MULLINDER’S WEEK 14 PRIMER

By Luc Mullinder

Ridernation, I told you that I’d get this Primer to you guys a day before the game a couple weeks ago, and I’m sorry this is late.  I also recognize that this makes me a HORRIBLE HUMAN BEING but my schedule over the last couple days has been insanely busy.

Let’s get on with it…

If you will; kindly recall the “Bye Week Primer” that I posted here earlier on in the year. (I believe you can still find it on this blog)…

Within that Primer we discussed the theory of breaking the season up into thirds. This was done in order to illustrate a realistic progression scale based on the Riders’ make up, talent level in all spots, schedule and other factors that I experienced during my time between the white lines.

Thus far, the results of the real 2014 season have played themselves out quite nicely with what we saw potentially taking place in that article, however, now we have all come to the final 6 games and this team is without Darian Durant.  You always have to account for injuries when trying to pinpoint how any team will fare, but not even a Doppler radar system could have forecasted the extreme misfortune that the Green Machine is currently dealing with.

So Ridernation, now that Saskatchewan’s face of the franchise isn’t taking snaps under centre, and our “Bye Week Primer” visualized that the team falling somewhere in the 3-3 range WITH Double D; the question I’ve been battling with, and was actually asked of me last week is:

Should we reconsider the way the final six games may play out now that the “Sunserio” has changed?

Answer:  Absolutely not!!!

Reasoning:  Even though, at the time, Doubles was still considered by many (including me) to be the best player in the CFL, that Primer was not written solely on the fact that he was the one chucking the rock.  One would argue that since the “Bye Week Primer” the 2014 Saskatchewan Roughriders have actually improved in some areas of the game [Dressler, RB, DBs].

Now that we’ve also gotten an extended look at the rest of the competition and the paths they’re on; this washed up former athlete has no problem with the prospects of 3-3.  It’ll be tough, but it’s definitely doable.  As we sit now, that would put the Riders at 12 on the season.

A solid showing in the final third is obviously much harder to accomplish without all the intangibles that Doubles brought by physically being on the field.  The major concern in some circles is where the leadership will come from, and that’s a valid point.  There is going to have to be someone not named Corey Chamblin that really steps up in this phase of the game.  Leadership is what will separate the Western Conference champ from the pack this year.  This doesn’t necessarily need to come from one player alone.  If a couple of guys split the duty, so be it.  Personally I look at the Brackenridge, Labatte, Woldu type of characters to stake their claim here.

The Final stretch pits the Riders against the Esks x 3, the Als, and the Stamps x 2.  I don’t need to speak on Calgary; we’ve all witnessed the talent they have.  If you are sleeping on the Montreal Alouettes, you need to pray that nobody in the organization shares your point of view; the Als are playing really solid football; especially on defence, and the game is in MTL…none of those factors are “sweet” in the Riders eyes.  It will be no easy feat going into “La Belle Province” and stealing that win.  I don’t care if they’re in the east.  They’re a veteran laden team that knows what playoff positioning and momentum mean to overall success.

This brings us to Edmonton!  Historically (as Dan P, Rod and I discussed on Riderville.com) Saskatchewan struggles to win in Commonwealth Stadium for some reason.  Honestly, there’s no real explanation for it folks, I look back on my own career and nothing really stands out as the one factor that you can say. “That damn _____ was the worst thing about having to go to Edmonton”
Either way, it is what it is.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the year was the great start that the Esks enjoyed at the beginning of the 2014 campaign.  As we all know however, the CFL season is a marathon and not a sprint; since their hot start, the Eskimos have shown that they can be physically pushed around at times and their play-making defence can sometimes struggle to finish.  Saskatchewan matches up favourably against Edmonton and can do a few things to get the final stretch of the year started off on the right foot.

