Eskinews

                Despite the struggles the Edmonton Eskimos have endured over the past few months – a win on Monday against the Riders would secure a playoff spot for the first time in two years!  The biggest question for the fans and perhaps even the coaches was which Eskimo team we were going to see on Monday afternoon?  Would it be the one that played 60 minutes in Hamilton defeating the Tiger Cats 38-23 or the one that played about 30 minutes last week against the Lions losing 33-24?

                The Riders have struggled lately as well…losing their last two games by a combined score of 82-8 and the news did not get much better for them this week either.  Darian Durant would not start against the Eskimos because of the ankle injury he suffered last week against the Stampeders.  That meant that Ryan Dinwiddie would get the start in the biggest game of the year for the Riders.  It was a game they would have to win if they wanted to catch the Eskimos for the final spot in the Western Conference.

                 Hopes were high for the numerous Rider fans that were in attendance at Commonwealth Stadium on Monday afternoon.  They wanted to believe that Dinwiddie would deliver in the biggest game of the year and though things started well for the Riders, it was not long before the wheels came off!  Dinwiddie threw three first half interceptions but despite the turnovers, the Riders only trailed 12-0 at halftime.  The Eskimos offense was not able to make the Riders pay for the turnovers and they ‘stayed in the game’ much longer than perhaps they should of.  In what was a bit of a surprise move, Ken Miller replaced Dinwiddie with Durant in the second half, but the Rider fortunes did not change.

                The Rider defensive line put a fair bit of pressure on the Ricky Ray sacking him three times and disrupting his rhythm for much of the game.  Ray finished the game with less than 200 yards passing and if it were not for the 51 yard touchdown run by Jerome Messam in the second quarter, the Eskimo offense would not have scored a touchdown.  This is not the kind of offensive production the team is going to need as they head into the playoffs.  The good thing is that there are still four weeks left in the regular season and the Eskimos control their own destiny.  Win the final four games (which includes a return matchup against the B.C. Lions at the end of October) and the Eskimos would finish first and host the Western Final for the first time since 2003.

                The Eskimos will not have a lot of time to work on getting things turned around as the Bombers will be visiting Commonwealth Stadium on Saturday night.  I am hoping that the Eskimos remember the ‘whipping’ that the Bombers laid on them back in August and use that as motivation.  There was some bad blood at the end of that game and it was the beginning of the inconsistent play that we have witnessed over the past eight weeks.