The Saskatchewan Roughriders 2026 season ended on a lower note as the Green and White were handed a 33-26 defeat at the hands of the B.C. Lions in the West Semifinal. Speaking to Lee Jones this week, former Roughrider Wes Cates said he was impressed how the Riders pulled together a great performance in the opening half – before letting the Lions gradually gain the upper hand. “They came out with a lot of energy, put points on the board, 17-3 lead, but then you kind of let B.C. do what B.C. does. Nathan Rourke got going, made some unbelievable plays, and let them get back into it. Then at halftime, [the Riders] don’t make the adjustments,” he explained. “They shouldn’t have let that lead go. B.C. did a great job getting back into the game. I’m really frustrated that it came down to a bunch of kicks.” The question of a quarterback A topic of conversation has been if Trevor Harris will continue his career in professional football. This year marked the 41-year-old’s 14th season in the Canadian Football League. Cates believes the Roughriders will want to continue with the veteran pivot. “I think the way that Trevor prepares, and as long as he has the passion for the game, you heard him talk about it in his post interview. I think you do want him back,” he said. Cates added there is no clear answer to the question of replacing Harris. “I think Trevor is your best bet if you’re really trying to be competitive,” Cates noted. “The fact that it is a Grey Cup in Saskatchewan next year, I think you want to have that quarterback position shored up, and Trevor’s the only answer to that right now.” As for what the Green and White need to focus on in the offseason, Cates has some ideas. “I think they needed more out of their pass rush. I think they had some guys that showed up at times but didn’t really exceed expectations,” he explained. “You need that pass rush. You need that to impact games. You need that to get other teams off the field and get your offence a couple of more possessions a game … I don’t think the Riders really had that, so I think really finding a couple of good pass rushers, edge players is the key.”
