The Riders have a couple of roster decisions to make before Saturday’s game in BC. Who will kick, and who will play the wide-side corner back.
Coach Dickenson has said that kicker Brett Lauther will be a game-time decision. So we waited for the big reveal of the starting corner for Week 7. We were disappointed.
“We are not going to tell you,” said Coach Craig Dickenson. “We’re going to keep that a secret. But we got a couple guys that we’re excited about and we feel like we’re going to be able to line up with a good group back there.”
What he would tell us is that Solomon Means is definitely out of the lineup for this week.
“We just felt like he wasn’t making plays. And I told him that. He’s had some good games. But when it came time to make a play at the point of attack he hasn’t made them. It doesn’t mean he won’t, or can’t, but he just hasn’t yet.
“It’s up to him to him to practice well enough and make plays in practice to convince us to put him back out there.”
In Means’ place on Day 1 and 3 of practice was former San Francisco 49er LJ McCray (Day 2 was closed to the media). He would be the betting favourite to get the start on Saturday.
“Any time you can bring game experience at the pro level to the team, that’s a good thing. He’s physical. He works hard in the weight room. We knew LJ would get a shot at some point we just didn’t know when. He’s ready to go out there and play.”
McCray hasn’t played in a regular-season game since 2015 in San Francisco. Since then he has bounced around the off-season rosters of the Carolina Panthers, Buffalo Bills and now the Riders. But he’s set to go on the roster for Saturday.
“It feels amazing,” says McCray. “I’ve been working up to this point, been learning the defense, getting chemistry with the guys for a while now so I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Kickoff Saturday is 5:00 pm across the Cooperators Roughrider Radio Network. The pre-game show on 620 CKRM begins at 2:00 pm.
