Riders trying to tune out ‘outside noise’ as season winds down

It’s been a year in which the Saskatchewan Roughriders have found themselves criticized for more than just their play.

The CFL team has dealt with a bevy of disciplinary issues for on- and off-field incidents.

Former Riders defensive lineman Garrett Marino was suspended four games after hits on Ottawa Redblacks quarterback Jeremiah Masoli and offensive lineman Dino Boyd, as well as celebrating after being ejected and making what the CFL said were comments about Masoli’s heritage in a game June 23. Marino was released Sept. 6.

The Riders have had three other players suspended as well — linebacker Gary Johnson Jr. (off-field incident), slotback Duke Williams (throwing a helmet at a Toronto Argonauts player prior to the Touchdown Atlantic game) and, most recently, quarterback Jake Dolegala (impaired driving).

As well, the team leads the CFL with 139 penalties — an average of 9.9 per game.

“I can’t tell you why things are happening the way they are. The easy answer is we are making some bad choices out there,” head coach Craig Dickenson said.

“We can’t wash our hands of that. The outside noise is that — it is the outside noise — and I think inside that room is still a good group and I think it’s a focused group and we don’t have any wiggle room anymore.”

The Riders are to take on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Friday as the Green and White enters the final four games of its regular season. Kickoff for the game is set for 6 p.m. The Green Zone pre-game show begins at 4 p.m.

If the Riders lose, the only way they can qualify for the playoffs is by way of the crossover into the East Division.

For the crossover to happen, a fourth-place team in one division has to finish the regular season with a better record than the third-place team in the other division. Saskatchewan currently is fourth in the West with a 6-8-0 record. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are third in the East with a 4-10 record, while the fourth-place Redblacks are 3-10.

After the Riders’ most-recent game — a 26-24 loss to the Edmonton Elks on Sept. 16 — Williams spoke to the group about outside noise.

Williams was also penalized in the Labour Day Classic for a bench infraction despite not dressing due to an ankle injury.

“We’re letting all this outside noise get to us and that’s not us,” Williams said. “(The critics) don’t know what’s going on in our locker room. They don’t know how tight-knit we are as a team. They don’t know what we go through as a team, they just see us play on Fridays and Saturdays, which is fair (and) which is cool, but I have my teammates’ backs.

“I told them in the locker room it ain’t over. At the end of the day, I feel like if we get in the playoffs, we’re going to be trouble … I love adversity because it is either going to make or break you.”

Williams’ status for Friday’s game is in doubt as he deals with an ankle injury. He didn’t practise Wednesday.

One of the most-criticized players this season has been quarterback Cody Fajardo.

Fajardo, who has played most of the season with a damaged knee ligament, has thrown for 2,794 yards with 14 touchdowns and 10 interceptions this year.

But the 30-year-old pivot said that’s just part of being the starter in Saskatchewan.

“Throughout the course of my three years here, I’ve seen it all. I’ve seen people praising me and I’ve seen people hating on me. It goes with the territory and it helps me become a better human,” Fajardo said. “I wouldn’t be where I’m at financially, physically (and) family-wise without this organization, so there’s a lot to be thankful for.

“It is challenging to be the quarterback of the Saskatchewan Roughriders because there are so many eyes on you.”

As the Roughriders head into a game against the top team in the CFL, Fajardo praised the mental toughness of his squad for going through all the highs and lows of this season.

“If we find ourselves in the Grey Cup game and win a Grey Cup, it’s going to be one of the greatest stories I think ever in the history of the franchise of what we went through to get into that situation,” Fajardo said.

“That’s been our goal since Week 1 and that doesn’t change now. Just because we’re sitting fourth in the standings, it doesn’t change. Our goal is to get into the playoffs and win a Grey Cup.”