THROWIN’ ELBOWS WITH BRENDAN MCGUIRE

1. HENDY SIGNING A CURIOUS CHOICE FOR ROUGHRIDERS: He left in a huff over a lack of playing time before last year’s playoff run and now the Riders are bringing him back. I’m not suggesting we should question AJ Hendy’s ability to help the Rider defence on the field but I am suggesting we should question the message his return could send to the rest of the locker room. Does this say it’s acceptable to quit on your teammates in their hour of need? Did the Rider defence not outlast a formidable Calgary offence and then generate 6 turnovers against arguably the league’s best offence of Winnipeg in last year’s playoff run without Hendy? It’s hard to question much of anything Jeremy O’Day has done since taking over as General Manager but here’s one where they’ve got some explaining to do.  

2. CFL SHOULD DO THIS RULE CHANGE: Maybe the greatest segment in the history of the RP Show last week when Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader Post suggested the CFL should worry less about scoring and more about electrifying. Robcat’s idea of simplifying the ratio to mandate 4 Canadians on the field at all times is so genius, even I feel dumb for not thinking of it sooner. This would not only level the playing field for offences but also open up more opportunities for exciting American stars to play on special teams. I would even take it a step further. Allow no more than two Canadians to start on the offensive line and mandate each team to dress 3 quarterbacks including one Canadian. This would encourage teams to develop more Canadians on defence and at skilled positions, especially QB. Would make for higher caliber and more exciting ball that develops Canadians at more positions than the status quo. I’m right about this.     

3. THE ROCK AND HIS CFL GRUDGE: Does anyone think The Rock’s obsession with buying the XFL and controlling or outshining the CFL is really his way of getting back at Wally Buono for cutting him back in ’95? I think that theory has legs. He’s spoken ad nauseam in strange rambles online about Wally cutting him and how devastated he was. It’s okay, Dwayne. You weren’t good enough to play in the CFL and you’ll never be good enough to run the CFL, either. Get over it.   

4. BURRIS BACK TO THE NFL: The CFL needs to stay as far away as humanly possible from ever being a developmental league for the National Football League. All players should be mandated to give, depending on years of service, a 3-year or 2-year minimum commitment to the CFL on each contract. Coaching, however, is different. I see absolutely zero downside to letting coaches weasel out of their contracts if a promotion to the NFL comes calling. Players jumping from Canada to the NFL rarely make it through final cuts. Coaches, however, almost always get to serve their new club for at least a full season and usually longer. I don’t honestly think Hank would’ve been much of a difference-maker in BC, anyway as he was going to work through the internet from Chicago. Henry should chase the NFL dream and we should root for him all the way.   

5. EXPECT PATS TO MISS PLAYOFFS: I see about 3 winnable games left on their schedule which could get them 6 points. Only problem is that would give them a tie for the final playoff spot in the eastern conference. Unless Swift, PA and Calgary all roll over completely, it just won’t be enough. Not to be a Debbie Downer or anything but it proves that one superstar (Connor Bedard) does not a successful team on the ice make. This should be a lesson to us all to appreciate a winner any time we have one and not take winning for granted. EVER.

6. EXPECT RIDERS TO SELL OUT: In the two years I’ve lived really close to the Victoria Square Mall, it’s been a ghost town there. Not anymore! The place has really been lively lately. Another sign the world, well here at home anyway, is getting back to the way it ought to be.  

7. ANOTHER REMINDER WHY WE NEED LIVE SPORT: Thanks to Tristen Cosens of Bamboo Shoots for having me out to broadcast the Hoopla 2022 5A Girls provincial final between Campbell Collegiate of Regina and St. Joseph’s of Saskatoon Saturday night. Luckily Kyle Ottenbreit held my hand through my first ever basketball broadcast and the finish was electric going to overtime. That little gym at Leboldus was rocking and anyone there remembered how badly we’ve missed live sports. Sports are supposed to be so unimportant. Or so we thought.  

8. LOSER OF THE WEEK: Vladimir Putin has company this week. It’s a tie between him and his spokesman, Dmitry Peskov. The Kremlin mouthpiece has called Joe Biden’s aggressive criticism of his boss “unforgivable”. Apparently Peskov thinks those of us criticizing Russia’s attack on Ukraine are all hoping the Russian government will forgive us. I sure hope he doesn’t think the world just goes back to normal for the Russian government once they finish getting their rear-ends handed to them by the Ukrainians. One would think the Russians should worry more about preventing their own soldiers from dying and their own economy from collapsing more than about anything Joe Biden says. 

9. WILL SMITH: The Oscars thing was stupid all around. Chris Rock’s joke was stupid and so was Will Smith’s reaction. But not stupid enough for me to not still find each of them hilarious. I love them both.  

10. BAD VEGAN: Watched it on NetFlix over the weekend and I don’t want to be accused of victim-blaming here but it’s hard to feel sorry for someone who marries some-one else for their cash. I’m not naïve enough to think it never happens but I’m just sayin.