The Saskatchewan Roughriders registered their first interception by a defensive back on Friday, when Jonathan Edouard undercut an underthrown ball by Ottawa Redblacks quarterback Jake Maier. Compare that to last season when it only took the defense two weeks to snag an interception, when Rolan Milligan Jr. had one against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The secondary room is feeling good to have the first interception of the 2026 season in the bag. “It felt great to get it for coach bell and coach mace and being the first DB to get one. And going against my old head coach Ryan Dinwiddie, so it’s a privilege,” said Edouard on Friday night. For Edouard, who is filling in for injured perennial All-CFL player Rolan Milligan Jr, getting the chance to prove his ability in the Green and White is something he doesn’t take for granted. “It means the world to come in here and they trust me and let me play and taking the leash off me as they say. It means the world to play for a coach that I know and they accepted me. And I know all the guys and I love these guys, they’re like my brothers,” he said. The hope among the secondary, and members like Marcus Sayles, is that the first interception leads to a cascade effect. “We’re about to get five or six in these next couple of weeks, you’ll see. But, yeah, I’m happy for Jonathan. Ever since he’s came in, he’s been doing exactly what we need him to do. He’s taking over Rolan’s spot and there’s been no drop off. So, he’s just going to continue to improve,” he said. The Riders have just 13 total turnovers as a defense, well below the pace of the 41 turnovers the team had last year. But the players and coaches are maintaining a positive mindset. “The encouraging thing is I think we’re still, maybe, plus three or something like that in the turnover ratio. And we only had the one in the back end so far. Three total. But we’re still creating turnovers,” said Head Coach Corey Mace. The team believes the turnovers will come, and even without the torrid pace in takeaways that the defense was able to produce last season, this year’s team is still currently in a good spot, six and two and atop the west division near the midway mark of the CFL regular season schedule.
