Faces to watch when Riders clash with Esks
The Saskatchewan Roughriders’ focus is on Sunday’s game against the host Edmonton Eskimos — the first pre-season game of the 2018 season for both CFL teams.
With that in mind, here are some non-quarterback positions to watch on Sunday:
NATIONAL RECEIVERS: Veteran Rob Bagg isn’t expected to dress on Sunday because the Riders know what he can do. That leaves Devon Bailey, Joshua Stanford and Mitch Picton to battle it out for a backup spot. Bailey and Stanford have both had strong camps and are the front-runners. Picton has shown some nice hands while getting more opportunities due to the season-ending knee injury suffered by Jake Harty. The wide-side receiver doesn’t have many passes thrown his way, so each prospect has to take advantage of his limited opportunities.
LEFT OFFENSIVE TACKLE: Terran Vaughn appears to be in control of the competition to determine the starting left offensive tackle. Vaughn signed with the Riders late in the 2017 season and that experience has given him a leg up on the other prospects. He has been with the starters since training camp opened and has been impressive. At 6-foot-3 and 305 pounds, Vaughn is athletic enough that he could play on the defensive side of the ball if required. Vaughn will bear some watching because he could be the left tackle of the present and future.
NATIONAL LINEBACKERS: At least one of Saskatchewan’s three starting linebackers will be a national, opening up the competition at the weak side and in the middle. Sam Hurl was expected to compete on the weak side, but has played more at middle linebacker as camp has progressed due to his football acumen and experience. Hurl was Winnipeg ’s starting middle linebacker in 2017 and thus understands what it takes to play the position. RUNNING BACKS: Jerome Messam has been a beast in training camp. Whether he’s the starter will be determined on the basis of how the Riders deal with the international/national ratio, but he will be in the mix. International Zac Stacy has stood out with his speed and blocking. Marcus Thigpen will be limited to pre-season action in the early going due to a two-game suspension at the start of the regular season for failing a drug test. Thigpen hasn’t lost a step since 2017 and will be using the pre-season games to prepare for his delayed start to the regular season. A Messam-Thigpen tandem would be an interesting mix through the regular season.