Riders, Bombers clash in a battle with playoff implications

The Saskatchewan Roughriders will try to get one step closer to a home playoff game with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in town.

Those teams, along with the Calgary Stampeders, enter Saturday with nine wins and a shot at getting top spot in the CFL’s West Division. Kickoff for the game at Mosaic Stadium is set for 5 p.m.

“I was sitting in meetings this morning and I thought this was a playoff game for a second,” linebacker Cam Judge said Friday. “I said, ‘Oh yeah, we’ve got like four more (regular-season) games after this.’

“It definitely has that (playoff) feel to it and I can’t wait.”

The last time the two rivals met was in the Banjo Bowl, when Winnipeg ran away with a 35-10 win on Sept. 7. It was the second game of a back-to-back series between the two teams; Saskatchewan won the Labour Day Classic 19-17 a week before.

Bombers quarterback Chris Streveler is to remain the starter for the rest of the season after Matt Nichols underwent season-ending surgery on his shoulder. Streveler has rushed for 135 yards in the two meetings between the West Division rivals.

Roughriders defensive lineman Micah Johnson will be one of the keys to keeping Streveler contained. Johnson is also looking forward to a chance to get to Streveler after the Bombers’ pivot eluded Johnson a few times this season.

“I think I missed like five sacks on him in the past two games we’ve played,” he said. “He’s an elusive guy.

“I think it’s more so his mental will. A lot of quarterbacks concede when they feel the pressure coming on, or when they feel somebody grab them, they’re ready to drop to the floor. That’s not his style. He’s doing everything he can to break every single tackle and make the best out of every single play.”

Another member of the Roughriders’ defence who will be looking to chase down Streveler is defensive end Charleston Hughes. The league leader with 15 sacks so far this season, Hughes is chasing down some of the CFL’s all-time greats.

He sits in eighth place on the all-time sacks list with 129 over 12 seasons in the league.

Head coach Craig Dickenson said defensive tackle Zack Evans (sports hernia) will play because defensive end Chad Geter (undisclosed) was banged up during practice this week.

The defence will also face all-star running back Andrew Harris for the first time in 2019.

Harris missed both previous meetings between the teams this season due to a suspension for testing positive for a banned substance. Despite missing two games, Harris still entered the week as the league’s leading rusher with 1,021 yards.

“He brings a new element that they missed the last few times we played against them,” Judge said. “He’s a great player. He has been doing it a long time so he’s someone we’ve got to pay attention to.”

One of quarterback Cody Fajardo’s top weapons is approaching a significant milestone on the season. Wide receiver Shaq Evans is 97 yards away from his first 1,000-yard season as a pro.

“It’s one of those things that you want to put on your resume and have as many 1,000-yard seasons in your career as you can,” Evans said. “For this to be my first one in my second year, it’s definitely a good start.”

Fajardo will have a new target to throw to this week, with Jordan Williams-Lambert — the West Division’s most outstanding rookie with Saskatchewan in 2018 — set to make his 2019 debut. He rejoined the team in September after trying out for the NFL’s Chicago Bears.

The Roughriders now have a trio of sophomore receivers starting this week with Evans, Williams-Lambert and Kyran Moore.

“It’s great, the trio’s back together and it’s going to be (like) a movie out there,” Evans said. “It’s going to be fun, all three of us out on the field together.

“It’s a blessing to be in this position, especially after last year coming into training camp with three veterans ahead of us. For (the Roughriders) to have confidence in us and to keep us, it’s just a testament to how much we’ve improved over the last year.”

The Green Zone pre-game show gets underway at 3 p.m.

The Roughriders’ depth chart can be found here: