Take a bow, Chris Jones
In defence of Chris Jones, there is the defence of Chris Jones.
And it was often suffocating on Sunday, as the Jones-coached Saskatchewan Roughriders upended the previously unbeaten Calgary Stampeders 40-27 at Mosaic Stadium.
It was a tactical tour de force by Jones — the Roughriders’ head coach, defensive co-ordinator, general manager and vice-president of football operations.
Yes, Calgary’s Bo Levi Mitchell was able to throw four touchdown passes, once again demonstrating his ability to go over the top.
But the pressure exerted on the Calgary passer was also over the top, for the most part. He was sacked five times, hurried on numerous other occasions, and often frustrated by a Saskatchewan defence that put up some points to force Calgary to play catch-up for the duration.
Consider the first half, after which Saskatchewan led 24-6.
At that point, Mitchell had only five completions in 14 attempts for 73 yards. Subtract a 45-yard payoff pitch to Davaris Daniels and the Calgary pivot was 4-for13 for 28 yards at intermission.
Mitchell also threw a TD pass (albeit unintentionally) to Nick Marshall, who happens to play cornerback for the Roughriders. Marshall picked off Mitchell and raced 67 yards for the rookie DB’S second pick-six of the season.
It was the third consecutive Roughriders- Stampeders game in which Mitchell had been victimized by an interception return for a touchdown (the other thefts coming from Duron Carter and Tobi Antigha).
Along the way, Marshall tied a Roughriders single-season record for interception-return touchdowns — two — while joining a fraternity that also includes Glen Suitor (1987), Ladouphyous Mccalla (2000) and Jackie Mitchell (2003).
After Marshall’s latest major, Saskatchewan extended its streak of non-offensive touchdowns against Calgary to four, thanks to Sam Eguavoen’s 30-yard blocked-punt return.
When the offence eventually chipped in with a major, it was after a sack and forced fumble by ex- Stampeder Charleston Hughes. The turnover gave Saskatchewan possession on Calgary’s 30-yard line.
The Roughriders’ offence was not explosive, but it nonetheless took tremendous strides while making dents in the league’s stingiest defence.
With Zach Collaros at quarterback, there is a nice run-pass balance and, in the absence of the recently released Carter, Jordan Williams-lambert has emerged as a go-to receiver.
Williams-lambert, an inviting target at 6-foot-3 and 228 pounds, treated the fans to a 10-catch, 152yard breakout game.
Those fans, 33,350 strong, also played a vital role. The crowd created enough noise to force Mitchell into two time-count violations in the fourth quarter.
In the end, the Roughriders’ faithful was also able to celebrate a much-needed victory over the CFL’S front-runner.
It was, after all, Saskatchewan’s first win in precisely one month. After defeating the host Hamilton Tiger-cats 31-20 on July 19, the Roughriders had lost twice in a row to West Division opponents.
Then came an extended bye week, during which Carter was canned. Jones was under fire, in some forums, for steadfastly declining to explain why Carter had been released. But then came Sunday, when Jones let his dominating defence do the talking.
It was, in every sense, a statement game.