Offense

This opponent loves to get after the passer, and the strength is in their defensive line and their ability to make plays.  Obviously the Esks will look to take the run game away from the Green and White, and if they do manage to force Saskatchewan into 2nd and long situations, Odell Willis and his guys upfront will look to force Sunseri into rushed decisions.  The key to success may be to use the up field pursuit of the Defensive front against them and employ a variety of screens and draws in order to move the sticks.  The Rider Oline is a lot more athletic than they are credited for and guys like Labatte, Heenan, and Fulton are good at working in space and finding guys to get a hat on.

A couple of well-timed screens and draws may temper the pass rush of the Eskimos and give Sunseri the time to make the right read when they do choose to throw.  At the very least, it will give Edmonton one more factor to make note of.

Another type of weapon that George Cortez may look to utilize during the game comes in the form of the play action pass.  Teams that focus on stopping the run specifically on 1st down and shorter 2nd down situations are susceptible to bootlegs and things of that nature because players may forget to be assignment sound and jump to stop a play they ‘think’ is coming.  Discipline is a key area here and the Riders may be able to take advantage of over zealous playmaking connotations or guys taking a peek in the wrong places.

#HandInTheCookieJar

Other than that the one other thing the Riders can do; and this is more from a coaching perspective, is stick to the game plan and trust what you’ve been watching on film during the shortened week.  I always think about that Dennis Green rant when he was the HC of the Arizona Cardinals and he went off after losing to the Chicago Bears…THEY ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE!!!”

Great quote and it speaks volumes to this Eskimo defence.  They are capable of making plays, and they will, however as long as the Riders make the last big play, the O should be O-K.

Defence

Adarius Bowman is having a great year, and it’s funny how no matter what he does, people that have followed his career are still waiting for him to start dropping passes and showing the inconsistencies that we’re all used to seeing.  Hopefully the Riders can find a way to keep him matched up on Weldon Brown, because (and I say this with no harshly intended criticism) Macho Harris has struggled in coverage against bigger receivers.

Keep a watchful eye on the way Chad Kilgore performs in coverage as well.  If the tapes of the last two games are any pre-cursor to today’s game, the Esks may have a couple plays in mind to get the Rider linebacker in coverage against the quick backs that Edmonton has on its 42 man roster.

Kilgore is still getting used to the ins and outs of the CFL game and the way other teams use their backfields and slots in offensive sets and plays.  Luckily he’s had time to digest the last couple games, specifically the Ottawa tilt, and by no means is anything he has put on film a red flag.  #50 does need to find his way quickly though because another variable that separates success and failure over the aforementioned final stretch is the fact that one big play now gets magnified 100 times more than it would have at the beginning of the regular season.

What’s the easiest way to solve any match up questions?  Simple; Keep rushing the passer with the efficiency and violence that the Saskatchewan Dline has shown all year.

The Edmonton Olinemen are BIG, however big doesn’t mean better at all.  This is a group that is vulnerable in many aspects of pass protection and if the Riders can properly contain Mike Reilly, there should be some substantial success in the trenches.  #ContainTheQuarterback  High Priority

We’ll leave it at that folks.  These Primers have hopefully giving you guys some points to talk about during your tailgates or amongst friends.  Another thing I hope this blog contribution does is validate some of the thoughts you guys already have!

For all of you HORRIBLE HUMAN BEINGS that are going to commonwealth, cheer loud and be proud that you are a fanbase that is enjoying success.  I find it amazingly funny that the media has seemed to focus on you for this game, as opposed to the guys that are about to hit the field tonight.
Maybe they know it as well as you do; the “City of Champions” is nothing more than a bunch of haters that value the rear view mirror more than the road ahead.

You should be proud that you are HORRIBLE HUMAN BEINGS.  It’s better than being the guys that sit there wearing old beer-stained Wayne Gretzky Oilers jerseys lamenting over the good old days of Ron Estay, and wishing they still had Ricky Ray. #Lame

STAND UP RIDERNATION.

Cheers to the boys going 1-0 this week.

#ProPerspective