Saskatchewan Roughriders

Riders’ star receiver Shaq Evans heads to locker room with suspected ankle injury

by
3Down Staff
August 14, 2021

Photo courtesy: Scott Grant/CFLPhotoArchive.com

Saskatchewan Roughriders No. 1 receiver Shaq Evans has left Saturday’s game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats with a suspected injury to his left ankle.

The star receiver was hurt on Cody Fajardo’s 14-yard touchdown run at the start of the second quarter. He was making a block near the sideline when Ticats’ linebacker Simoni Lawrence fell on his leg and he went down awkwardly. He did not return to the game.

Evans was targeted four times in the first quarter, making one reception for 18 yards. In Week 1, the 30-year-old made seven catches for 69 yards.

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The best big play target in the league during the 2019 season was Evans. He averaged 18.5 yards per reception, which topped all qualified players and led the CFL with 15 catches of 30 or more yards.

Evans recorded 72 catches for a team-leading 1,334 yards and five touchdowns last season. His first 1,000-yard campaign while displaying the potential to be a long-term No. 1 target in the CFL.

There were flashes shown in 2018 when Evans nabbed 50 balls for 785 yards — 15.7 yards per grab — and six plays of 30 or more yards.