Labor Day Weekend Already?

So the Riders got rid of John Chiles who got signed by Hamilton, had their draft pick Ella Bouka get put on the injury reserved list, and are stumbling towards blowing their 11 year winning streak in the Labour Day game.

So maybe you are expecting the worst?

Can’t really blame anyone for thinking that, but I think otherwise. Maybe it’s the constant losing, maybe it is some wild hope, maybe it is the two Grey Cup rings I have. I have to believe in something better.

So while I looked at this weekend and thought long and hard about the matchups and what to expect, and this season expect the unexpected seems to be a constant theme.

Let’s start with the BC – Toronto game on Wednesday night. Toronto has suddenly gotten its receivng corps back and has Ricky Ray back under centre until a gust of wind cramps his hamstring. Scott Milanovich, whether he likes it or not, has hitched his wagon to Ray believing Ray gives him the best chance to win, with all due respect to Zach, Trevor, Mitchell and Logan.

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The trick is keeping Ray vertical and while Toronto beat BC in BC by staying in Saskatchewan after beating the Riders and adjusting to the left coast time in that respect, I didn’t see the Argos staying in Regina this week and therefore the Lions win the game.

BC has the more active defense while Toronto rid themselves of veterans Keon Raymond, Larry Taylor and Adrian McPherson which in the case of Raymond and Taylor hurt them on the field while probably helping with the salary cap. Toronto has their receivng corps back which helps, but I think Ricky Ray has enough rust that BC wins this one 28-24.

Ottawa goes to Montreal and both teams are in what Tom Petty called “Free Fallin’” Benching Henry Burris in favor of Trevor Harris did not help Ottawa, nor really hurt it last week, but Ottawa is going through some adolescent pains of their own that merely changing the QB would not be enough to rectify.

Montreal  would have been thought to have been competitive last week against Winnipeg, but they got blown out early and often you would have thought they spent the night before the game checking out local strippers. This week Montreal  doesn’t have Duron Carter, who may be the only person keeping Montreal moderately interesting to local sports fans and is also the one person who can turn a game around for Montreal.

Montreal’s defense is pretty good, but once you get to the defensive secondary, it is held together with more prayers than Anthony Weiners Instragram account.  Ottawa is going through an identity crisis between the Hank and the Trevor and until the team responds positively under one quarterback, Ottawa will make it harder on itself than what it has to.

Montreal’s lack of offensive punch in this game makes it easy to pick Ottawa, but the way this season has gone, I would almost expect Kevin Glenn to throw for 500 yards and six touchdowns to a 400 pound tight end from Bowling Green. I don’t think Nik Lewis has that kind of game in him. So let’s go with Ottawa in a close game because this is a classic trap game where Ottawa might be tempted to overlook Montreal and consider the game already won. This might be Jim Popp’s only hope of winning this one, but it is not an incoceivable one. Ottawa 26-23.

Edmonton goes to Calgary on Monday and this has the makings of a shoot-out. Edmonton has an offense which when it is good is very good, with a defense that is in the words of Gertrude Stein on Oakland – There is no there there.

Calgary has Bo Whiny Mitchell with some beard he stole from a homeless Amish guy and a winning record, but there is something to Bo that makes me think that while he has the confidence now of a winning quarterback, he can be beat. Calgary has worked to ensure there are enough weapons to overcome such a power outage, like adding Jerome Messam, and Marquay McDaniels has emerged to have a pretty good season catching easy balls.

Calgary has rookies in their defensive backfield who are undoubtedly talented, but they are rookies. Their defense is pretty good under DeVone Claybrooks who strikes me as potential head coach material.

Edmonton on the other hand is in the process of trying to match the guys they let go to the NFL and not quite getting there. Of course Eskimo fans will say the team is on the right track after beating their version of the anti-Christ in Chris Jones, but really, who hasn’t beaten Saskatchewan this year except for Ottawa and it took taking out Trevor Harris on the third play of the game to do that.

Calgary is at home and you have to like them to win, but I get the impression watching Calgary that like sands running out through an hour glass, Calgary’s time may be coming up short soon. For this weekend let’s say Calgary 28-25.

Toronto goes to Hamilton for the other half of the Monday double header and here things get interesting. I picked BC over Toronto because of talent and BC has more continuity. Logic then suggests that playing another game so fast will mean doom for the dozens of Argo supporters not currently in a witness protection program.

I don’t think so, even if Hamilton has added John Chiles to provide greater receiving depth. Hamilton made it close to Calgary, but Zach Collaros had problems against Claybrooks defense and he learned off of Richie Stubler, who now heads up Toronto’s defense.

While Toronto has strip mined itself of talent to match the salary cap, I think the scheme Toronto is playing will help them make the playoffs and this game I think will be one of those statements. Collaros like Ray is looking to knock rust off but if Toronto can make Collaros guess where the defense is going, it will make Collaros hold the ball one second longer and make it much easier for Toronto to get turnovers.

They say it may be easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle than for Toronto to win in Hamilton on LabourDay. Well, time to start lubing some camels because Toronto 27-26 is very doable in much the same win Montreal beat Saskatchewan with just one practice.

Finally we have the Riders hosting Winnipeg. The Riders showed a modicum of hope against Edmontonm, but I prefer to think of Edmonton as just not that good. Winnipeg has gone four games in a row winning thanks mostly to its defense and the odd two hour thunderstorm to throw other teams off. Winnipeg’s defense has played well in getting turnovers and putting the pressure on other teams to try to match the Bombers.

Bomber fans are telling themselves that 11 years is enough and this is just another step in the road to reinstating Swaggerville. And just as Swaggerville was toppled in 2011, so too will the Bombers hopes of breaking the schneid on Labour Day.

Four or five games of having a defense play at a high level like Winnipeg’s is probably the maximum you can expect before something happens that is not so good. Winnipeg’s offensive stats are not that good and when you look at how Winnipeg has won, for the most part it is due to their opponents throwing it away.

So as the toothless hordes from Canada’s Crime Capital come to the city that rhymes with fun, the cheesiest parts of Rider tradition will come to the fore – Ken Clark kicking the winning field goal after coming back from his mother’s death bed; The shouts of Rocky! As Rocky Butler leads an unlikely win; Joe Paopao throwing a last second touchdown to Ray Elgaard after fighting him in the Old Gold parking lot earlier in the week; Kerry Joseph doing the incredible quarterback sneak in the magical year of 2007, and Winnipeg getting blanked 52-0 and me catching one of Odell Willis’s gloves he threw into the stands after the win.

I may not pick the Riders to win another game this year and they may well not win another game. But there is one game they will need to win and it is this one. Because evil wins when good men do nothing.