The dream scenario or status quo? A look at the Riders season

When it comes to the Saskatchewan Roughriders 2016 seasons, predictions and thoughts seem to run the gamut with everything from last place to first place and everything in between.

You can read my six predictions for the season here.

Now, for the final part of 3DownNation’s preview series: the dream scenario and nightmare alternative.

The Dream Scenario

For the most part you’ve seen the dream season for most teams being winning the Grey Cup. That would be true for the Saskatchewan Roughriders as well. However, that dream might be too much of a stretch for a team that finished 3-15 just a year ago.

The amount of turnover on the roster and coaching staff is going to require some time to figure it out. Chris Jones and company still need time to figure out the best mix of players to put on the field every week. The players are still getting used to playing each other.

The dream will see this group of players gel as the year goes on and make a push to the playoffs in the second half, perhaps even hosting a playoff game in the final season at the current Mosaic Stadium.

Part of this dream season means that Darian Durant remains healthy, playing in at least 16 games and returning to form with at least 4,000 yards passing. Durant will need plenty of help from his receivers with Naaman Roosevel, Rob Bagg and John Chiles all surpassing the 1,000 yard mark. First year player Ricky Collins Jr. adds between 500 to 800 yards himself.

Overall, the team gets all of the breaks they need in order to keep playing later in November with very few injuries to their starters, especially along the offensive line where depth is thin.

Nightmare Alternative

Unfortunately for Rider fans, they are far too familiar with the nightmare alternative. It’s been the team’s reality for the past season and a half.

With that in mind, the nightmare alternative isn’t so much of an alternative as it is status quo for a franchise that has seemed cursed since the Banjo Bowl in 2014.

The nightmare begins quite simply with something, once again, happening to Darian Durant. How Durant goes is how the Riders will go in 2016 and beyond. If he’s injured again, you can pretty much bank on a last place finish once again with no alternative at quarterback and thin depth across the roster. If Durant misses more than a few games, well, you know the rest.

The nightmare is still possible without Durant missing time as well as a rash of injuries across the board would detrimental as well. Outside the starting 24 and a couple of backups, the team just does not have the depth to overcome a lot of injuries.

Even if everyone stays healthy, the team still has question marks on defence. Even though Jones is known as a defensive guru, the secondary might not be up to snuff to keep the team in games over the course of the season. Even with the league’s best offence for half a season last year, the Riders still didn’t manage to win a game. A struggling defence could bring the whole thing down again.