10 Thoughts: Roughriders show how important experienced depth can be

National Post

6 hours ago

The Saskatchewan Roughriders have an undefeated record, but the CFL club is admittedly not perfect.
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On Saturday, the Green and White improved to 4-0 to begin the 2025 CFL season with a 37-18 victory over the visiting B.C. Lions in a game that featured a pair of veteran backup quarterbacks going head-to-head for their respective teams.
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Here are the top takeaways from the contest as the Riders enter their first bye week of the season.
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10 Thoughts:
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1. Jake Maier made his first start at quarterback for the Green and White in place of the injured Trevor Harris and his teammates made it easy on him. While Maier was effective moving the ball at times through the air, a strong rushing attack and a defence that forced four turnovers helped take some pressure off him. In 45 career starts with Calgary prior to coming to Saskatchewan, Maier has thrown for 300 yards on 13 different occasions. He threw for 170 yards on Saturday night and that was more than enough to get the win.
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2. It's a luxury for the Roughriders to have an experienced backup. Sure Maier is no Harris but unlike what Saskatchewan went last through with the inexperience of Shea Patterson, who made his first career CFL start in 2024 when Harris was injured, Maier — a veteran of 45 career starts — looked comfortable in the pocket all night even if he didn't make every throw (13 of 23). Experienced depth can pay dividends.
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3. Leading the way in the running game was A.J. Ouellette, who had a career-high 139 yards on a career-high 23 carries in his sixth CFL season. The 2022 and 2023 East Division all-star has had a great last three games for the Riders and is poised for a big year if he keeps this up. I think this is what everyone expected in 2024.
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4. Everybody has a job to do on the team and Tommy Stevens might be the best at doing his. The short-yardage quarterback has been outstanding in his role this season and proved his worth again on Saturday night. While he took a loss of two in the first half, Stevens converted on a pair of QB sneaks in the second half before cementing the game on Saskatchewan's final drive with five carries for 29 yards.
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5. On the other side, Jeremiah Masoli didn't look great for B.C. While the Lions had two effective touchdown drives, aided by the play of running back James Butler, Masoli threw three interceptions including a costly pick six that was the turning point in the game. If the Lions (1-3) want to contend for a playoff spot this year, they better hope Rourke can return soon.
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6. After notching his first interception in the CFL since 2018 last week against Toronto, Riders defensive back Tevaughn Campbell was the one scoring on that pick-six as he put exclamation on the first half with an interception returned for a touchdown to put the Riders up 16-7 at the break. Filling that cornerback spot was one of the biggest needs for the Roughriders this off-season and Campbell — who has adjusted back to the CFL game after six years in the NFL — has been a great addition.