Rider Rumbling

Miracles can happen, I suppose, but the odds of the 4-3 Riders emerging victorious in their game against the 6-1 Alouettes in Montreal tonight have to be considered long. While the Riders have shown flashes of brilliance, they've been plagued by inconsistency. They're tied for the lead in turnovers forced with Montreal, for example, with 27, but whereas Montreal has only turned the ball over 12 times, the Riders have done so a whopping 26 times. Another worry is the Riders' tendancy to implode in the third quarter of games, where they've been outscored something like 71-6. In their July 18 game against Montreal at Mosaic Stadium, the Riders trailed 14-8 at half-time, and ultimately ended up losing 43-10. If the Riders can find a way to run the ball and sustain some drives, keeping Anthony Calvillo and the potent Montreal offense off the field, they might have a chance. But considering that the forecast calls for it to be hot and humid in Montreal tonight, and the fact that the Riders rarely play well there, it seems a pretty safe bet that the Riders will head into the bye week at .500.