‘RELIABLE UNRELIABILITY’
Vanstone: Riders’ offence sputtering
Zach Collaros put it plainly when he said that “the buck stops with me.” But even if he had been inclined to pass the buck, somebody would have dropped it.
Such is the state of the Saskatchewan Roughriders offence, which leads the CFL in ... uh ... rushing yards? ... nope! ... passing yards? ... (snicker) ... ummm ... touchdowns? ... (canned laughter) ... two-and-outs?
DING!
The offence is seemingly immune to the ebbs and flows of a long, gruelling football season.
The 2018 edition of the Green and White has experienced high points (Roughriders 40, Calgary Stampeders 27) and high anxiety (Montreal Alouettes 23, Saskatchewan 17), but there has been one consistent element — the reliable unreliability of the offence.
The warts were exposed Saturday, when the Roughriders erupted for 12 first downs and 240 yards of net offence in a 30-25 home field loss to the Ottawa Redblacks.
That defeat, which snapped a four-game winning streak, has ignited howls of protest and anguish from people who are rightfully exasperated over whatever it is the Roughriders do before punting.
Fingers are being pointed everywhere — except by Collaros, who admirably shouldered full responsibility for the anemic showing against Ottawa.
But it isn’t all the quarterback’s fault. Nor is offensive co-ordinator Stephen Mcadoo entirely to blame.
Nor can all the responsibility be off-loaded on the receivers.
Nor can the aforementioned parties be absolved of blame for the hypnotic nature that is the offence. (At this rate, Reveen should be added to the coaching staff.)
Nor can I possibly begin any more paragraphs with “Nor.”
So onward we go, examining the various components of the offence and their degree of culpability for the week-to-week weaknesses.
ZACH COLLAROS
Saturday’s numbers — 10 for 27 for 160 yards, with one interception and one belated touchdown pass — don’t lie. Neither does Collaros when, ever accountable, he reserves the criticism for himself.
It isn’t a Woodward-bernstein moment for a scribe to assert that the starting quarterback must improve, especially in light of his remuneration.
The Roughriders employ a $430,000 quarterback who operates a 10-cent offence. As the most important and highest salaried component of that offence, he must lead the way.
Collaros has six touchdown passes in 261 attempts this season. Patrick Mahomes of the The Kansas City Chiefs threw six touchdown passes in 28 attempts on Sunday.
The Roughriders had a chance for a touchdown during Saturday’s first quarter. Naaman Roosevelt was open on a corner route in the end zone, only to be overthrown.
Early in the fourth quarter, Jordan Williams-lambert was open on a deep route. It should have been a 73-yard touchdown. The pass was thrown too far inside. Punt.
However, how can Collaros be blamed for two dropped passes by Shaq Evans? Or a throw that fell incomplete in the end zone because Kyran Moore slipped on his break?
Collaros did go over the top for long completions to Evans (46 yards) and Moore (40 yards), in addition to throwing a 34-yard TD pass to Roosevelt.
On the Roughriders’ one scoring drive, Collaros made an imperatively perfect throw to Roosevelt. Despite tight coverage, an 11-yard gain resulted on third-and-six.
Yes, there are some reasons for optimism. Next ...
STEPHEN MCADOO
Little was said or written about Mcadoo last year — in adherence to the “nobody talks about the airplanes that land” principle.
Saskatchewan led the CFL in touchdown passes (35), thanks to the collaborative efforts of Kevin Glenn (25) and Brandon Bridge (10).
It wasn’t a “bombs away” offence, but it was entertaining and productive, even though the Roughriders weren’t paying anything close to top dollar for a quarterback.
Now, despite the Roughriders having a $430,000 quarterback, on those occasions when they do enter the red zone, they seldom cash in.
Their red zone percentage (touchdowns scored, divided into opportunities) is a league low 32.0. And just 25 visits to the red zone also place Saskatchewan at the bottom of the nine-team league.
Thanks in large part to a stalwart defence, the Roughriders’ average starting point for drives is their own 37.4-yard line. Only the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (37.9) have better field position, on average.
How do the Roughriders’ take advantage of their location? The answer remains elusive.
At times this season, Mcadoo has been ultraconservative (see: handoff on second-and-seven) and predictable.
Keep in mind, though, that he’s amenable to opening up the attack — at least with Collaros at the controls.
The aforementioned 40-yarder to Moore came on third-andtwo, during a game in which the Roughriders were aggressive through the air.
On second-and-three against Winnipeg on Sept. 2, Collaros went deep for Williams-lambert for a 39-yard gain that set up one of the team’s 15 offensive touchdowns this season.
Roosevelt has four TD catches — half the team’s total — but Mcadoo and company nonetheless struggle to take advantage of No. 82’s talents.
Tre Mason has emerged as an excellent running back, the snag being that Marcus Thigpen can become a forgotten member of the offence.
Thigpen, the Roughriders’ most explosive player, could and should be used as frequently and profitably as possible. On Saturday, however, he had just two offensive touches.
THE RECEIVERS
The merits of releasing Duron Carter can be debated, but this much is certain: The Roughriders were a much more explosive team with him in the lineup.
It’s one thing to subtract Carter. It’s another matter entirely to replace him. Saskatchewan doesn’t have a single touchdown from a wide receiver this season.
Carter’s lone TD as a Rider in 2018 came while lined up at slotback. The Roughriders’ brass was so impressed with the 41-yard score that they cut him.
Evans has decent speed and he can get open. He also has three drops over his past three games.
Joshua Stanford is averaging 1.3 receptions per game and 9.8 yards per catch. (So why not play Rob Bagg ?)
Roosevelt, for whatever reason, hasn’t approached his 1,000-yard form of the previous two seasons.
Moore has speed and talent — see: 40-yard, over-the-shoulder fingertip catch — but he’s still finding his way in the CFL.
Williams-lambert has been a find, as evidenced by his teamhigh totals in catches (47) and receiving yards (551). He’s had the best season of any Roughriders receiver, but that’s not the ultimate compliment.
Caleb Holley, who is on the sixgame injured list, wasn’t especially productive when he was in the lineup.
Last year, the Roughriders had three 1,000-yard receivers — Carter, Roosevelt and Bakari Grant — and were also able to squeeze some important plays out of Holley, Bagg and Chad Owens.
But now, the passing attack is ailing, even though the offensive line is vastly improved.
So what’s wrong with the Roughriders’ offence?
It’s a little bit of everything — adding up to a whole lot of nothing.