Richard Lam/CFL.ca
VANCOUVER — A dominant defensive performance and three touchdown runs from William Powell made the difference in the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ 45-18 road win against the BC Lions on Saturday, but quarterback Cody Fajardo also stepped up by showing he could help his team win in a different way.
“Personally, I think that was a good game for me to show that I can take the underneath stuff,” Fajardo said after the win. “It doesn’t always have to be the bomb, and we can get away with the win.”
Fajardo only passed for 169 yards and one touchdown against the Lions in Week 7, but the 27-year-old quarterback was highly efficient for four quarters by completing 81 per cent of his passes.
“His job is to move the team effectively and efficiently, and I thought he did that,” Riders’ head coach Craig Dickenson said of his quarterback.
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“Good teams find ways to win ugly games,” Fajardo said. “I think we did that tonight. You know, it was a bit ugly sometimes offensively but we scored when we had to.”
Fajardo led the Riders to a field goal on their first possession and effectively managed the game with short, accurate passes. Fajardo completed his first eight passes for 72 yards and a touchdown to receiver Kyran Moore.
“Our whole goal is to start fast,” Fajardo said. “We wanted to start fast and put points on the board early, and I felt like we got three points on our first drive so that was good.”
With a double digit lead heading into the second quarter, the Riders’ stingy defence took control and put a stranglehold on the Lions. Saskatchewan added four more sacks to their season total and held Mike Reilly and the Lions’ passing game to 66 yards and zero touchdowns.
“Our defence gave us a great opportunity to win this game and put our special teams in some good situations and gave us good field position,” Fajardo said. “Anytime you got a defence rolling like that, it makes things easier for us offensively.”
Powell came through with his best game so far this season, serving as a true workhorse running back by carrying the ball 21 times for 146 yards. The veteran running back is now up to 469 yards and six touchdowns on 92 carries this season.
“That was awesome,” Fajardo said of Powell’s performance. “Anytime we can get the run game going helps me as a quarterback.”
Up next for the Riders is a home matchup against the 5-1 Hamilton Tiger-Cats, a team that poses a serious challenge despite losing starting quarterback Jeremiah Masoli to injury for the remainder of the season.
“That’s a good ball club,” Dickenson said. “Very physical, and we’re on a short week so we know it’s a big challenge.”
Saskatchewan now holds a 3-3 record and have bounced back after dropping the first two games of the season. The Riders will need more full team efforts like the one against the Lions in order to gain ground in a tough and competitive West Division.
“We know if we can continue to win home games and fight and claw for every away game that we’ll have a chance down at the end,” Fajardo said.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders will look for their fourth win of the season when they take on the Hamilton Tiger-Cats at home next Thursday.
