THROWIN’ ELBOWS WITH BRENDAN MCGUIRE

1. STILL NO CBA: The CFL players have voted down the latest Collective Bargaining Agreement that had originally been agreed to by its CFLPA leadership. So now what? As of this writing, we still don’t know if the Riders rescheduled preseason game next Tuesday is even a go or not. My take? This proposed change to the Canadian starter player ratio is too complicated for most fans and probably most coaches to understand and it doesn’t need to be. They should go back to the drawing board and simply require 5 Canadians on the field at all times,…allowing one or two of those 5 to be an American with several years experience on the same team. It will serve the same purpose the league is trying to achieve right now. Usually it’s the owners who carry all of the leverage this early in the season but in this case, I feel like it’s the players as the CFLPA has the ability to cause serious disruption to the business of the season. And if they agree to proceed with camps and the regular season without an agreement, the players’ leverage will grow by the week, setting up the possibility of a late-season strike, not unlike the ’94 MLB players strike which destroyed the season and the owners eventually caved anyway. I hope that doesn’t happen here but the longer it drags on, the wider the door opens for a messy impact on the season. We are still living in unprecedented times.    

2. PRESEASON IN JEOPARDY: My biggest fear in all of this might be the fact that another preseason could very well be lost, creating another year of sloppy offensive football. That will add fuel to the naysayers (including the Toronto Argonauts team president) telling us our game needs four downs and to partner with the XFL. If we lose our preseason in all of this, I sincerely hope the league keeps the rules status quo for 2023, regardless of what happens on the field this summer.  

3. STAMPS RECEIVER ARRESTED: Brendan Langley’s fight with a United Airlines employee was caught on camera and available for viewing on TMZ’s website. I have no idea what precipitated the brawl but will suggest the employee was as much at fault as Langley was, maybe even more. At least twice, the baggage handler stepped toward Langley and raised his fists as though he legitimately thought he could give the pro athlete a run for his money. He lost and now Langley is in hot water. I hope the Stamps and CFL don’t rush to judgement and you shouldn’t, either. 

4. RIDER TRAINING CAMP BATTLE TO WATCH: I want to know who Cody Fajardo’s backup is going to be. Mason Fine probably has the inside track based on his taking over that spot on the depth chart from Isaac Harker late last year. But I am intrigued by Jake Dolegala and his 6 foot 7 frame. If there’s anything Paxton Lynch taught us in his time here, being a giant does not a hall of fame quarterback make. However, as Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader Post very aptly pointed out on last week’s inaugural edition of In The Huddle, Dolegala managed to command the attention of the Cincinnati Bengals at one time, despite being undrafted. Unlike Lynch before him, Dolegala has shown the moxie it takes to scrap his way up the depth chart against all odds. With Cody’s willingness to gallop into open space, this is one battle I’ll be watching. 

5. HEAT ON MAAS: I expect this to be ratcheted up and for good reason. Cody Fajardo’s production dipped significantly last season  after his previous play-caller, Stephen McAdoo was run out of town for one bad playoff game of play selection. In either case, the Riders blew the west final to the eventual Grey Cup champion Blue Bombers despite the Roughrider defence doing everything possible to win the game. In re-signing Duke Williams and getting the play caller Cody Fajardo seems to want, Jeremy O’Day has shopped for the groceries on offence. It’s time for Maas and Fajardo to cook the meal. 

6.CENTENNIAL CUP: It has looked and sounded like a great show as near as I can tell, despite the Bruins lacklustre 1-2 start. There’s still time for them to get this all straightened around but Thursday night’s match with the Brooks Bandits of the Alberta Junior Hockey League will be the telltale. Many are expecting Brooks to sweep their way right through the tournament and it’ll be up to the Bruins to spoil the party and give their fans something to cheer about.  

7. BATTLE OF ALBERTA: Greatest series I’ve seen in a really long time. My biggest disappointment was after game 1 hearing Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft drone on about needing to play better defensively. What’s wrong with being proud of your group for coming back to tie it up after trailing 5-1? Another example of this seriously wrong mindset we have in the NHL and game of hockey in general these days. Longtime Boston Bruins GM Harry Sinden once fired Pat Burns because Burns felt like they needed to win 2-1 or 3-2 every night. As Harry put it, “It’s okay to win 6-5 or 7-6 on some nights, too.” Sinden knows this because he’s been around long enough to remember the game at its greatest before all of these systems and robots took over in the late 90s.

8.DON CHERRY: Grapes is still some peeved at Ron MacLean for not backing him when Sportsnet fired Cherry for his “You People” comment in late 2019. So my question to Don Cherry is: When your previous Coaches Corner host Dave Hodge got fired for throwing his pencil in the air, did you stick up for him? Of course not. You looked after yourself and carried on with your own business and your own TV career. You probably didn’t think your livelihood should be flushed down the drain over something someone else did. Precisely what Ron MacLean decided and is doing now.   

9. THE JOSH DONALDSON CONTROVERSY: Clumsy at best and racist at worst. Donaldson has called this player “Jackie” before and this player (Tim Anderson) has called himself “Jackie”, too. They’re both idiots for thinking either one of them has any business comparing Anderson to Jackie Robinson. Not enough there to conclude that Josh Donaldson is some kind of racist, despite what some the commentators are piling on as we speak. Maybe I’m biased because I did cheer for Donaldson and the Blue Jays in 2015 and 2016, but the punishment of branding him a racist, about the worst thing imaginable, doesn’t fit the crime here. Not by a longshot. And Tony La Russa is the last baseball man on earth who should be lecturing anyone about race relations. His history with black players other than Dave Stewart is spotty at best. Look up Ron Gant and hear his thoughts on how Tony La Russa treated black players if you’re curious.   

10. IN THE HUDDLE THIS WEEK: Marshall Hamilton, Olivia Lawrence and I will be joined by four-time CFL all-star Andrew Greene to try and make some sense of this CFL labour mess. Watch us at 7pm Tuesday nights on Access Now TV.

(Follow Brendan on Twitter at @brendanhowardmc)