Over the past week, there has been no shortage of news, headlines, and fan outrage from the final few minutes of the Saskatchewan Roughriders' contest against the Montreal Alouettes. But we aren’t here to relive that. It’s on to the next week for Corey Mace’s group and the new challenge of going 1-0 in Week 12. No questions asked, tonight’s contest against the Toronto Argonauts will hold the biggest challenge thus far in Coach Mace’s short tenure. The team is reeling from an 0-3-1 record in their past four contests, and at least three of those games were very winnable. They are playing yet another Thursday night road contest on shorter rest than their opposition. Add to that the potential look-ahead trap with the next game being the Labour Day Classic at Mosaic. Tonight’s matchup is a big one to get back in the win column for the green and white. They’ve been lucky not to give away first place in the West over the past few weeks, but that luck will not last forever. Chad Kelly returns to the Argos this evening, so perhaps there will be more controversy on the opposing sidelines for a change. Without rehashing all the Riders' own controversies from recent times, here are a couple of areas where they will be challenged this evening.
Finish Your Drives
No excuses for Brett Lauther here—he needed to be better. He can't go 3/7 (71% accuracy for the season) without being held accountable, but credit to him for standing up and taking the blame for his performance last week. However, the offense and coaching staff need to support him as well. Settling for seven field goals is not good enough; they need to find a way to finish drives and turn opportunities into touchdowns instead of settling for 3 points (or attempting to). The strangest occurrence was taking a delay of game penalty on 3rd and 1 early last Friday night. They had just converted a short yardage situation on that drive, and your kicker was struggling early on. The last thing you need to do is push him further back on the off chance you draw an offside call. Better yet, go for it! Trevor Harris echoed these sentiments, saying the offense needs to score touchdowns. The Riders dominated the first half last week but didn't get rewarded with the lead due to their inability to finish in the end zone. That needs to change tonight.
No More Butter Fingers
Wide receiver drops on 2nd down have been a key reason for stalled drives. Last week, Shawn Bane Jr. dropped a crucial first-down catch, allowing Montreal to take the lead with Davis Alexander’s go-ahead touchdown. KeeSean Johnson and Dhonte Meyers also had drops that prematurely ended drives. Despite this, Johnson and Meyers have injected much-needed playmaking into an otherwise pedestrian receiving group. With Kian Schaffer-Baker returning tonight, he has the potential to elevate this group to new heights. Trevor Harris showed sharpness and accuracy in his return last week; with better support from his receivers, there's no doubt he can turn those drives into touchdowns.
Familiar Face Returns on the Corner
Deontai Williams returns to the Boundary Cornerback position for tonight’s matchup due to the injury to Amari Henderson. Without being in the coaches’ meetings and breaking down film, it’s hard to determine why he was originally demoted for the aforementioned Henderson. From my view, Williams brings a more physical and imposing presence on the boundary and has been more adept at making open-field tackles. The challenge will be on Williams and the secondary to keep Chad Kelly and the Argos' offense out of the end zone themselves. The controversial Kelly led the Argos to a 16-2 record last year but will be returning to the field for the first time this season following a 9-game suspension for off-field activities. With only a week of practice, the defense should send some pressure and offer different looks to hopefully confuse a potentially rusty Toronto QB. If the Riders' defense manages to win the turnover battle, a 1-0 record for this week should be within reach heading into the Labour Day Classic.
