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The Saskatchewan Roughriders know other CFL teams are marking when they will be playing the defending Grey Cup champions on the calendar.
That hasn’t changed the mindset of veteran players as they begin training camp in Saskatoon.
“It doesn’t matter if we won a Grey Cup, lost a Grey Cup, or if we made it to the playoffs,” defensive back Roland Milligan Jr. said, “You are still trying to win every game as a pro.”
Linebacker Jameer Thurman said winning the CFL championship is no longer a factor.
“This is a new season. That was last year. You’ve got to go back and prove who you are this year. It’s a clean slate.”
One of the key reasons the Riders won the Grey Cup last season was their stingy defence. The squad ranked near the top of the league in most defensive categories.
Linebacker Jameer Thurman will be lining up beside some new faces on defence. (Travis Reddaway/CBC)
But with winning comes a high demand for those players, and Saskatchewan lost a number of defensive stars to free agency.
A.J. Allen and C.J. Reavis signed with the Ottawa Redblacks. Malik Carney went to Edmonton, and Micah Johnson hung up his cleats to become Saskatchewan’s defensive line coach.
Head coach Corey Mace feels the team has enough depth to overcome the losses.
Riders head coach Corey Mace says he feels the team has enough depth to replace players lost to free agency and retirement. (Travis Reddaway/CBC)
“We lost some good players, but we retained a bunch, too,” he said.
“It’s just the opportunity for guys to compete. We felt really good at the depth behind some of those spots and also bringing in some new guys … It’s just about somebody rising to the top and meeting the standard.”
The loss of Allen, Reavis and others is a blow, but Thurman said the team has people ready to step into those roles. That includes third-year Riders defensive player Antoine Brooks, who is pencilled in to take one of those spots.
“Antoine’s had a lot of experience playing on our defence already, so now he has that confidence going knowing that he is the guy at that spot moving forward,” Thurman said.
“(Brooks) is just going to keep growing confidence, keep growing. As far as … linebacker, yes, we lost A.J., but we have a lot of guys on our team that are capable of stepping up and replacing him.”
Milligan, who is entering his sixth season with the Riders and was 2024’s defensive player of the year, said player turnover is just part of training camp and it’s up to the veterans to make sure everyone is on the same page.
“You’re trying to learn from each other, learn how each other plays — you know, tendencies of the guys you’re working with — and just try to mesh as much as you can.”
WATCH | Saskatchewan Roughriders training camp begins:
Riders kick off training camp as defending champs for only 5th time in team’s history
The Saskatchewan Roughriders know they are the team to beat as the defending Grey Cup champions. But that hasn’t changed the mindset of some veteran players as they begin training camp in Saskatoon.
Training camp continues all week in Saskatoon.
The Riders will travel to Calgary on Saturday to take on the Stampeders in their first of two pre-season games. The team will also play a pre-season game at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon on May 23.