This just in – Ottawa football fans are patiently waiting for the CFL to return to that city after many years absence.

Yes, there is a team there called the Red Blacks but to suggest this is a professional franchise would be a misnomer or a disservice or a mistake. You get the picture. Keystone Kops comes to mind.

We are halfway through the 2014 CFL season and the new Ottawa franchise has done nothing to rid the football fans of that city of the images the woeful Renegades left behind.

This has been a study in small victories off the field and so many loses on it for the Red Blacks.

It started with the name of the franchise. I like the fact there was some tradition involved with the name honouring people who served our country. That is a win but then we have the drafting of players to fill the spots on the roster. Ottawa was second and very long right away.

Early in the season the experts on TSN would keep reminding us how this team will be ok because most of these players had a point to make after being left unprotected by their current teams.

It seems the reason they were left unprotected is plainly evident now as we watch the team make mistake after mistake followed up by several blunders and then closed out by extended levels of inadequacy.

Sure these are professionals but with the exception of a few, these men were way down the depth chart on those teams which is why they got a ticket to the nation’s capital.

Now lately we have seen some strong play on the defensive side of the ball in Ottawa and the new stadium looks solid but the offence is as bad as bad can be.

Henry Burris was sought after by a couple of teams and right now those teams are glad they didn’t win the Burris lottery.

He is not getting any help from receivers who have replaced flesh and bone hands with fists of steel.

The sounds of helmet on helmet is joined by the sound of ‘clank’ as the ball hits a Red Black player in the worst spot possible-the hands.

The current owners are easily a huge step up from the Gleiberman’s but they need the second coming of Frank Clair to turn this around quickly.

Ottawa could still make a playoff run due to being in the Least East Division but should they fail, fans will want to see something more from the boys in 2015 and time will not be on their side.

sports@reddeerexpress.com