The last time Matt Elam suited up for a football game was New Year’s Day, 2017.
It appears that he’ll begin his career anew on Saturday.
Elam is expected to start at strong-side linebacker for the Saskatchewan Roughriders in their CFL contest against the Calgary Stampeders at Mosaic Stadium, more than 19 months removed from his last pro game.
The 26-year-old product of West Palm Beach, Fla., appears poised to replace Derrick Moncrief, who was injured in last Thursday’s 31-20 victory over the host Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
“It’s an opportunity to do what I love,” Elam said after Thursday’s practice at Mosaic Stadium. “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime after not playing ball for a long time … I can’t thank Saskatchewan enough for the opportunity.”
Elam was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round (32nd overall) of the 2013 NFL draft following a standout NCAA career at the University of Florida.
After starting 26 games for the Ravens over the 2013 and ’14 seasons, the 5-foot-10, 208-pound safety missed the 2015 campaign with a torn bicep muscle. He began the 2016 season on injured reserve, but was activated in early November.
He played in nine games — including a 27-10 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Jan. 1, 2017 — but hasn’t appeared in a game since. He faced legal problems in 2017 (all charges eventually were dropped) and, despite having workouts with NFL teams, never got another opportunity in that league.
The Roughriders signed him to their practice roster on July 2 and now, three and a half weeks later, it seems he’s about to get his chance.
“I’ve been doing this all my life, since I was four or five years old, so I’ve got a love for it,” Elam said. “I don’t want to say this is all I know, but it’s what I’ve been doing for so long that it’s me. It’s my personality, it’s me, it’s a lot about me and it’s how I express myself a lot on the football field.
“I have younger siblings who play too, so they’re looking up to me. That’s why (sticking with football) is very important to me. I couldn’t give up on it because I’m still young and I feel like I’ve got a lot in the tank.”
Roughriders head coach-GM Chris Jones has said that the coaches like Elam’s size, his ability to cover receivers and his versatility — the skills that once made him a first-round NFL draft pick.
No matter how he does Saturday or in future games, Elam isn’t interested in trying to prove to anyone that he belongs in the NFL.
“I’m not that kind of guy,” he said. “I want to make my family happy, I want to make my teammates happy and I want to make myself happy … As far as showing The League, that’s not my mind frame. It’s to get better and to have the opportunity to do what I love.”
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After Moncrief left Thursday’s game in the second quarter, Mike Edem moved from safety to Sam linebacker.
Edem made all three of his defensive tackles in the game after the shift, taking down receiver Rashad Lawrence for short gains all three times.
For Edem, the move didn’t involve a difficult adjustment.
“At safety, when you play man, you’re covering (an inside receiver) on the waggle anyway,” the sixth-year CFLer said. “The only difference is, instead of playing off as the safety, you’re going down (toward the line of scrimmage) and pressing. That lines up with my skill set, being able to get my hands on (receivers) and turning and running.
“It’s not really a big adjustment for me because a safety and Sam are interchangeable people. It was just another day in the office.”
Edem has moved back to safety, where he’ll split time Saturday with Marc-Olivier Brouillette.
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Jovon Johnson recorded his first interception of the season — and the 35th of his career — in the fourth quarter of the game in Hamilton.
That gave the 34-year-old veteran at least one interception in 11 straight seasons.
“I really don’t even think about that type of thing,” Johnson said. “I just do my job and do it to the best of my abilities and whatever happens at the end of the day, I’ll live with it just because I know that I put the work in.
“My teammates have faith in me to do what I do best and as long as I keep stacking interceptions, I’ll keep taking them however they come.”
Johnson enters Saturday’s game with seven career interception returns for touchdowns, the fifth-highest such number in CFL history. Byron Parker holds the league record with nine, with Dick Thornton, Malcolm Frank and Jason Goss tied for second with eight pick-sixes apiece.
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Jones wasn’t happy with some of the things that he saw from his defence in Thursday’s practice, but he didn’t interrupt the workout like he had done nine days earlier.
On July 17, Jones stopped practice, called the players around him and laid into them for what he thought was a sub-par effort. Guard Brendon LaBatte later echoed Jones’ thoughts, calling the effort level “garbage.”
On Thursday, Jones let practice proceed, but he told reporters afterwards that he wasn’t pleased with everything he had seen. Reminded that the Roughriders won in Hamilton two days after a poor practice, Jones noted that he didn’t want to test the theory that it was a good omen.
“That’d be great if that is what happens, but unfortunately in professional sports, you’ve got to show up and be sharp,” he said. “If (last week’s turn of events) is what we’re depending on, I certainly hope not.”
