After two weeks of finding ways to lose, the Saskatchewan Roughriders found a way to win on Saturday, Aug. 29 over the Toronto Argonauts.
The final score was 28-24.
Riders Quarterback Trevor Harris spoke of the Rider offensive problems in the first half as self-inflicted.
Offensive issues began with the opening play when Harris failed to connect on an out route with new receiver, Shemar Bridges. He was open but the pass was too far ahead. Harris spoke of Bridges being with the team for 10 minutes. I expect, after a week of practice together, that the pass would be completed next Sunday.
Except for their touchdown drive, Rider passing woes included a pair of dropped passes (to Dhel Duncan-Busby and Quali Conley) and a pair of bounced passes.
Another drive ended when Toronto’s Shawn Lemon, executing a twist from his defensive end position, was not picked up and sacked Harris.
There were a pair of coaching decisions, one in each half, where the Riders unsuccessfully gambled on third down when they could have kicked field goals. Head Coach Corey Mace said he chose to not go for a field goal from inside the 10 as he has so much confidence in the offence as they practise those situations every week.
The decisions felt uncharacteristic for Mace. He is usually disciplined at taking points when available though I was reminded of a decision earlier this season. With a comfortable lead against the Calgary Stampeders he tried to steal points late in the first half with a long field goal that ended up being returned for a touchdown. On Saturday the Riders were down and points were not coming plentifully. I thought each time the Riders should take the points.
Mace commented on the defence getting stops on first down but giving up chunk plays on second down. Several of those chunk plays came when the Rider rushers failed to contain Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly.
The game turned late in the second quarter when the Riders blocked a convert and Marcus Sayles returned it for two points. That play was reflective of a Rider team philosophy to not take any plays off. Mace said some teams just let the kick happen. Not the Riders. They contest every play.
The second half was dominated by the Riders.
Harris was delivering on target and the receivers were catching the ball. The Riders had 200 of their 313 passing yards in the second half.
The connection between Harris and KeeSean Johnson was at its best on the game winning touchdown drive with consecutive passes to Johnson for over 30 yards. On the first the defender had good coverage but Harris threw to the back shoulder. On the second they reacted perfectly to the Argo blitz. (Harris noted that the tackle Jermarcus Hardrick did on the play took two defenders in a way that kept them from getting a clean rush.)
Mace spoke of defensive co-ordinator Josh Bell going to more man-to-man coverage and letting the guys go up front.
I thought the most important defensive play of the game came on the Argos second play of the second half. Kelly was hammered by the Riders. As he is wont to do Kelly was still trying to make a play as they closed on him. He was not the same quarterback after having two defensive linemen land on him.
The next three Argo drives ended when he was high with passes. On the third drive Rider safety Nelson Lokombo intercepted the pass.
Kelly was unable to put together a single drive in the whole second half.
Toronto’s offensive strategy of running the ball but four times in the game made defending ever simpler for the Riders.
As well, in the third and fourth quarters Rider pass rushers did far better at containing Kelly.
In the second half the Argo offence did not score a single point. Their two points came on a Rider safety.
It is ironic that after all the efforts by both teams at making plays on offence, defence and special teams the most important play of the night was an offside penalty. Rarely does a five-yard penalty loom large in a CFL game.
The Riders were going for a field goal from the Argo four with three minutes to go rather than gambling a third time. The score would have been tied with the field goal. When the Argos’ Tarvarus McFadden went offside the Riders were set up at the two yard line and punched it in for the touchdown that gave them the lead.
Mace spoke about the Riders drawing the offside:
“It was a hard count. I mean we talk about these things. We practise these things, in different situations…. We’ve, tried to execute some of these things throughout the season, and previous years, and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. In that situation, you lose a couple of yards and you’re still close enough to – I think at that point – to tie the game”
It was another example of the Riders playing out each play.
What was most startling is that McFadden is in his sixth year in the league. For a veteran to jump on a hard count on a field goal attempt is inexplicable.
With the Riders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers going into the Labour Day Classic after wins I am expecting an exciting game.
Bill Selnes, who’s based in Melfort, has written about the Saskatchewan Roughriders since the late 1970s. He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, Football Reporters of Canada wing on Nov. 24, 2013.
