TUESDAY COMMENTARY – WHO’S BETTER

(Listen daily for the Rod Pedersen Commentary on Cat Country 98 FM & Rock 98.5 FM)

ALL IT TAKES IS ONE GLANCE AT THE NEWS AND WE REALIZE WE’RE NOWHERE NEAR BACK TO NORMAL WITH THIS PANDEMIC.

THAT SITUATION, I GUESS, WILL TAKE CARE OF ITSELF BUT IT’S CERTAINLY MADE FOR SOME FASCINATING STUDY OF SPORTS, AND THE CANADIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE IN GENERAL.

WE’RE TWO WEEKS INTO THE SEASON AND AS FANS AND MEDIA ARE WONT TO DO, TEAMS HAVE EITHER BEEN ANOINTED GREY CUP CHAMPS ALREADY, OR WRITTEN OFF ENTIRELY.

BUT THESE AREN’T NORMAL TIMES. HAVING NOT PLAYED FOR TWO YEARS AND WITH NO PRESEASON GAMES, IT’S UNDERSTANDABLE THAT THE FOOTBALL ISN’T GOING TO BE PERFECT.

BUT IT’S A TRUNCATED 14-GAME SEASON SO THOSE WINLESS TEAMS – EDMONTON, HAMILTON AND CALGARY – NEED TO FIGURE IT OUT, PRONTO.

AND UNBEATEN AT 2-0, WINNIPEG AND SASKATCHEWAN HAVE CERTAINLY GOT A LEG UP ON EVERYBODY ELSE. SO MANY PEOPLE ARE ASKING, “WHO’S BETTER?” BUT WE WON’T KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT UNTIL THE BACK-TO-BACK LABOUR DAY CLASSIC AND BANJO BOWL WHICH FORTUNATELY IS ONLY A COUPLE WEEKS AWAY.

BUT THOSE TEAMS’ RECORDS ARE NO SURPRISE. THE BOMBERS ARE THE DEFENDING CUP CHAMPS AND ARE FIELDING A PRETTY IDENTICAL TEAM.

THE RIDERS FINISHED FIRST IN THE WEST LAST TIME OUT, AND WE PREDICTED THEY’D BE STRONG AGAIN. I’VE PEGGED THEN FOR EIGHT WINS AND NOW THAT SEEMS LIGHT.

PERHAPS MOST ASTONISHINGLY IS THE FACT THEIR ROSTER ISN’T CLOSE TO THE ONE THAT HOSTED THE 2019 WEST FINAL. JONATHAN WOODARD? GARRETT MARINO?

WHO ARE THESE GUYS?

I’VE GOTTA THINK THEY’RE FINDS OF NEW RIDER HEAD SCOUT PAUL JONES, WHO’S REGARDED AS THE TOP BIRDDOG IN THE CFL.

WHEN PLAYERS MAKE YOU LOOK THEM UP, THEY’RE DOING SOMETHING RIGHT.

FOR THE 2021 SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS, THAT HAS BEEN THE CASE, SO FAR.

THAT’S TODAY’S ROD PEDERSEN COMMENTARY