My goodness it was fun on social media after the Friday night Saskatchewan Roughriders loss in Edmonton.
I went on one of the more popular social media sites and made one short post; “I get that Chris Jones is supposed to be the smartest man in the province right now, but kick and field goal and live to play another mini game. A great effort wasted by a dunce call.”
I then sat back and watched the fun, occasionally chiming into the debate just to stir the pot.
Not surprisingly most of the comments rallied to Jones’ support. The love-fest with the ‘Riders new head coach and general manager is still in full bloom after all.
Frankly I’m still very much a Jones fan. I’ve seen a lot of very good signs from this team through two games.
Ricky Collins looks to be a deep threat with sure hands, who can be a game changer.
A.C. Leonard is a defensive lineman has tons of upside, as does Jonathan Newsome.
This team should get better as the season progresses as you should expect of a team which underwent massive player turn over in the off season.
But that does not mean Jones should not be taken to task for bad decisions.
I am pleased with the overall game. Jones’ decision to short kick as early in the fourth quarter as he did was great. It caught the Eskimos by surprise.
The early on-side kick is one of those elements of the game which is probably not sided enough, of course making it a bold choice that worked to perfection.
But let’s remember too, the ‘Riders were out of the game until Joe McKnight fumbled a punt, his second of the night. The fourth quarter fumble was recovered, led to a score, and put the Roughies in a position to eventually get the lead late.
A 15-yard roughing passer call against Marcus Howard as he swung his arm at Durant’s head didn’t hurt the ‘Riders’ push in the fourth quarter.
These are the realities of football, and are rarely the influence of a coach on either sideline.
Now let’s analyze the last few moments of the game.
Saskatchewan is up three with 13-seconds on the clock.
The Eskimos have arguably the best passer in the CFL in Mike Reilly. So the ‘Riders go into a prevent defence, which Reilly picks apart for two quick passes totalling 30-yards, and a field goal for the tie.
How often did I hear people bash for Roughrider boss Corey Chamblin for playing a soft defence late in a game.
Jones got a pass from most on social media, at least in the discussion I initiated. It does depend on when things happen.
But the soft defence still left us with a tie, and given how the fourth quarter started, being in a position for points was a win for the ‘Riders.
Then we get to the point where the ‘Riders are behind in the 5th quarter. The Roughies can kick a ‘gimme’ field goal and live to play another mini game, but instead Jones calls for a short yardage gamble on third down.
And they failed.
That is why you don’t take a risk.
On the road, if you have to play for the tie, you do it, and in this case they might have still won.
In this case a team as put together from all over as this one, timing plays are going to be questionable, and that was proven.
The decision was just bad. Your short yardage game in two games has been a disaster. The team has been abysmal for two years, and you are in a position to salvage points in the stadium of the Grey Cup champs. Common sense says kick a field goal and survive for another try.
By messing that up a great fourth quarter handed to you by Eskie mistakes is wasted.
Jones got the exact result and number of points that decision was worth — zero.
Now, I’m not suggesting the season is over, but Jones gave up a chance at points by a bad decision. He is not infallible. He is not perfect. He can be wrong, and this proved it.
Next week he might be the hero - he showed signs like the onside kick, but sometimes you push things too far in the attempt to be the smartest man in the stadium, and this time he ended up with the dunce cap.
On the broader note of the CFL, we would appear in a time of some level of parity. We’ve seen three games in three weeks go to OT, so that tells much about the closeness.
Some see that as a negative, but I rather like that it is not clear going into any game who might win.
Saskatchewan is pointless — as noted — but the signs are there that this team is capable of going at least .500, which is what I was hoping for this season.
Hamilton is struggling. Jeremiah Masoli may not be the man at QB, but Zach Collaros should return — currently on the six-game injured list — in time to right the ship in Steeltown.
That said offences are rolling. Trevor Harris is already over a 1,000-yards passing. That is encouraging too.
And of course the Esks and ‘Riders eclipsed 70 combined points with both QBs having 300-plus yards passing, which in my book is about as good as a football game gets.
It has the early signs of a highly entertaining season, and our ‘Riders should be in the mix by season’s end.
