Riders paying price for mental mistakes
Murray’s musings, mutterings and monsters from Day 12 of the Roughriders’ training camp at Griffiths Stadium at the U of S
PENALTIES FOR PENALTIES
Chris Jones, the Riders’ head coach and general manager, hasn’t backed down from penalizing players for pre-snap penalties. Jones is still unhappy that the Riders were assessed 12 penalties for 98 yards in Sunday’s 35-12 pre-season loss to the host Edmonton Eskimos.
CFL rules prohibit teams from fining players for penalties. Jones has skirted that rule by implementing a physical penalty. Each time an individual player commits a presnap penalty, the whole group has to complete up-and-downs. That’s when players drop to their stomachs, get back up and repeat. On Thursday, the offence committed four penalties and the defence one. Each group was disciplined.
MURRAY’S MONSTERS
Defensive linemen Zack Evans and Eddie Steele shared Murray’s Monster honours on Thursday. It’s not for what they are doing on the defensive line that earned them the honour. It’s the fact that they have both been taking snaps at right guard as well as their regular rotation on the defensive line.
The willingness of Steele and Evans to adjust to another position earns them Murray’s Monster.
THIGPEN THE MAN
If Marcus Thigpen wasn’t facing a two-game suspension for testing positive for a banned substance, he would be the front-runner to be the Riders’ starting tailback.
The Riders will have to wait for Thigpen to be eligible in 2018 before adding him to the active roster. Once he returns, he will provide the Riders with options at tailback.
INJURED LIST
Offensive lineman Josiah St. John can’t buy a break when it comes to injuries this year. St. John tweaked a hamstring shortly before the Riders’ training camp opened. He made his training-camp debut on Wednesday, and was limited to only a few drills. Early in Thursday’s practice, St. John may have re-injured his hamstring and was tended to by the training staff.
Jones didn’t have an update on St. John’s status.