Dickenson looking forward to seeing Riders’ roster take shape

Training camp is still a few months away, but Saskatchewan Roughriders head coach Craig Dickenson already has some positions he will be keeping a close eye on.

While quarterback Cody Fajardo comes into the 2022 CFL season as the team’s unquestioned starter, there will be an open competition for the backup role.

Mason Fine finished the 2021 season as the team’s backup but only dressed for three games — the regular-season finale and the team’s two playoff games. Those three games are Fine’s only CFL experience after he spent most of 2021 on the practice roster.

The only other quarterback on the roster is Jake Dolegala, who signed with the Riders in February.

Isaac Harker, who was the backup in 2019 and most of 2021, signed with the B.C. Lions this off-season. Another quarterback, Paxton Lynch, was released off the suspended list.

“The reality is with the pre-season, we can play some of these other quarterbacks and see what they can bring to the table,” Dickenson said during a conference call Thursday. “That’s a wide-open job.”

Another job up for grabs when camp opens in May is the role as the team’s primary running back.

William Powell, who had signed with Saskatchewan in 2019, returned to Ottawa as a free agent this off-season to play with the Redblacks.

Jamal Morrow was the Roughriders’ backup tailback in 2021. Canadian Kienan LaFrance will return to the Riders and he also saw significant playing time as the team’s backup behind Powell the past few seasons.

Canadian Jonathan Femi-Cole also returns; he was one of the four players who tore an Achilles tendon a day before training camp was set to start.

Shamar Moreland is the other running back on the roster, signing with the team in January.

Ahead of camp, there are also some veterans who are set to make an impact, specifically in the linebacker group.

The Roughriders added Derrick Moncrief and Darnell Sankey in free agency, Micah Teitz is back after a season that saw him named the team’s most outstanding Canadian, and Larry Dean will return after missing the 2021 season when he tore his Achilles ahead of last year’s training camp.

“It creates an opportunity for (defensive co-ordinator Jason Shivers) to move guys around and the better players you have, the more opportunity you have to be creative with it,” general manager Jeremy O’Day said. “We didn’t have Larry last year because of the injury and he just impressed us with his work ethic and leadership.

“Coming into a new team and getting injured early on in camp and being able to showcase his leadership skills really just earned our respect with staying here the whole year and grinding it out in the weight room and rehabbing and (we) really wanted to give him an opportunity to come back.

“We have a lot of respect for Sankey’s game as a player. He’s a bigger linebacker but he doesn’t play that way. I don’t mean that disrespectfully, I mean that in a good way. He runs to the ball and just has relentless effort.”

The team also added to its offensive line group recently, signing a pair of national players: Jamal Campbell and Maurice Simba.

“Campbell was a situation where he got released (from the Toronto Argonauts) and anytime there’s a player released, we have conversations and discussions whether we feel like he would be a good addition to our team,” O’Day said. “That was a situation that just kind of presented itself and we watched a lot of tape on him to see if it was a fit. We’re always looking to create competition, especially along the O-line in particular.

“With Simba, we recently worked him out and, after working him out, felt like he could add some depth to our O-line and give him another opportunity to get back to playing pro ball and hopefully make our roster.”

“I think we’re positioned to make a run at it. I feel like we’ve got a lot of our best players back; we lost a few, but so did everyone else,” Dickenson added. “I feel like we’ve got our core group of guys and we have some good, young players and hopefully have a real competitive training camp.”

And as the off-season continues, Dickenson said there’s a positive buzz as the season gets closer.

“Maybe it’s just that we’ve all gotten over the COVID hangover so to speak but there’s a real sense our best days are ahead of us,” Dickenson said. “I think you’re seeing as much talent in the CFL as you ever have. It’s just a good time to be up here and hopefully the season shows that and each team does play well.”

Riders sign wide receiver

On Thursday, the Riders announced another signing to their receivers group.

The team announced it signed Jamal Custis.

Custis spent five seasons at Syracuse University, appearing in 40 games. The Pennsylvania product had 51 catches for 906 yards and six touchdowns in his final college season.

The 6-foot-4, 213-pounder was signed by the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in 2019. He also spent time on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ practice roster.

Custis also participated in the 2021 training camp with B.C.