Mccallum took 3 years to kick 80% and only did it 3 times in his first 10. Milo has already accomplished that TWICE and is in his 4th year! Mccallum’s average never really went up until he went to BC…getting out of the Regina wind and into a closed venue.

Mccallum ----------------Milo
1993 OT 75.0 - 2011 84.6
1993 BC 75.0 - 2012 64.7
1994 SK 84.6 - 2013 88.5
1994 BC 66.7 - 2014 71.4
1995 SK 88.9 -
1996 SK 73.3 -
1997 SK 70.2 -
1998 SK 71.8 -
1999 SK 81.5 -
2000 SK 75.6 -
2001 SK 70.2 -
2002 SK 75.9 -
2003 SK 85.4 -
2004 SK 73.6 -
2005 SK 73.8 -
2006 BC 84.1 -
2007 BC 81.4 -
2008 BC 83 -
2009 BC 88.2 -
2010 BC 88.5 -
2011 BC 94.3 -
2012 BC 84.6 -
2013 BC 84.8 -
2014 BC 94.4 -

Cold hard fact is that Milo’s numbers are ahead of Mccallum’s by a lot at this point in his career.

People need to wake up and have a stiff cup of reality…Milo is an great kicker…the cold hard numbers are there. If he was in BC, his numbers would probably be higher still. He’s missed a few…everyone does…he’ll bounce back

I agree Depop the wind was swirling and was gusting, and it wasn’t just our kicker missing routine field goals White missed as well , and as for the miss returned for a TD there could have been easily 3 holding calls made on that return.

Like I said I don't care if they decide to keep him and see if he works it out or bring in someone else. I'm just saying we can't afford to just bring another kicker in just to put pressure on him. As I mentioned Tahman is reported to have said we have room for one more big salary and if Dressler becomes available that is who he is going for. I still think if Sheets also becomes available then we should be looking at trying to make room for him. Messam has been good, Ford has been good Allen besides the ball security issues has been good, but Sheets is better then all of them. Its foolish in my opinion to have Allen, Ford, Messam all taking up cap space. Pick one of the three and let the other two go if that means it would free up enough to sign Sheets. Heck even if it doesn't give enough room to sign Sheets having 3 backs plus Tolston hanging around is a bit overkill.

This is getting down to crunch time and the coaches should have it pretty clear who on the team is worth hanging on to and who isn't. Time to start cutting the fat and getting down to the meat of who is on the team. Yes its nice to have some wiggle room as far as back ups go but sometimes you have to take a risk that someone is not going to get injured and save that backup space for another player or spot. Face it if Durant goes down were toast and yet do we have anyone we feel 100% confident to step in? I would think the answer is no. No we can't empty the cupboards in order to sign both Dressler and Sheets but I think there is some junk food sitting around that while is nice to have it's not really healthy for the team. Lets keep the essentials and possibly add the secret ingredient to complete the meal.

I would think they have room to bring someone in if they really need/want to. Anyone sitting around would take a minimal pay at this point just for a shot…BT said on “big” salary, not one salary. The practice roster expands soon, and they have not used an exemption…they have wiggle room.

It's difficult to compare kicking percentages of today with that of 20 years ago. That was an era of score anything at all costs. As soon as a team crossed the 45 they were in FG range and you knew that if the ball didn't move any further you would see a 52 or 53 yard attempt. Of course a lot of those would miss and drag the average down. These days gameplans are a lot more conservative. Unless it's a close game in the 4th quarter we rarely see attempts over 45 anymore. Some coaches will even try to coffin corner you rather than try for 3 from 42 yards out. Kicking averages are a bit higher these days because of conservative coaching. back in '93 or '94 McCallum probably missed 3 to 5 per years from outside 50 yards. I don;t think Milo has ATTEMPTED more than about 5 or 6 from 50 plus ever.

McCallum never got regular duties until 97, and like I pointed out…their averages are essentially the same. Ridgeway…I would agree with, not Paul

http://cfl.ca/roster/show/id/4207 http://cfl.ca/roster/show/id/33

I understand that he meant one big salary and yes there is probably room to bring someone in to try out. My point is why tie up anymore cap space by bringing in another kicker? Either Milo is allowed to get it together or if the team feels that isn’t going to happen then punt the dude(no pun intended) that is also my point with the running back situation. To have 3 “starters” plus one on the pr is a bit much. I would be very upset if just because they like the luxury of going with different backs for different games cost us a shot not at signing Dressler but at having a shot at signing Sheets.

