The CFL should be on high alert after Riders head coach Chris Jones has openly discussed the strategies he’s seeing and will now be utilizing to manipulate the challenge system in his favour.
Jones isn’t doing anything wrong. Let’s be clear. He’s doing what any good coach would do which is use all the rules in his favour and that’s what he’s doing with the illegal contact challenge.
Jones believes the Stampeders are running more route combinations that increase the likelihood of getting contact and thus getting the opportunity to extend a drive with a challenge.
Ingenious is how Jones described it.
So the Riders will copy it and so too will everyone else in the league if they aren’t already.
More penalties or more challenges – one of these things is going to happen, if not both.
Hopefully, the league reacts quickly and either takes out the illegal contact challenge or reduce the number of challenges coaches have at their disposal.
Immediate action needs to be taken or the flag fest will get worse and so too will the ratings.