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The good, the bad, and the dumb of the Riders’ playoff-clinching win over Edmonton

You just knew that if the Saskatchewan Roughriders were going to clinch a playoff spot this week, they wouldn’t make it easy on themselves.

After wins by the B.C. Lions and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Friday night, the Riders found themselves in a situation where they could officially punch their ticket to the postseason for the first time in two years.

In the end, the Green and White found a way to get the 28-24 win over the Edmonton Elks but it sure wasn’t easy.

It wasn’t the kind of game you’ll win often in the playoffs, but they’re in. Now, they need to figure out how to take that next step. 

Here’s the good, the bad, and the dumb of the Riders’ eighth win of the season.

The Good

It feels like it’s been a while since Trevor Harris got some serious help from his receivers. Overall, the group has been serviceable but there hasn’t necessarily been much to write home about.

That was until this week.

After months of waiting, the consistent Harris finally got some big plays out of his pass catchers that helped get the Riders over the hump and into the playoffs.

Both KeeSean Johnson and Kian Schaffer-Baker made massive plays for their quarterback, coincidentally on the same drive late in the third quarter.

Schaffer-Baker’s big grab came on a second-and-10 at their own 45-yard line, when Harris hit the Canadian target down the middle for a 34-yard gain. The throw itself was low, but in a spot where only Harris’ receiver could catch it. Schaffer-Baker got his hands underneath the ball and plucked it off the turf.

After a short run from running back Frankie Hickson, Harris threw one up for Johnson to go get on the edge of the end zone. The Fresno State Bulldog hauled it in over an Elks’ defender for a 28-yard touchdown to give the Riders a 28-21 lead that they wouldn’t surrender for the rest of the night.

In professional football, you’ll never get open all game, so sometimes you need your receivers to make some big plays. The Riders got those plays at Commonwealth Stadium on Saturday night.

The Bad

When the weather starts to turn, it’s time for teams to put their foot down and make bold decisions to win close. Thanks mostly to head coach Corey Mace, the Riders didn’t do that against the Elks but got away with a victory anyway.

Before we get to Mace’s decisions, it’s important to note that on two separate occasions, the Riders’ offence had a chance to close out this game — or at least take a significant step toward doing so.

In the game’s final five minutes, the offence had two chances to put a drive together and put this game away. Instead, Harris threw an interception over the middle on the second play of one drive. After the defence forced another Edmonton two-and-out, the offence responded with a two-and-out of their own to give the Elks a chance.

If not for an interesting pass interference call from the command centre, the Riders would have given the Elks yet another chance to win the game.

Against a playoff-calibre team, you probably won’t get away with that. We’ve seen this from the offence a few times this year.

You also won’t get away with coaching not to lose instead of coaching to win. Mace made two decisions in this one that I didn’t agree with and it could have cost his team the game, and perhaps would have against a better team.

The first was when he settled for a field goal from the Edmonton five-yard line, points that Edmonton answered with a touchdown after gaining 35 yards in the exchange. The other came in the fourth quarter when Mace opted to punt on a third and less than one at his 36-yard line. If not for a dropped pass at the one-yard line and a missed PAT attempt, the Elks would have scored 14 points off of those decisions. The Riders only won by four.

Fortune favours the bold, especially in the fall. Playing to win is always better than not.

The Dumb

The Riders had a bit of a slow start to this game and suddenly found themselves down 8-0 in the first quarter. Then out of nowhere, Canadian receiver Sam Emilus smoked the Elks’ defence — or at least that’s what it looked like.

The play came at the start of the second quarter and whatever in-game entertainment happened during the break left a cloud of smoke in the stadium. Like a good magician, when the smoke cleared, Emilus was gone.

It was not only a rare sight, but an important one for the Riders as well.

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Joel Gasson is a Regina-based sports writer, broadcaster and football fanatic. He is also a beer aficionado.

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