Last night's loss to Edmonton serves to have answered one interesting question: namely, whether the CFL is enough like the low-scoring NFL of the '70s for a team to nurse a two-touchdown lead while its offence takes the rest of the game off. ("No", it would appear.)
Unfortunately, it's not quite clear who wanted to see the question answered in the first place. And the result for the 'Riders was a loss in a game that should have been put out of reach early.
To start off with, let's give full credit to the 'Riders for doing as much as can possibly be done to control a team that's normally explosive both on offence and on special teams.
Yes, Ricky Ray put together a couple of late drives. But normally the mark of a great defensive performance against him is to make sure he can't turn inevitable passing yardage into more than three points at a time, meaning that the worst point in the game for the 'Riders' D was still a success by normal standards. And the defence was even more impressive earlier on, holding one of the CFL's most accurate and efficient quarterbacks to a woeful 2 for 6 for 16 yards and an interception in the first quarter, then taking full advantage of a rookie quarterback toward the middle of the game.
Meanwhile, the cover teams were no less impressive in stifling the normally-explosive Kelly Campbell (as well as Jamaica Rector when Campbell was hurt for a time). So the 'Riders couldn't have done much more to shut down everything Edmonton normally does to put points on the board.
But then there's the offence. On paper, its yardage numbers would be classified as mediocre rather than disastrous. But that falls far short of telling the whole story, as a unit which looked like it was ready to steamroll the CFL early this season suddenly turned completely ineffective when it counted.
And indeed, the 'Riders were at their worst when it mattered most. The story for the first quarter was the team's one touchdown drive; in the second quarter, it was churning up some yardage, but repeatedly falling just short of field-goal range. But in the second half, thanks to a painful combination of weak blocking on running plays and uncoordinated pass attempts, the 'Riders managed only two first downs. And even those required short-yardage plays to move the chains, as the team's only play over 9 yards was a failed attempt to convert on 2nd and 25.
What's truly sad, though, is that even that lack of production need not have been fatal, as the 'Riders might well have been able to hang on if their offence had merely taken care of the ball while doing nothing positive. Unfortunately, the 'Riders' turnover total for the last 32 minutes of the game exceeded their number of first downs, with the last of Darien Durant's interceptions giving Edmonton just enough of a boost to get back into the game. And when the Eskimos did manage to put up enough points to tie the game then take the lead, the 'Riders didn't even show a trace of ability to bounce back, gaining a total of one yard on five plays.
The company line coming out of the game seems to be that the problem was one of execution, which would seem to be an obvious enough issue in the wake of such a dismal performance. But between Durant's running ability and Cates' receiving skills, the 'Riders normally have enough safety valves in their offence to at least move the ball somewhat even when their traditional offence isn't functioning as it should. And the fact that the offence couldn't fire on a single cylinder yesterday cost the 'Riders a game they should have been able to win in a walk.
What's worse, the game may have far more significance for the rest of the season than one would think from the standings going in. Don't look now, but the gap between the 'Riders and the Eskimos for second place is only one game more than the one separating Saskatchewan from first place. And while Edmonton obviously has plenty left to work on, it seems to have enough talent to get its season turned around - particularly since its win yesterday came with its two top offensive threats either absent or playing far below their best.
Needless to say, we'll have to hope for yesterday's game to serve as a wakeup call for the 'Riders. But it could instead turn out to be the end of the have/have-not dynamic that's dominated the West so far this season - especially if other teams can exploit the weaknesses Edmonton was able to find in the 'Riders' offence.
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