By Brady Lang

Local fans make predictions on Riders outlook

Jul 19, 2018 | 4:31 AM

The Riders head to the Hammer tonight to take on the Tiger Cats after a big win just two weeks ago, against those same Ti-Cats.

Following a week off, the Riders return to action with a 2-2 record, good for a tie for third in the west with the BC Lions. Winnipeg is the only team in the west that trails the green and white, with a 2-3 record moving into week six.

The Riders’ biggest issue up to this point has been consistency. The team has a win against Hamilton and Toronto, but also losses to Montreal and Toronto. The Montreal loss halted a 12-game losing streak by the Als, who still sit at 1-3 on the year.

A huge question mark coming into the matchup isn`t who`s starting, but how long will Brandon Bridge be behind centre. Coach Chris Jones rotated the quarterbacks throughout the game, something that is worrisome for many Rider fans, including CJNB-CJNS Morning Man, Grant Schutte.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how many snaps Bridge takes before Jones flips him,” he said. “The situation with the quarterbacks obviously isn’t ideal. But if it works, it works. The Riders need something until Collaros is back.”

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Grant expects a 24-18 win by the green and white this week.

Another issue that’s been talked about nonstop in Rider Nation is Chris Jones’ constant belief that Duron Carter is better used on the defensive side of the ball, rather than on offence where he is a perennial all-star. Since the injury to nick Marshall in the week one victory over Toronto, Jones has opted to keep the 27-year-old on defence. This has angered fans, including CJNB-CJNS, The Rock and Q’s Darien Rae.

“It just doesn’t make sense, not to have your best offensive weapon on offense,” she said. “It makes sense just to keep him where he’s best, and will help the team the most, which is on offence.”

Darien expects a closer finish than Grant, but still a win by the Riders at 23-20.

The Riders defense will again have to be heavily leaned on if the team hopes to improve to 3-2, which would be a tie with the Eskimos as they are on their bye week this week.

Earlier this week, Chris Jones ripped into the Riders at practice, citing a “work ethic” problem surrounding the team. We will have to wait until 5:30 p.m. today to find out.

You can listen to the game on CJNB-CJNS the voice of the Roughriders, starting at 2:30 p.m. with the pregame.

brady.lang@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @BradyLangCJNB