When Aaron Patrick last played in a professional football game, green and white confetti flew after all 60 minutes had elapsed.
Patrick, whose first CFL season ended with the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ 2025 Grey Cup win, rejoined the team for Wednesday’s practice. He had been on the retired list since May 10.
“I finished doing some things that I needed to handle in the off-season,” the 6-foot-5, 250-pound defensive lineman and special teams standout said. “I feel like I’ve seen where I can help the team benefit and move forward. The coaches saw the same thing.
“It has always been an effort to try to bring another ring home. That’s the way it was last year. It’s the same thing this year.”
“He brings versatility along the defensive line and, obviously, he made his bones on special teams,” Head Coach Corey Mace said. “We’re happy to have him back.”
Patrick, 29, honed his special teams skills in the NFL — most notably in 17 regular-season games with the Denver Broncos over the 2021 and 2022 seasons.
“You always want to find an area where you feel like you can put a stamp, whether it’s on special teams or defence,” he said. “You want to try to help the entire group move forward.
“Anytime there’s something I can do that’ll give us an extra spark to try to get another ring, I’m all for it.”
The Roughriders have yet to determine whether Patrick will be in the lineup for Saturday’s home game against the Toronto Argonauts — a contest for which 30,000 tickets have already been sold.
After meeting Toronto, Saskatchewan will turn its focus to the annual home-and-home set with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Winnipeg is to visit Mosaic Stadium on Sept. 6 for the 61st Labour Day Classic.
Patrick is in typically excellent shape to begin his second season with Saskatchewan.
“However, any football player will tell you that there’s nothing like actually being on the field,” he said. “You can do all the drills and ladders and everything that you want during the off-season, but it’s completely different than once you’re actually moving around. You’ve got your cleats on. You’re going up and down the field at game speed.
“The only thing that can prepare you for a game is practice, or another game. There’s no drill that just gets you ready for a game.”
That said, Patrick is prepared to hit the ground running.
“It’s not my first rodeo,” he said. “I’ve played several years professionally. That part doesn’t change.
“You’ve got a job that you’re out here to do. You know that there are people watching to make sure you do that. At the end of the day, whether you took a break or not, once you’re out there and they’ve got a guy in front of you, your job is to not let him do a certain thing.
“There’s really not a change in anything. It’s more like a continuation.”
INJURY UPDATE
Two starting receivers — Samuel Emilus and Johnny Johnson III — did not practise on Wednesday.
Johnson III suffered a head injury late in Sunday’s road game against the B.C. Lions.
Emilus (leg) has been placed on the six-game injured list after one game back in the lineup. He had missed the previous three contests.
“I don’t think it’s season-ending,” Mace said of the injury to Emilus. “It’s just super unfortunate. I know how much this game and this team mean to that guy.
“Football can suck sometimes.”