Cody F. Doesn't Appear....

[dd]

CF was running for his life all season. You can?t blame him for not reading defenses, as I m sure he can, but when you?re on th run to save your skin, your eyes aren?t downfield they?re on the 3 guys who are about to nail you from all directions. Dickenson was saying fajardo lost confidence in his O line, that?s why he needed to make the change, no crap Chet, any sain man would have lost faith in the group of sad sacks. That statement was both ridiculous and ignorant to make. Dickie should be gone.

[TecnoGenius]

Well, now we have some better data on which to evaluate Cody: how did the team do with Fine?  Compare.

Fine was also running for his life and getting sacked and OL was porous.  Basically proves the OL is garbage (esp RT) and that part of it wasn't all on Cody.

Fine did drop back farther when pressure was coming to buy himself some time.  Helped him make that really nice TD.  Cody tends to spin out and then get swamped.  So Fine wins on this point.

Fine kept his eyes downfield more and made some attempts / connections when Cody would have turtled.  Saved a few sacks.  Advantage Fine.

Fine didn't really have any better luck on the deep ball than Cody.  Maybe he was a touch more accurate?  Basically proves SSK WR/SBs are pretty bad.  So that wasn't all Cody.

... add to the list...

The fact the game turned out pretty much the same as it would have if Cody had started means that you can't pin all the negatives on Cody.  So Cody must feel a bit vindicated.  Let's all remember that Zach also struggled quite a bit in SSK before he got his noodle whacked.  There's a lot of problems in SSK.  That said, Cody isn't anywhere near a top-5 CFL QB, and SSK would be wise to bring in a real QB for 2023.  Cody would make a fine #2 or #1b at a cheap price on some other team.

[dd]

I can see Chris Jones picking fajardo up in free agency?-it would give them some depth at Qb plus it would weaken an already shaky riders lineup and the elks old move up to 4th in the west and riders go to the basement

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

I can see Chris Jones picking fajardo up in free agency?-it would give them some depth at Qb plus it would weaken an already shaky riders lineup and the elks old move up to 4th in the west and riders go to the basement

Depends on what Elks O.C. McAdoo thinks of his time working with him in Sask., he might prefer Cornie's potential to Fajardo's limitations.  The Riders fired McAdoo after working with Fajardo in 2019, which was his best season so far.

[3rdand1.5]

Fine faced a ton of rushes, pressure, hits and sacks. Either the talent or scheme blocking for passing plays is simply not good enough, probably a main reason they are not in the playoffs. Fine, Cody or insert any random name could not find success and faced more sacks and pressure than any other QB. I also think part of the reason the "long game" hasn't work for them is the QB doesn't have time to let it develop. Cody has a great spin move, and he used it many times to elude pressure and buy some time, but once teams took away his spin he was a sitting duck, a sitting duck with a bad knee to boot.

While I don't think Cody is the most talented QB, and he does come across a whiney at times and has thrown teammates under the bus, he played tough and I am impressed he did make it through the season having taken the beating he took this year, most QB's would not have lasted as long as he did.  

[Jesse]

I don?t get the move to sit fajardo. Riders win out and Ticats lose, they get th cross over. They lose today they re out. Why are they sitting their #1 Qb on the most important game of the year??

Because he's not their #1 QB anymore and they want to see if Fine is worth keeping for next season when they start up a new competition.

[blue_gold_84]

I'm not a fan of Fajardo, but he did get them to the Western Final in 2019 and 2021, coming in first in 2019 and defeating the Stamps in the WF last season, so you have to give him some credit for those accomplishments.  On the whole I think this season's poor showing can be attributed to a total team failure.

And he ultimately lost both of those games. Is there a trophy or accolade for losing a division final?

You can certainly give a player credit for what they've done. But losing two playoff games do not qualify as the objective is to win.

Because he's not their #1 QB anymore and they want to see if Fine is worth keeping for next season when they start up a new competition.

That's the only rationale that comes to mind. I can't see Fajardo taking another snap with the Riders.

[Tiger]

Riders need to change management.  The have been trending the wrong direction for a few years. If God was their QB he would have trouble with the oline and the receivers.

[dd]

Because he's not their #1 QB anymore and they want to see if Fine is worth keeping for next season when they start up a new competition.

He is as of right now and would have faired better than Fine. When playoffs are on the line, you have to go with the proven commodity vs the unproven. Dickie gave up on fajardo and I think one or the other or both are gone out of riderville. Myself, I think fajardo goes to Edmonton.

[VictorRomano]

Bet the Riders make a play for BLM and Lawler in the offseason.  maybe Lucky Whitehead if BC thinks he's expendable.

[blue_gold_84]

Bet the Riders make a play for BLM and Lawler in the offseason.  maybe Lucky Whitehead if BC thinks he's expendable.

Their receiving corps is pretty formidable as is, though. What the Riders need is upgrades to the O-line first and foremost.

[Jesse]

He is as of right now and would have faired better than Fine. When playoffs are on the line, you have to go with the proven commodity vs the unproven. Dickie gave up on fajardo and I think one or the other or both are gone out of riderville. Myself, I think fajardo goes to Edmonton.

As of right now, he is their short yardage QB.

[TecnoGenius]

As of right now, he is their short yardage QB.

As he was before, and as he should have stayed.

[dd]

Their receiving corps is pretty formidable as is, though. What the Riders need is upgrades to the O-line first and foremost.

For sure!! There were absolutely awful this year. Fajardo got smoked so many times this year it wasn't even funny, and then Dickenson benches him because he says CF lost confidence in his O line, no kidding !!!!, he's been ground chuck all season!! Absolute #1 priority is upgrade O line

[theaardvark]

Do they need a whole new Oline, or do they need a new Oline coach and OC?   Because cahnging leadership can make a big difference in performance.

I'd say some new players to compete in camp, and Lapo and Bob Wylie... that combo would make Fajardo look like a top QB in the league again...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7N5LpcMzWw