Roughriders battling through growing injury list ahead of Montreal clash

The Saskatchewan Roughriders are hoping an early season injury bug doesn’t derail their recently gained momentum.

The Roughriders have 12 players on the six-game injured list and two others on the one-game injured list. Ahead of Friday’s game against the host Montreal Alouettes, there are also injury concerns with receiver Shaq Evans (ankle) and defensive back Loucheiz Purifoy (ankle).

“You can lose sleep over (the number of injuries) but it’s just life,” Roughriders head coach Craig Dickenson said before his team headed east. “Every team faces it.

“We’re having a little bit of adversity but we’ve got good players (in the locker room) that are ready to step up and it’s next man up across the board.”

Defensive end A.C. Leonard (shoulder) is the newest addition to the six-game injured list ahead of the Montreal clash. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m.

The Roughriders are winners of three straight after knocking off the East Division-leading Hamilton Tiger-Cats 24-19 on Aug. 1. The Alouettes are coming off a 30-27 overtime loss to the Ottawa Redblacks on Aug. 2 that snapped Montreal’s three-game winning streak.

The Roughriders also will be without two forces on the defensive line, with Micah Johnson (ankle) missing at least Friday’s game and Zack Evans (hip) on the six-game injured list. Makana Henry and Charbel Dabire will play in their place.

The team also signed defensive tackle Jeremy Faulk to help fill the void due to the injuries. Faulk was with Saskatchewan during training camp and was added to the practice roster afterwards. He was released on June 13.

“We’ve been in touch with (Faulk) and with the injuries we’ve had, we’re going to bring him on and see if he can help us,” Dickenson said.

The Roughriders also got some depth in their receiving corps this week, which came at a crucial time.

The team traded for seven-year CFL veteran Kenny Stafford on Monday, sending returner Christion Jones to the Edmonton Eskimos in the trade.

Stafford has hauled in 30 tosses for 366 yards and two touchdowns this season. He’s on pace to set career highs in yards and catches.

The trade was magnified after Shaq Evans injured his ankle in practice on Monday. Evans currently sits second in the league with 587 receiving yards and leads the CFL with an average catch of 20.2 yards.

Stafford was put onto the active roster despite only three days of practice with his new team.

Quarterback Cody Fajardo said Stafford has made a lot of plays in the league and is a veteran who can have an impact on the Roughriders’ younger players.

“I’m really excited to get an opportunity to throw with him,” Fajardo said. “Anytime you can get a veteran, outside perspective coming (into the team) can always help your team mid-season.

“We’re going to be pretty darn dangerous. Our receivers are looking better each week and the confidence I have in them (is growing). Getting another guy, another awesome receiver in here, makes me really happy.”

Fajardo has been a great find so far for the Roughriders. Originally brought in as a backup to quarterback Zach Collaros, Fajardo was thrust into the starting role after Collaros suffered a concussion on June 13.

Fajardo has shined during his time as the starter. He’s on pace to have the second-highest completion percentage in CFL history, currently sitting at 74.6 per cent. Ricky Ray set the standard in 2013 with the Toronto Argonauts at 77.2 per cent.

Fajardo also leads the league this season in passer efficiency (108.6) and average gain per attempt (9.6).

The Roughriders elected to trade away Collaros to the Argonauts on July 31.

Fajardo knows the Als will represent a different challenge for him, especially with what they bring on the defensive side of the ball.

“What they do defensively is a little bit different from everyone else in the league,” Fajardo said. “They have a defensive co-ordinator (Bob Slowik) who has been down south in the NFL system a lot so some of the stuff they do on defence I haven’t seen before.”

Slowik has spent time on the staffs of the Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, Green Bay Packers, Denver Broncos and Washington Redskins.

Dickenson expects a tough, grind-it-out game from the Alouettes.

“We know (Montreal) is going to be a tough place to play, they seem to have a little bit of momentum (and) they seem to have a little bit of belief now,” Dickenson said.

The Roughriders’ defence will be looking to stop an Alouettes offence that is also missing some key players, with quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. (concussion) and running back William Stanback (leg) out.

The Roughriders’ defence hasn’t forced a turnover by fumble in 2019. In 2018, the defence recovered 15 fumbles and returned three of them for touchdowns.

Two of the key cogs in the Roughriders’ defence this season have been linebackers Derrick Moncrief and Cameron Judge, who comprise one of just two pairs of teammates who are in the top 10 tacklers this season. Ottawa’s Avery Williams and Corey Tindal are the other pair.

Moncrief has wrapped up opposing ball carriers 36 times while Judge has recorded 33 tackles. Judge is currently on pace to set a Saskatchewan single-season record for a Canadian with 85 tackles.

Defensive end Charleston Hughes also continues to climb the all-time sacks leaderboard. He is two sacks away from tying former Edmonton defensive end Stewart Hill (126) at No. 8 on the list.

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

Here’s the Roughriders’ depth chart for the contest: