The Saskatchewan Roughriders can pick their playoff path on Saturday in their game against the Edmonton Elks.
Win and they’ll stay in the left side of the ledger and travel to Vancouver to take on the B.C. Lions with the Elks looming in the West final. Lose and they’ll visit the Toronto Argonauts with the Montreal Alouettes waiting in the East championship.
Legendary Riders quarterback Darian Durant knows which option he’d prefer.
“It’s a huge game coming up this week against Edmonton,” he said Monday on his weekly appearance on the SportsCage. “I don’t think the Riders want to go into this half-stepping because going out east is something you don’t want to do.”
Durant believes the Riders can beat the Argos, who have the same 9-8 record and Chad Kelly battling an injury at quarterback.
It’s the 13-4 Als, this time with pivot Davis Alexander and receivers Tyson Philpot and Tyler Snead in the lineup, that would be long shot to defeat.
So, to stay in the West Division, the Riders will have to put their best foot forward against the Elks. That means, in Durant’s eyes, playing the quarterback Trevor Harris and the rest of the starters.
“I think Trevor’s got to ride it out. You cannot afford to go into this playoffs in an offensive slump again,” Durant said. “I know the Riders are frustrated for having to settle for so many field goals. I think you have to keep playing, keep building more chemistry.
“Offensively, especially, you want to get out there because you’re looking a little rusty. They didn’t get going really until the fourth quarter of that final drive (against Montreal last Saturday). You want to go into the playoffs with as much momentum as possible. It’s a good idea for the riders to play their guys. You don’t want to go out east.”
The Riders struggled with the ball in their last game, a 16-12 victory against the Alouettes. Their only touchdown, courtesy of KeeSean Johnson, came with 29 seconds left to secure the win.
That last possession saw Harris use all his receivers on the 74-yard drive, including Johnson and Sam Emilus – who returned to the lineup following injury absences.
Harris wasn’t exactly thrilled with his performance. He threw for 253 yards with a touchdown and an interception. But Durant isn’t concerned in the slightest, especially since the 40-year-old has passed for a career-high 5,370 yards this season.
“I don’t see him wearing down at all,” Durant said. “He doesn’t look tired. He doesn’t look old to me. I just think that most of the season he’s been missing two or three of his top receivers. Not only are they Saskatchewan’s top receivers, but they’re some of the top receivers in the league. There’s going to be a drop-off when those guys aren’t in the lineup. He’s been having a hell of a season even with those guys out.
“The only thing I’ve seen is just some confusion here and there with guys he doesn’t have that type of rapport with, the chemistry with. Other than that, he looks fine.”
Durant liked that the Riders, with the wind at their back, decided to have Harris throw the ball on every single play as they looked for the decisive score.
“I was just happy to see them be aggressive, and I want to see a lot more of that moving forward,” he said.
If that last-minute march down the field can carry over to Saturday, maybe, just maybe, the Riders can get the jolt they need heading into the playoffs.
Durant is hopeful history can repeat itself of one of his 10-8 teams.
“I can remember back in 2010, we had an opportunity to rest our starters going into the final game of the season. We had a playoff spot clinched,” he said. “Coach (Ken Miller) decided to put us out there and play.
“We were struggling. We had a slump just like the Riders do at the moment. And we went into that final game of the regular season against Edmonton, played our guys and we put up a bunch of points. We took that momentum and it carried us into the playoffs and on a Grey Cup run.”
Watch the full segment below.
