During every Rider Broadcast Network pregame show, former Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive lineman and current live game analyst Luc Mullinder offers his Three Keys to the Game. In a recurring segment this season, we’ll look at how the Riders met or missed when it came to those metrics and how big of an effect they had on the outcome.
Saskatchewan got off to a decent start on all three points this time around. But when things turned in the Montreal Alouettes' favour, they did so hard and fast, and the Riders were never able to recover on their way to the 44-24 loss.
1 – Trevor Harris has to get back to using his first two reads. He's been holding the ball longer as teams take away his first looks, so find a way to get the ball away to those primary receivers.
How did the Riders do? Fair to middling.
Without hearing from the man himself, it’s difficult to say which read the Riders quarterback was going with. There were times when the ball got out of his hands with the swiftness, which is an indication that a first or second read ended up as the target.
But not enough. While Harris had plenty of time to work in the pocket most of the night, he ended up scanning the field longer and longer as the game went on. And when he went deep into plays, his receivers just weren’t making the catches that were needed to move the ball down the field efficiently, or at all in most cases.
Harris is obviously capable of finding open receivers early in plays with regularity — you don’t pass for 5,000 yards in a season without having that ability — but if the guys down the field aren’t making catches, then you’re going to have games like this.
2 – Get the ball out of Davis Alexander's hands quickly. Need lots of heavy blitz packages to throw Alexander off his game and make him get rid of the ball, make mistakes in the process.
How did the Riders do? Absolutely awful after a not too bad start.
Now, Saskatchewan did make things a touch miserable for Montreal’s dynamic quarterback in the early going, making him scramble, make mistakes and throw off-target passes that led to a handful of promising drives stalling out before points could go on the board. And because of that, the Riders led after the first quarter.
Then it all went as bad as it could possibly go.
For whatever reason, Saskatchewan stopped blitzing or putting any kind of real, regular pressure on Alexander. As a result, he often had an utterly embarrassing amount of time to do what he wanted out there and regularly stood unfettered in the pocket for several seconds as his receivers worked themselves open for explosive plays downfield.
And even when the Riders did get pressure, they couldn’t get to Alexander or make a tackle on him if their lives depended on it. It was tough to watch. It was also the defining factor in the ugly loss.
3 – Can't chase this game. Can't start from behind, have to get off to a fast start and keep Montreal from getting any kind of a big lead.
How did the Riders do? Again, not bad early, then it all came apart.
Other than Montreal’s second drive where they carved up the Riders defence like a Thanksgiving turkey, the early part of the game was all gravy and stuffing for Saskatchewan when it came to bending but not breaking. They led 10-7 after the first quarter and only trailed 17-13 at the half, so the game was well within hand.
Then came the second half, and Saskatchewan quickly fell behind. And then further behind. And before long, the Alouettes’ taillights disappeared over the horizon. It was as massive a collapse as the Riders have seen this season as Montreal turned their tiny edge into an utter laugher of a victory.
Had Saskatchewan managed to keep things close after the break and put some pressure on the Als, maybe the mistakes would have come that helped them get back into the game. Instead, it was the opposite, and the result showed on the scoreboard.
The Roughriders are back on the field on Saturday afternoon for a rematch with the Alouettes at Mosaic Stadium.
