Dan Plaster
With a pair of East Division battles to begin the season, we finally have the first West Division battle as it’s a rematch of the West Semi-final of a year ago that saw the Riders take out the Lions at Mosaic Stadium.
Now there may not be as much on the line this time around, but with the Bombers and Eskimos both winning Friday night to up their records to 3-0, this is a big one for both clubs to keep pace in an already frantic West.
The Riders are coming off their worst defeat in Corey Chamblin’s tenure as head coach (previous was a 24-5 loss in BC on August 19, 2012), and are looking to bounce back on home turf. The Lions are also coming in hungry, Mike Benevides boys have started the season 0-2 and want to turn things around quickly competing in the robust west.
Head to Head:
– Both Chamblin and Benevides took over their respective clubs in 2012 and since then, including playoffs, the Riders hold a 5-3 mark over the 8 match-ups.
– At home against the Lions since 2012, the Riders are 4-1 with the lone loss coming on September 22, 2013 (24-22).
– The Riders will face only one former player from their Grey Cup winning team of last season, punter Ricky Schmitt.
Fast Facts:
Climbing the Charts – Darian Durant is 278 yards from surpassing Danny Barrett for 21st in CFL all-time passing yards list.
In Darian we Trust – since 2008, the Riders are 47-41-1 with Darian Durant in as the starter and 10-11 with him on the sidelines.
Fast Starts – Since 2008, the Riders are 21-10 in June and July, which is the best of any portion of the season.
Sack Attack – Heading into week three of the CFL season, the Riders lead the league in sacks with 12.
With the season progressing, storylines begin to open up. Heading into week three, here are five things that I will be looking for against the Lions:
The aggressive Rider defensive front – The green and white have one of the most aggressive defences in the CFL. This is a good thing with the league leading 12 sacks, but last week, the Argos took advantage of it with multiple counter run plays, screens and missed tackles. If the Riders can continue the aggressiveness, but do it with veteran composure, it will make life miserable for either Lions quarterback.
Darian and the receivers – With Chris Getzlaf out again this week, it will be interesting to see how Darian Durant and the rest of the receiving core gel. We know that he will look for the familiar faces in Rob Bagg and Taj Smith, but the evolution of Brett Swain, Ryan Smith and Eron Riley needs to continue for the Riders to have success offensively.
Pound the rock…but with who – Anthony Allen leads the league in rushing yards and has 10 catches out of the backfield, but a fumble in each game has hurt. The recently acquired Hugh Charles and Jerome Messam have been inserted into the lineup. Messam won’t see many touches as he replaces the injured Neal Hughes, but we may see more of the veteran CFL back (and former Rider), Charles.
Lions in the Red – The Lions have had their problems offensively this year with nine total turnovers with a -6 differential. That never leads to good things, but the glaring stat is their red zone offence. In their 6 red zone opportunities, they have just 2 touchdowns, for a league worst 33.3% TD efficiency. If the Riders can continue to hold them to field goals, good things will happen.
A new look for the Wolfpack – The biggest news of the week was the trade of Dwight Anderson to the Toronto Argos. Macho Harris will take his spot at the halfback position and the rest will stay as status quo. The defensive backfield is still a veteran group, and will look towards Tyron Brackenridge, Terrell Maze and Tristan Jackson for continued leadership as this group evolves with new faces come into the rotation.
Enjoy the game Rider Fans and remember to catchup here on Tuesdays with Rider Rewind only on riderville.com.
