Smith to start at QB for Riders

The Eskimos will look for their fourth straight win on Friday night when they host the Saskatchewan Roughriders at Commonwealth Stadium.

“To get the opportunity is a big deal for me”, Smith said in Regina after Roughriders coach Corey Chamblin announced Glenn’s move to the six-game injured list. It is unclear when Glenn will return. “He doesn’t have experience but he has youth”.

“We’ve got a pretty good defence right now”, Howard said. “Jacques (offensive co-ordinator Jacques Chapdelaine) will do a good job of giving him what he needs to be successful”. Smith is a raw rookie and he will surely be tested by the Eskimos’ top-ranked defence.

“As a defence you want to play against the best and offensively they are the best”, he said.

“Nothing more than he’s dialling up every week, every damn blitz he can find”, Chamblin said.

“I can tell you, I’ve been with Chris and it doesn’t matter if it’s Kevin Glenn, Darian or Brett Smith, he views all quarterbacks the same”. Edmonton’s complex and unconventional blitzes tend to pose a challenge for even 15-year CFL veterans like Glenn, and they may be much more hard still for a rookie like Smith.

The Roughriders also have Tino Sunseri and Keith Price on the roster and have reportedly signed former Alabama quarterback Blake Sims.

“That’s a really unsafe scenario with him because he’s going to come in with nothing to lose”, said Edmonton linebacker JC Sherritt. Time frame on that, I’m not sure of. We all know that Durant is out for the remainder of this season with a torn left Achilles tendon.