Tracker

Statistics are interesting but not absolute determinants in sports. What they do is chart trends and are good predictor of the future. Most in this forum were expecting that the Rider reliance on their defence to bail out an anemic offence would cause the team to implode at some point and it has. Spectacularly. Similarly, the Bombers expecting their defence to carry the team when the offence for whatever reason is barely getting the job done almost certainly will fail, perhaps at a critical juncture. The Bombers may defy this, but history would indicate that this is unlikely to be the case. We shall see.

Why should anyone give a rat's butt about how Nichols did or did not strut? Like it or not, the fate of the 2018 Bombers is tied to Nichols and this argument is like debating how many angels could dance on the head of a pin. So long as he wins, he can do pirouettes in a tutu at midfield.

With the Stamps, Eskimos and Riders all wilting in the stretch and the Lions highly questionable, if the Bombers can continue this level of play, there is a real possibility, the Bombers could come out of the West regardless. Crossing over would not be good for morale's sake, but only Hamilton on a good day could challenge the Bombers. That four-game losing skid came at a very bad time.

It's safe to assume that the Stamps' receiving corps underwhelmed against the Beastly Lions.

HALLELUJAH! Don't know if this will impact the current season but definitely bodes well for the future!

My brain hurts now.

It was as perfect as you could expect. The Rider casualty list showed that.

And to add insult to injury, you live in Regina.

To be fair to Suitor, his commentary is usually pretty insightful, and although he was a Rider, his job is to make the game interesting. That was not easy considering the beat-down one-sided game yesterday.

I suggest that the Riders were winning because everything that could go right for them went right- they caught teams off their game, the Rider defence played way over their heads, they escaped key injuries for the most part and the Rider defence didn't screw up too badly. All this is catching up with them now and it will be all uphill to the finish line.

I think we have seen the last of #31.

Bladek looks to be done for the season and Collaros was.....Collaros. The best of the season is probably behind the Riders.

Bladek looks to be done for the season and Collaros was.....Collaros. The best of the season is probably behind the Riders.

Everything caught up to the Riders today- a decimated starting lineup, quarterbacking that was barely adequate when their defence carried the day, Bomber team out for revenge. The Bombers have to be considered no less than the #2 team in the league and we have reason to hope for win against the Stamps. All good.

It will come down to trench warfare- both Collaros and Nichols need more time than most to make their reads and neither are roll-out experts or threats to run.

If this is not the most intense, hair-teeth-and-eyeballs-all-over-the-field game of the year, I will be greatly disappointed. The Bombers need to make a point, not only to the Riders, but also the rest of the league and Bomber fans. The two previous games were winnable but the Bombers folded like aluminum lawn chairs. This game ought to be a playoff preview.

It seems that some here try to label anyone with a dissenting opinion as a troll. Sounds like something that happens a lot on Riderfans. Enjoy.

Appearances can be deceptive.

They had better hope the board of directors feel the same way.

Oh, crap. Do Walters and O'Shea have objectionable body odor that he did not sign here?

Same here. Nichols looks to be fragile- emotionally if not physically. There are those who are never the same after a career-threatening injury and Nichols may be one of those.

I'm pretty sure he's familiar with it- its how he comes and goes.

Damn...now you've put pressure on O'Shea.

During the game, there were a couple of instances where Nichols appeared to be close to getting hit and he appeared to freeze- indecisive about what to do. It looked like he was terrified about getting hit. Sure hope he works his way out of this real soon.

Stringing together a few wins appears to shorten memories in Riderland. I suspect that they would cheer for Idi Amin if he took them to the Grey Cup.