EDMONTON — The Saskatchewan Roughriders are to begin the middle third of their regular season Thursday.
The Roughriders went 3-3-0 in the first six-game stretch of the 2018 CFL regular season and are looking to improve on that over their next six contests — a run that starts Thursday against the Edmonton Eskimos at Commonwealth Stadium.
Saskatchewan was 1-1-0 on the road in the first third of the season, falling 40-17 to the Ottawa Redblacks on June 21 and defeating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 31-20 on July 19. Edmonton is 2-1-0 at home so far this season and 4-2-0 overall.
The contest Thursday is the second of six straight against West Division opponents for the Roughriders. After this outing, Saskatchewan faces the Calgary Stampeders on Aug. 19, the B.C. Lions on Aug. 25 and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Sept. 2 and Sept. 8. The run started Saturday, when the Roughriders lost 34-22 to the visiting Stampeders.
Here’s one man’s list of five things to watch during Thursday’s game.
- Zach is back: Quarterback Zach Collaros returns to the Roughriders’ lineup after missing four-plus games with a concussion and neck injury; he hasn’t played since leaving the game in Ottawa in the second quarter. Collaros’ experience as a starting quarterback in the CFL can’t be understated as he takes control of a Saskatchewan offence that has struggled under the guidance of Brandon Bridge and David Watford. But Collaros has to overcome more than a month of inactivity as he attempts to help the offence get back on track. The Roughriders have scored just six offensive touchdowns this season, while the defence has scored four majors and the special teams have added one.
- It takes two: Marcus Thigpen and Tre Mason will split the tailback duties after Monday’s release of Jerome Messam. Thigpen has been the Roughriders’ home-run hitter this season — his 8.0-yard average is the highest among the league’s tailbacks — and he has both of Saskatchewan’s rushing touchdowns (from 34 and 80 yards). Mason, who has a 5.4-yard average this season, has showed flashes of the talent that earned him a job in the NFL. The tailback rotation has helped the Roughriders average more than 120 yards rushing per game (good for second in the league) and control the ball for nearly 31 minutes per game (fourth).
- Duron, Duron: One of the Roughriders’ most dangerous receivers returns to the offence after starting the past five games at cornerback. Duron Carter enters this game with five receptions for 52 yards this season, with a longest reception of 16 yards. Collaros said earlier this week that he would be happy to have Carter back on the offensive side of the ball, especially if the quarterback can throw six or seven jump balls in the direction of the lanky receiver. During his brief time on offence this season, Carter has been targeted 11 times for 155 yards for an average of 14.1 yards — the second-highest such number on the team. His return could help open up receivers on whom other teams have been able to focus in Carter’s absence.
- In the Nick of time: Carter goes back to offence because Nick Marshall is returning to the defence. Marshall won a starting job in the Roughriders’ secondary in training camp and had a pick-six in his first regular-season game on the corner. But he also injured a hand in that contest and was put on the six-game injured list. The Roughriders removed him from that list early (he had one more game to sit out) and activated him to face the Eskimos, whose passing attack leads the league with an average of 343.8 yards per game. Edmonton has three receivers in the top six in the league — Duke Williams (first, 672 yards), Derel Walker (fifth, 463 yards) and Kenny Stafford (sixth, 425 yards) — so Saskatchewan must limit that group’s production.
- No returns: Over their first four games, the Roughriders held opposing teams to an average punt return of 7.5 yards — the best such number in the CFL — and no touchdowns. Two games later, Saskatchewan is now sixth in the CFL in average return allowed (11.5 yards) and has surrendered a league-high two TDs. The Roughriders have given up a punt-return score in each of their past two games, which is exceedingly rare for a group coached by Craig Dickenson. The Eskimos’ return team is only seventh in the league with an average punt return of 8.8 yards, but Edmonton is now the toughest team to return against with an average of 7.5 yards allowed.
