REGINA — The first-place Saskatchewan Roughriders are finding ways to win despite the lack of a killer instinct.
The Riders, who improved to 6-1 with a 21-18 victory over the Edmonton Elks on Friday, have had the propensity this season to take an early lead but then allow their opponents to get back into the game. That’s exactly what happened against the Elks as the Riders held a comfortable 21-4 lead after the third quarter only to take their foot of the gas and find themselves having to fend off a late Edmonton comeback.
Quarterback Trevor Harris was visibly frustrated with the Riders failing to put the Elks away when they had the chance.
“There's obviously some positive things to take away, but I'm sure you guys could probably guess that I'm not happy with the way that we finished the game offensively. You know, if you want to be a championship calibre team, you've got to put the nail in the coffin and we didn't do that,” said Harris, who completed 25 of his 33 passes for 268 yards with a pair of touchdowns on the night.
“But that being said, I think this is a team that can take a look in the mirror and get better. It's not like, ‘We don't have the guys’ or ‘We're screwed.’ It's just one of those things. We’ve got to take a look in the mirror and be better toward the end of the game. And we will, you can mark my words.”
Riders head coach Corey Mace, while sharing some of his quarterback's frustration, also sees glimmers of hope from his players.
“We can talk about it all we want, we can talk situational football, about having a killer instinct and what to expect in certain situations but ultimately, the players win games. There were a couple of plays tonight where I'm going to look back and think I should have called something better defensively. And yet they made the play look unbelievable, you know? They have that talent, man. So, if we get a call, that's awesome, and they can also be unbelievable. That's where we’ve got to go, we’ve got to continue to grow,” said Mace.
“We just kind of continue to work at that stuff. I don't know if it's physical or mental or if it's a lack of focus. Maybe we're not coaching it hard enough, we could look in the mirror from that standpoint. So, everybody will continue to do it.”
The Elks, who are now 1-5, made a change at starting quarterback this week, replacing Tre Ford with veteran Cody Fajardo. The Edmonton offence struggled to find a rhythm, especially in the third quarter when they were held to four yards of total offence in three possessions.
“I think the thought that comes to mind is our defence and how they got off the field. We had the ball around midfield, and then we went two and out, and that crushed us,” said Fajardo, who was dealt to the Elks in the off-season after two seasons with the Montreal Alouettes. “There was another one of those sacks where it was a run-pass option. I pulled it, I tried to pull up and make a throw, and their defensive ends are athletic and made a good play. If I hand off the ball there, who knows what happens? It was just a terrible read by me, and I’ve got to be better for this team.”
Fajardo, who played for the Riders from 2019 to 2022, was making his first start against Saskatchewan since leaving the franchise as a free agent and signing with the Alouettes in 2023. Despite the slow start, Fajardo completed 26 of 33 passes for 346 yards and two touchdowns.
Fajardo said the despite the loss, the mood in the Edmonton locker room is still good.
“We want to win games but it’s hard to take moral victories in professional sports because it’s outcome driven. You look at the scoreboard and you see if you win or lose. Stats don’t mean anything to me. It’s winning or losing,” Fajardo said.
“We're still learning, but like I said, we're running out of time to learn. We’ve got to find ways to win football games. But I think this is a confident group that's just going to continue to improve.”
Two major impact points in the contest was the ability of Saskatchewan’s defence to control the line of scrimmage and the undisciplined play of the Elks. While the Riders rung up eight sacks and limited the Elks to 25 yards rushing on nine carries, Edmonton hurt themselves by taking 11 penalties for 133 yards, compared to Saskatchewan’s six penalties for 53 yards.
The Saskatchewan defence answered the bell on Edmonton’s last drive of the game. Trailing by three points with 24 seconds remaining, the Elks started their final possession on their own five-yard line. The Elks moved to the 32-yard line after a 12-yard scramble by Fajardo and a 15-yard roughing penalty against the Riders.
Saskatchewan, however, sealed the victory by sacking Fajardo on the final two plays of the game.
“Honestly, it just was the scheme we were running and everybody just doing the job,” explained Saskatchewan defensive tackle Micah Johnson when asked how the defence was able to continually pressure Fajardo. “All week we were talking about everybody just doing their job. I think it really showed that we could be a great defence. We take pride in stopping the run, that's first and foremost. That's our bread and butter so for us, it was super important to come out and stop the run. We hang our hat on that, and we think we're the best rush defence in the league.”
Johnson, Malik Carney and Shane Ray had two sacks each for the Riders, while A.J. Allen and C.J. Reavis added one sack apiece.
Samuel Emilus, on a 15-yard reception, and KeeSean Johnson, on a six-yard catch, scored touchdowns for the Riders. Emilus had six receptions for 113 yards before leaving the game in the fourth quarter with a knee injury. Johnson added nine catches for 78 yards.
Kaion Julien-Grant and Steven Dunbar Jr. had touchdown receptions of 57 and 13 yards respectively in the fourth quarter for the Elks.
UP NEXT
The Elks host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Aug. 2.
The Riders travel to Montreal to take on the Alouettes on Aug. 3.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 25, 2025.
Jeff DeDekker, The Canadian Press
