Blin D'faith: "Well, considering how every player on the Riders has totally committed to this season and superb Head Coach Kent Austin's system. All that the players need to do is to believe in their abilities and the all-encompassing power that is Rider Pride and the Ws will just start flowing."
Dr.Z: "Umm, well, Blin, I'm afraid that the Riders need to invest more in their offensive production than they do in their team faith.
Especially considering that the Riders have boasted a 18% efficiency rating on 2nd and longer than 6 in 2006. Another issue that needs to be addressed is their relatively smallish defensive line. The Rider, who employ a 3-4 defense, have a front 3 that weigh, on average, 249lbs.
Small interior linemen will make it difficult to improve upon their run defense, which was ranked next to last in the league last year.
The Cap'n: "Good points both of you. But what's being missed here is something I like to call - "The Little General Malaise". You see, Rider fans, players, coaches and execs have been suffering from this for the last 19 years, which, coincidentally, was the last time the Riders hosted a home playoff game. Befitting is the name, as the Little General wore #23, and we can be damned sure there won't be a home playoff game here until the year 2011. Rider fans who have long suffered from "The Little General Malaise" are easily spotted. They are the ones carrying yellowed, cracked, plastic seat cushions adorned with the Riders logo from 1967. Another indicator of these fans is that they generally congregate in sections 4,5 and 6 and can regale you with tales of growing up on a farm and how a soda pop used to cost a nickel.
Anyway - I digress. The reality of it all is that the Riders are still in it, so, as the Wolf said in Pulp Fiction - 'Well, let's not start sucking each other's d##ks just yet.'"
