We break down the offensive positions
Murray McCormick’s musings from Day 11 of the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ training camp:
The Riders bolstered their defensive backfield Wednesday by acquiring national safety Denzel Radford and the rights to a negotiation-list player from the Montreal Alouettes for national offensive lineman Matt Vonk.
Vonk spent three seasons with the Riders, but became expendable after Saskatchewan recently acquired offensive lineman Peter Dyakowski from the Toronto Argonauts. Vonk was battling to be a backup despite making six starts in 2016. That role will likely go to Dyakowski, whose presence meant the Riders could use their offensive-line depth to acquire Radford, whom Montreal selected in the sixth round (48th overall) of the 2017 CFL draft out of the University of Calgary.
On Wednesday, the Riders released international defensive back Reggis Ball, who was involved in a number of incidents with receivers on Tuesday, and defensive end Ja’Boree Poole.
Signed by the Riders were international defensive backs Crezdon Butler and Chris Lyles. The Riders also announced that offensive lineman Marc Glaude, selected in the eighth round (64th overall) of the 2017 CFL draft, was placed on the retired list.
Murray’s Monster for Wednesday was Erick Dargan, who has earned the label for his work ethic and versatility. Dargan has lined up at safety, defensive back and outside linebacker. The Riders are often searching for that kind of versatility and the University of Oregon Ducks product fills that role nicely.
Backup quarterback Marquise Williams made the most of an extended opportunity to showcase his skills with Vince Young sidelined by an injured hamstring. The coaches mixed the lineups Wednesday to allow the starters to work with some of the backups, and vice versa.
Williams connected with veterans Naaman Roosevelt and Rob Bagg on some long completions. The rookie quarterback also looked more comfortable in the pocket than he did earlier in training camp. Williams still has room for improvement, but showed flashes of his potential on Wednesday.
Defensive back Warren Gatewood was welcomed to the CFL by right tackle Thaddeus Coleman on Wednesday. Coleman laid out a blitzing Gatewood with a thunderous block. There isn’t any contact during training camp, but it does happen. Wednesday’s collision was a reminder that football is a contact sport, regardless of its unwritten rules.