THROWIN’ ELBOWS WITH BRENDAN MCGUIRE

1. RIDER INJURIES TELL US: It’s time to go back to how training camp in all sports were prior to the 1990s. Back in the good old days, players were expected to show up out of shape and would use camp to get into shape. Somewhere along the way, it all became big business with lots of cash at stake, except for the CFL, and this mentality crept in that everyone in every league had to be in shape before training camp. Well the game is no greater now than it was back then and following COVID-19 we’re seeing results of players dialing it up when they’re not ready. Bad for the athletes, bad for the teams and bad for the fans.

2. A RUSH TO GET RIDER TICKETS TELLS US: People aren’t scared of COVID-19 anymore. I know 75% of folks at Costco Sunday morning were still wearing masks and I’ll probably still wear mine at busy places like that and the Rider games when I’m walking around but at the office I’m going without. If you’re wearing or not wearing, or if you’re a business still wanting us all to wear one, or are okay with us not wearing a mask, it’s all good. No judgment here.

3. CFL-XFL MERGER DYING TELLS US: It was always a dumb idea. Great way to fill a slow news day. The fact it was the CFL who announced talks had ‘mutually’ broken off tells me the Canadian Football League owners were never all that into it. In fact, it was ‘The Rock’ and his ex-wife who kept bragging about the idea—after signing confidentiality agreements—and needed to keep telling themselves the $15 million dollars they (Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia) blew on a bankrupt asset was somehow a smart decision. I wouldn’t rule out the thought of that outfit never playing another down. We’ll see.

4. DARIAN DURANT FOR HALL OF FAME: Three Grey Cup appearances and a title as a starting quarterback is good enough for me. And it’s not like I’m biased just because he played for Saskatchewan, either. He was very thin-skinned during his time here and I will never respect him for hanging Paul LaPolice out to dry by taking his signing bonus and then retiring without ever playing a down in Winnipeg.

5. DEATH OF MICHAEL SOLES TELLS US: This post football career-Lou Gehrig’s disease is serious business. I grew up watching big Mike truck his way through linebackers as a bruising fullback with Edmonton. I remember thinking how perfect life would be if I were ‘that guy’. Life was not perfect for ‘that guy’. Shortly after his career ended, Soles was diagnosed with ALS, well before his 40^th birthday. He was confined to a wheelchair for many years and his quality of life changed dramatically. I’ve taken as much from the sport as anyone and I’ve given as little to the sport as anyone. I want the sport to thrive as much as anybody. But for crying out loud, don’t ever discount the dangers these athletes face and don’t ever mock these football leagues for trying to change the game to make it safer.    

6. THIS WEEK I’M JEALOUS OF: Rob Vanstone. He met Gary Carter and I didn’t.

7. NEW ALOUETTE OWNERS CARRY A BIG STICK: Sources around the league tell us they were the ones pushing the XFL talks and they will be the ones who make revenue-sharing a reality. Each league should have some form of revenue sharing to ensure not only viability but also competitive balance. As the knights in shing armour willing to fall on the grade that is bankrolling Montreal’s CFL team, they should get some concessions from other teams like Saskatchewan.

8. NBA FINALS: Good to see Chris Paul get one last run in and good to see the NBA start to show it can be both a team-driven league instead of star-driven league and also a smaller market driven league. Whether it’s big star-less Phoenix or small market Milwaukee on top in the end, pro basketball looks a little more like it ought to these days.

9. SASKATCHEWAN RATTLERS SHOULD: Play a game or two in Regina. Great way to expand the fan base but also generate interest for a rival to set up shop in the Queen City and lessen travel costs. Will be fascinating to see how much the sport continues to grow in this country in the aftermath of the Raptors championship run from 2019.  

10. CHECK OUT THIS PODCAST: Find an episode of PODSKEE WEE WEE on the 3 Down Nation website if you want to find some more CFL talk to balance with all the Rider talk, locally. This one is more Hamilton Ticat centric which tells us more about a team not only hosting the Grey Cup in December but also a team the Riders could very well face on that cold Sunday night.

(Follow Brendan on Twitter at @brendanhowardmc)