Nobody plays for free and to have this many backs in “reserve” is bordering on insanity. Don’t get me wrong I like Ford, Messam, Allen. All seem like they are giving it their best effort but as bad as it may sound they are not Kory Sheets. Even if Kory is not available I still think having this many bulls in one pen is not good. I don’t know who it was (Ford or Messam) that was in when Durant got cranked throwing the td pass to Bagg but Durant got hurt. I know Messam did get mixed up at least on one other time taking the wrong guy and Durant got sacked. I’m not saying its all Messam’s fault or Ford’s fault either because when you are being in and out of the lineup you don’t get to know the way your quarterback is going to react. Is he going to dump it off to you or tuck it and run himself or just eat it? These guys need to be in the game and have their head in the game and more then for just a half, playing a half at a time isn’t going to do that and yes Durant will get hurt.

I have no issue having two backs but having 3 and one on the pr in my opinion is a waste not only for the cap space but for the team and even the individual players. Ford or Messam probably would have found a home somewhere. Toronto was in bad shape for a running back and so was Calgary. No doubt they would have seen limited action in Calgary after Cornish got back( which I heard is suppose to be possibly this week) Still they would have more then likely got a few starts as the main guy and be kept on in case Cornish has a set back. Don’t get me wrong I love screwing over the Stamps any chance we get but not to the point that it hurts our team.

Like I say its time to know who your guys are and stick with them barring injury or they just plain suck. If the latter is the case then someone isn’t doing their job and should known that before hand.

I wouldn't mind bringing in another kicker. Not to replace Milo, but to push him. I mean he's getting a lot of criticism these days and a fair amount from me, but he's still a good kicker, but maybe make it clear that something more reliable than 15/21 is expected. If he's still kicking under 75% by mid September I'd really like to see another kicker added to the PR.

Well it looks like the Riders have had enough as well,

Pederson tweeted out this:

Brendan Taman on SportsCage: Riders bringing in veteran kicker and prepping an offer for Weston Dressler

Kickers are a different breed in the first place most of its mental and not physical. To add someone else into the mix may only add to the problem, instead of motivating Milo it could do the opposite in that he is so worried about a miss that is all he is thinking about. I think he is well aware he has not be on his game this year and is trying to change that. Between fans, the media, and probably the coaching staff he has been reminded of his performance so far. He has dodged a few bullets both in the Winnipeg game and the Al's game. That will not continue to happen. Honestly the miss in the Winnipeg game bothered me more then the Al's miss. Yes the Al's ran it back for the major but someone mentioned there were either an illegal block or a hold that got missed on the cover team. In the Winnipeg game that just was an all out whiff on his part, anytime inside the 30 yard line unless the snap is messed up you have to make that kick. No excuses for a miss from that range. I give him one more game to right the ship. If he duffs one in BC place under 40 yards where no way the weather is a factor then its time to look else where for a solution. Sorry if it sound harsh but this is your job and you have to be consistent. If not someone else will probably be taking your spot. As Yoda says "there's only do, or do not. There is no try" So Milo either be one with the force or go to the dark side. :wink:

Thanks for the heads up so it sounds like Justin Palardy is being added. I guess time will tell which way the ball bounces.

wonder if it is just to urge Milo to stop the poutine diet or they are giving a real shot? They essentially gave up the best punter in the league to keep Milo.

But seriously....like I said, Milo almost didn't even dress for the game because he has been so sick.

If you are referring to Schmidt, I’d say we actually gained with Bartel. Stats are similar and Bartel isn’t using up an import spot.

yeah, the National status is a win, but Bartel shanked less in a season than Bartel does in a game. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of aspects of Bartel's game I like though.

From Rod's blog for those that didn't know about Milo being sick:
Chris Milo is 5/8 over the past two games including going 2/3 in Saturday's win over Montreal. The four year veteran from Laval was battling illness most of last week and Taman told 620 CKRM it was a red flag since they didn't have a back-up kicker.

He was not looking good at all a couple days prior to the game. I honestly thought Bartel was going to be pulling double duty.

Nope. Schmitt was a definite loss. Best punter in the league. Should be in the NFL.