FIVE FOCAL POINTS FOR RIDERS IN THEIR DOWNTIME.
REGINA — An extra-long off- season has arrived for the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The CFL team’s season concluded after the Riders were beaten 18-10 by the Edmonton Eskimos in Sunday’s West Division semifinal at Commonwealth Stadium. Less than a year after winning the franchise’s fourth Grey Cup, the Riders are working on their plans for the 2015 season. With the future in mind, here are five issues the Riders must address before training camp opens in 2015.
QUARTERBACKING
The value of Darian Durant as Saskatchewan’s starting quarterback was underlined when the team slumped after he tore a tendon in his right elbow on Sept. 7. The Riders were 8-2 after the road win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, but were 2-7 including playoffs after losing their No. 1 quarterback. The Riders and Durant have to work together to ensure he’s 100 per cent for the 2015 season. The quarterback carousel revealed the Riders were unprepared for the possibility of Durant being injured. The initial reaction would be to cut ties with Tino Sunseri and Seth Doege and start over with new backups. The Riders need to keep at least a young quarterback on the roster while moving forward. Sunseri showed some guts in coming in to relieve Kerry Joseph in Sunday’s semifinal loss. It took Durant three years to become a starter. The Riders should give Sunseri or Doege a similar chance to develop.
OFFENSIVE CO-ORDINATOR
Saskatchewan’s offence was hardly lighting it up before Durant was injured. It just got worse and less imaginative with Sunseri, Doege and Joseph at the controls. The Riders didn’t have the receivers at the start of the season with Weston Dressler at an NFL training camp and Chris Getzlaf dealing with injuries. The running game showed promise, especially with the three-headed monster of Anthony Allen, Will Ford and Jerome Messam. That approach was inexplicably abandoned down the stretch. The easy solution would be to replace George Cortez, who has been the offensive co-ordinator for two seasons. Leave Cortez in his current role — if he wants to stay — and then let him loose on opposing defences.
RE-SIGN TEARRIUS GEORGE
There will be loads of attention on Dressler and offensive tackle Ben Heenan and whatever routes they decide to take as free agents. The Riders also need to get Tearrius George re-signed ASAP. John Chick was the nominee for the most outstanding player and the top defensive player with his league-leading 15 sacks. George was just as important to Saskatchewan’s defence. He had 12 sacks and recorded eight in 2013. George keeps improving and is a monster on the interior of the defensive line. He will be 32 when the 2015 season kicks off, but George can contribute for another year.
BOLSTER INTERNATIONALS
Saskatchewan’s receivers — a position at which internationals usually make an impact — were lacking in
SPECIAL TEAMS
2014. Taj Smith was the leading American receiver with 397 yards and three touchdowns, and he played in only 12 games due to disciplinary reasons and injuries. Dressler’s contributions were minimal after his return from a tryout with the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs. Other than a late push by Korey Williams, none of the other American receivers stepped up. The Riders need to find an impact receiver on the short side of the field, where internationals can make the difference. They also need someone to complement Dressler and Canadians Getzlaf and Rob Bagg. Saskatchewan’s special teams were hurt by a lack of Canadian depth and poor coverage. The Riders allowed six returns for touchdowns on special teams, including an 84-yard punt return by the Eskimos’ Kendial Lawrence in Sunday’s semifinal. Chris Milo endured his worst season in the CFL as a placekicker and Josh Bartel’s punting stats were near the bottom of the nine-team league. Canadians make or break special teams. In 2013, the Riders were led by Craig Butler, Graig Newman, Sam Hurl, Scott McHenry and Mike McCullough on special teams. Injuries had an impact this season as the Riders weren’t able to replace Butler and Newman. Brian Peters was among the league’s best coverage guys with a team-leading 20 special teams tackles. The Riders need more players like Peters — who is an international and eligible to file for free agency on Feb. 15 — on special teams to tilt the field in their favour in this important phase of the game.