10 Thoughts: Roughriders made life difficult for Fajardo and the Elks
Considered by many as one of the favourites to come out of the West Division in 2025, the Roughriders are off to a CFL-best 6-1 record through Week 8 of the season after a 21-18 win over the Edmonton Elks on Friday.
And while the game was probably closed than the Roughriders would have liked in the end, Saskatchewan was able to close it out when it mattered thanks to a strong defensive performance.
Here are the top 10 takeaways from the victory:
10 Thoughts:
1. Has there ever been a player that's had to wait two-plus seasons to face his former team in the CFL for the first time? That was the case for Elks' quarterback Cody Fajardo on Friday night, who started for Edmonton in place of the benched Tre Ford. After being shown the door by management following the 2022 season, Fajardo spent two years with the Montreal Alouettes but was injured every time they faced Saskatchewan. The 'Fajardo-return-to-Saskatchewan' finally happened on Friday night although it wasn't as spicy as it would have been if this was 2023.
2. Saskatchewan's defence made life miserable for Fajardo as he was sacked eight times. He took much of the blame for not getting the ball out sooner, but he still threw for 395 yards in the game and two touchdowns, including a 57-yarder to Kaion Julien-Grant, which followed a patented Fajardo spin-o-rama. Sounds like the Elks are sticking with him moving forward, which I think is a good decision.
3. The Roughriders defensive front had its best game of the year. Along with the eight sacks, the group allowed just five yards to Edmonton's two running backs. Saskatchewan's run defence hasn't been as good this year compared to previous years, but Friday's effort was worth noting even if the Elks abandoned the run when they trailed in the second half.
4. Sacks are the sexy stat, but sometimes quarterback pressure can paint a bigger picture. Defensive end Malik Carney, who was one of three Riders who had two sacks on Friday, sits second in the CFL with 25 quarterback pressures this year behind B.C.'s Mathieu Betts. Pressures are something that should be talked about more, along with pass knockdowns.
5. Friday's game not only featured two quarterbacks who replaced each other in the 2023 season — as Harris signed in Saskatchewan after playing in Montreal in 2022 — but it was also a matchup of the two quarterbacks with the highest completion percentage in CFL history. Entering the game, Fajardo ranked first all-time at 71.0 per cent while Harris was just behind him at 70.9 per cent. On Friday, Fajardo kept his all-time lead as he was 78.8 per cent in the game while 75.8 per cent. Harris also extended his CFL record to 10 straight games with a completion percentage over 70 per cent.
6. After being a special teams stalwart for his first three CFL seasons, Roughriders linebacker A.J. Allen is making the most of his opportunity now that he's getting a chance to start. Already with 29 tackles, one interception and one sack on the season, Allen added to his totals on Friday with five tackles, one special teams tackle and a sack for a loss of 18. He's also had a couple near interceptions this year and last week, he deflected a ball into the hands of teammate Marcus Sayles against the B.C. Lions.
7. Allen still plays lots of special teams but injuries to key special teamers Lake Korte-Moore and Aubrey Miller Jr. on Friday forced linebacker Jameer Thurman and Carney into the game on special teams. I know there are some starters who play a lot of special teams, but when you're pressed into it like that, it could be an issue. That wasn't the case for the Riders on Friday so props to them for making sure that 'next man up' mentality isn't limited to offence or defence.
8. In his second game filling in for the injured Mario Alford, rookie returner Drae McCray looked a little shaky early with a couple of drops on punt returns. However, none of them were costly as they didn't result in turnovers and he redeemed himself with a nice 42-yard return in the third quarter. After an impressive pre-season, many fans were excited to see what McCray could do and so far through two games, he's averaging 13.6 yards per return, which ranks fourth in the CFL among primary returners as he's just ahead of Alford who has a 12.1 yard average in five games.
9. Kicker Brett Lauther did not have a good start to the game as he missed a 47-yard field goal early on. However, like McCray he redeemed himself with a successful 51-yarder and 46-yarder later on. With Lauther kicked at a CFL-low 69.6 success rate, some fans want to see the Riders bring in competition. However, that might do more harm than good in a tight-knit locker room. We'll see.
10. There's also lots of talk about 'killer instinct.' If this were a team from the past, Saskatchewan would have found some weird way to lose that game by allowing a return, committing a turnover or some other strange play. Instead, after giving up a pair of touchdowns earlier in the fourth quarter, the defence was able to close it out with a pair of sacks on the final Edmonton drive, which followed a great punt by Joe Couch. This Corey-Mace led team is not going to be one of those teams.
tshire@postmedia.com
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