Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are nearly unrecognizable compared to the team that returns to Commonwealth Stadium 364 days after their last visit.
Starters then who are starters now; Ed Gainey, Kacy Rodgers, Naaman Roosevelt, Nic Demski, and Thaddeus Coleman. End of list.
You can add Brendon LaBatte, Rob Bagg, Samuel Eguavoen and A.C. Leonard if you wish as they were on the injured list back then. But that is only nine of 24 starters.
The names that have been added have clearly improved Chris Jones’ team one year later as he makes his third visit to Commonwealth since his departure following the 2015 Grey Cup Championship.
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For the first time in nearly a year, Chris Jones returns to his old stomping grounds in Edmonton (Matt Smith/CFL.ca)
Jones didn’t have Duron Carter to go up and get the football. He also didn’t have Bakari Grant, who has become one of Kevin Glenn‘s favourite red zone targets.
You also can’t ignore the changes to an offensive line with Derek Dennis and Peter Dyakowski. The two veterans have solidified things up front for the Riders.
Running back Cameron Marshall has been the consistent back that does all three things well, from running, receiving and more importantly, pass protection.
On the defensive side, it’s another former Eskimo, Willie Jefferson, who has given Jones that Odell Willis-like play-making defensive end that makes plays all over the field.
Jones was breaking records in 2016 with massive turnover from his roster week in and week out, using more players than any team had ever before.
This season, Jones has allowed the team to build as a team with the family — though competitive — atmosphere he built in Edmonton over two short seasons there.
Though the 3-4 start to the season makes the Roughriders a bit of a long shot becoming a Grey Cup Champion as quickly as the Eskimos did with Jones on the sideline, it was the back half of the 2015 season that the Eskimos really became the kings of the West Division.
The Eskimos rolled to eight straight wins to take over first place and this season, Jones is hoping the back half of the season is the time of year the Riders go from a rebuilding team to a rebuilt team.
Two weeks ago the Riders made their biggest statement they’ve made since Jones took over. In their 41-8 win over the BC Lions, the Riders owned all three phases of the game.
Cameron Marshall leads the Riders’ celebration in a route of the BC Lions (The Canadian Press)
Even Jones lauded the victory as the team’s most complete and physically dominant performance of his tenure.
They also never let their foot off the gas against the Lions, the same mentality and killer instinct the Eskimos had that Chris Jones needs to see from the Riders.
If they had that killer instinct earlier in the season, and the record for the Roughriders is 5-2 going into this game, they are in conversation to win this game and join the elites of the West.
But the reality is the Roughriders are back to where they were a few weeks ago when they went into BC Place, which is trying to do something they haven’t done since 2014 and win on the road against a West Division opponent.
Until they prove they can win these games, there is no sense talking about a possible 5-2 record and Chris Jones stated two weeks ago he was done with talking about turning the corner — it was time to do it.
The team responded with its best performance. Now it’s time for an encore.
