Argos’ Carter doesn’t have axe to grind in game against Riders
TORONTO — Duron Carter doesn’t have an axe to grind with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
Carter will face his former team Saturday night when the Toronto Argonauts (3-8) host Saskatchewan (7-5). It will be his first contest against the Riders since they released him Aug. 11.
“No, I don’t think I’m an axegrinding guy,” Carter said following Toronto’s walk-through Friday. “I don’t think my axe skills are that (good). But you know, axe-throwing is something in Canada that I’ve seen and I want to get into.”
Riders head coach/GM Chris Jones has no animosity either.
“Duron is a great player. He’s going to be a vital part of their offence, I’m sure, and we’re going to have our hands full covering him. Until you’ve been around Duron you don’t know exactly what he is.”
The six-foot-five, 205-pound Carter was in his second season with Saskatchewan when released. He was the Riders’ leading receiver last year with 1,043 yards and eight TDs on 73 catches, but spent most of 2018 playing cornerback, recording eight catches for 111 yards and a touchdown on the offensive side before being let go.
“It happens,” Carter said. “I’ve had to face a former team in Montreal before and eventually it just turns into a regular game. I’m sure there will be fireworks and everything at the beginning, but at the end of the day it’s just another regular-season CFL game.”
Carter, 27, joined the Argos on Aug. 26 having registered 266 catches for 4,031 yards with 26 TDs in 65 career CFL games with Montreal and Saskatchewan. Twice he was a league all-star (2014, 2017). The son of Pro Football Hall of Famers Cris Carter made his Toronto debut Sept. 8, returning two punts for 13 yards and one kickoff for 18 yards in a 36-25 home loss to Hamilton. Carter is slated to start against Saskatchewan.
Toronto is eight points behind first-place Ottawa (7-5) in the
East and trailing second-place Hamilton (6-6). There’s also ground to be made up on the B.C. Lions (5-6) and Winnipeg Blue Bombers (5-7), who are tied for fourth in the West. The Riders have won four of their last five games and are now tied with Edmonton for second in the West.