The August heat is nothing compared to the pressure cooker the Saskatchewan Roughriders are about to step into—a six-game stretch that could define their position in the Canadian Football League (CFL) standings.
During that stretch, the Roughriders will meet the Montreal Alouettes twice, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, the Calgary Stampeders and their traditional home-and-home matchup with their prairie rivals, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
On Saturday, the Roughriders will travel east to meet the Alouettes for the first time this season.
The long treks haven’t fazed the green and white so far this season, emerging from back-to-back trips to Ontario with wins over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Toronto Argonauts. Following Saturday’s matchup, the lone road game against an eastern opponent will be in the nation’s capital against the Ottawa Redblacks on October 3.
It’s a case of good news and bad news when it comes to the current injury situation. On the positive side, Saskatchewan will have the starting side of their offensive line back in their lineup.
Payton Collins returns at left tackle. Collins started in Week 1 against Ottawa but suffered a knee injury that has kept him out of the lineup. Darius Washington has filled in for the last two weeks but is now back on the practice roster.
Zach Fry is back as the starting left guard. He missed last week’s win over Edmonton with a head injury. His replacement was Noah Zerr, who’s on the one-game injured list
Saskatchewan will be without Canadian receiver Samuel Emilus who suffered a knee injury late in the game against Edmonton. Emilus had 113 yards and a touchdown before he left the game. The Montreal product has already missed three games this year and has been placed on the six-game injured list. Mitch Picton is back on the roster, while Tommy Nield along with Dhel Duncan-Busby will be the two starting Canadians in the Roughriders starting lineup.
Shawn Bane Jr continues to be absent from the Saskatchewan roster as he recovers from his knee injury. A part of the reason for his delayed return to the lineup has been the steady play of Keesean Johnson, Dohnte Meyers and Joe Robustelli. After Saturday’s game, Saskatchewan will be on a bye before they host Hamilton on August 16.
Mario Alford remains sidelined with a hip injury as Drae McCray handles the returning responsibilities for another week.
Montreal enters this week tied with Hamilton for top spot in the Eastern Division. Montreal has won their last two games (Toronto, Calgary) by a combined three points. Last Thursday, the Alouettes took advantage of the Stampeders losing their starting quarterback Vernon Adams Jr as they mounted a fourth quarterback comeback. McLeod Bethel-Thompson will start again at quarterback with Davis Alexander currently on the six-game injured list.
The green and white lead Calgary by two points for top spot but can add some distance in the standings after the Stampeders lost on Thursday in Ottawa.