No Durant No Chance

Only one more sleep until this Weeks CFL Markee Match-up between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Montreal Alouettes. The League's two top Offences will face off at Percival Molson Stadium.

The game may lose some luster if Darian Durant's stomach ailment will prevent him from playing. That is unlikely however. Durant did say today that he felt "a but out of it" but he did just arrive from the airport. He also stated that he will be starting.

It's been real humid in Montreal, it is suppose to cool down after the thundershowers tonight, but if its going to be as muggy as today, that would not be the best situation for a player that has been battling his stomach.

The key will be to watch Durant in the first quarter, see how many times he's hit, rushed and knocked down. For a guy that isn't feeling up to snuff energy lost early could be gone for the game.

If Durant can't complete the game, expect the Als to runaway with it. Ryan Dinwiddie and Cole Berqquist aren't the budding superstars in the CFL that Durant is. I was leaning towards the Riders because i love the way Coach Miller has adjusted to the Als in their last two contests, but with questions surrounding Durant... I'm undecided.

My picks will be up with the rest of the gang on MFG's Pick'em, Win'em tomorrow.

Post Game Alservations: Bombs Away!

Well, what can one say after that thriller of a game.

The CFL is designed to create entertaining football.

So the Als drop a 54-51 2OT decision in the Grey Cup Grudge match to the Riders. A game filled with great offensive plays is a game that has defensive mistakes. Let's take a quick look at game 1 of the Als season.

-Love the way #13 AC bounced back from an interception and sack to start his season. Big numbers 28/42 368 yards and 4TDs. He's still got it.

-#18 Jamel Richardson 5 rec for 79 yards, could have been better. A couple of drops in the hands tonight

-#3 Tim Maypray with the 2nd longest MFG Return in Als history 122 yards for the TD. that's great news for a team that might have started to miss Larry Taylor.

-#19 S.J. Green with the catch of the Season already in OT on the 2-point conversion, you can see what the Jets liked in him. Just keep him out of the backfield on blocking assignments, he miss reads the blitzes.

-The Als Secondary gave up 478 yards and 5 TDs to Darian Durant. 1- They were missing Mark Estelle 2- The Riders probably have the best receiving core the Als will see this year 3-Darian Durant is in the Top 3 QBs in the CFL (see Calvillo and Ray)

-#17 Billy Parker took alot of chances. hit or miss. It was a miss tonight.

-#11 Chip Cox, looked good in coverage and added a sack and a forced fumble

-Not a good sign when your safety leads the team in Tackles (#20 Proulx with 6).

-The Als defensive line, looked gassed in the 3rd and 4th quarter, Trestman may want to work in a bigger rotation for some of his big names on the line.

-I think #85 Brian Bratton will have huge numbers this year.

-Dressler and Durant could have more completions together than Calvillo and Cahoon, this year.

-The Als O-Line will need at least 3 games to gel properly.

-Don't be shocked about Avon Cobourne's 10 carries, He'll get his touches, just not in a Wild West OT Shootout.

-Circle august 6th on your calendar, Riders in Montreal. I know Coach Trestman already has.

-The CFL is fun

-The CFL is smiling ear to ear with this being the game to debut on the NFL Network.

The Alouettes have 10 days to think about this loss, you know coach Trestman will have geared to pick up their 1st win of the season in Edmonton on Sunday july 11th

Meet the Roughriders

Grey Cup week has begun and many Alouettes fans are prepping big game on Sunday. The Als will be facing the Saskatchewan Roughriders for the first time in the Cup's 97th appearance. So just like last week as we had Meet the Lions; this week we'll help you set the table for the match-up by learning more about the boys in green.

We'll give you a run down of Saskatchewan's key players that could be factors in this tilt.

This time we'll work it in order of position.

#4 QB Darian Durant: He is a patient man, waiting for his turn at the helm of the Riders offence. This past season Durant proved that he has the ability to be the number one guy. Cool and collected on the field and off the field. He did turn the ball over a little more than he'd like (21 INTs) however that is countered by the 24TD passes in the regular season and the 3 he threw against Calgary last week. He's got legs to create time for his receivers and throws a pretty ball. He has to play well for the Riders to have a chance in this game.

#20 RB Wes Cates: he did not have his best season when it came to numbers however he did miss some time due to injury. His 4.8 yards per carry is well below his 5.4 career average. He is a double threat; very much like Avon Cobourne is relied on for his hands as well as his legs. At the age of Thirty, you know he'll be motivated at his chance at the Grey Cup, because running backs life spans are shorter than most positions.

#6 WR Rob Bagg, #89 SB Chris Getzlaf, #83 SB Andy Fantuz: The great Canadian content rule need not apply for these three receivers, as all three can be the playmaker on any given night. Bagg and Fantuz's numbers are a little higher than Getzlaf's, however Getzlaf had a couple of break out games this year and would love to be the focus of attention come Sunday. The Als defense will have their hands full trying to figure out who Durant's top target will be.

On the defensive Side
#90 DE Stevie Baggs: Very dynamic player that can get to the quarterback in a hurry. His 55 tackles and two forced fumbles are nothing to sneeze at as that proves he is key in the Riders run defense. From a bull rush, to a swim move or spin out, Baggs can take advantage of any Offensive lineman if he's left in a one on one situation.

#97 DE John Chick: His 11 sacks on the season only trailed Baggs by one on the Riders. His power cannot be overlooked on the other side of the D-line. He is the perfect complement to what Baggs brings on the other side. If the Riders have their way Anthony Calvillo will see alot of #90 and #97.

#31 LB Sean Lucas: this is a defensive player that brings the whole package. Look for #31 to be added into the blitz package as he had 4 sacks on the season. He led Saskatchewan in tackles on the season with 81 so he is not shy to get involved in the play.

#15 DB Lance Frazier: picking off 5 passes this year he will be looking for any errant pass from the hands of Anthony Calvillo. He's a tough guy to separate from but if the Als can get a taller receiver on him, that could be the issue as he's only 5'10''.

The problem with the Roughriders is that they do play as a team, and even if these players, possibly excluding Darian Durant, don't play up to snuff the Riders could still come out on top because they have a long list of players that can be game breakers, these are just a few that had strong regular season.