he Roughriders have the highest paid and most experienced d-line in the league, but they haven’t yet shown their full potential.
Opportunity to prove themselves could be coming to the defensive line as the team prepares to take on the BC Lions this weekend.
Edmonton had nothing but open lanes against BC’s offensive line last week, as the Eskimos got to Lions QB Mike Reilly five times.
The Riders defensive line isn't expecting an open road to Reilly, they're just concerned about the win.
"You know we're a one in three team right now so the biggest thing for us is just to get the win so,” Riders defensive tackle Micah Johnson said. “I don't think you're really salivating like that or you can't think about it like that, just because the position we're in as a team, we gotta come out here and win.”
Last season, Micah Johnson was second in the CFL with 14 sacks, but through four contests this season, he has yet to record one. Coaches and his teammates are cautioning to not look at the stats, and that he's still doing his job on the field.
Head Coach Craig Dickenson wants them to be disruptive, physical and hardworking, but he says those characteristics are still being developed.
“They've shown real flashes but to do it down in down out that takes a lot of work, that usually doesn’t happen until later in the season,” Dickenson said.
"We've never played together, right?” defensive tackle Zack Evans said. “It's tough to put all of those things together because everyone has their own playing style so you just gotta learn and you gotta understand each other and play with each other long enough then you start vibing and its all good.”
Dickenson said he knows Johnson wants more sacks, and that the last game against Calgary saw the Stampeders having to double him and spend extra time on him.
