Elks host Riders looking to end struggles both at home and against the West

EDMONTON — The Edmonton Elks are trying to stop history from repeating itself.

Edmonton opened the 2022 CFL season with a blowout 59-15 loss to the B.C. Lions, and then fell 26-16 to the Saskatchewan Roughriders at home the next week.

Last weekend, the Elks were torched 46-14 at B.C. Place, and they now return home to face Saskatchewan on Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium.

Elks alumni Jim Germany, Ed Jones and Joe Holliman will have the their names added to the team’s Wall of Honour Saturday night.

The current Elks, at 2-6, aren’t making anyone think about honours. Both their wins came on the road against opponents from the lesser East Division.

They haven’t won at home since October of 2019. Against the West, the Elks are 0-6 and they have been outscored by a jaw-dropping 234-84 margin.

Despite all of the negatives, the Elks can get to within one game of a playoff spot if they can end their struggles against the West and beat the Riders.

“We’ve just got to get out of our own way,” said Elks safety and kick returner Duron Carter, who, in his eighth CFL season, is one of the elder statesmen on a roster that’s consistently being rebuilt as the season progresses. “Learning how to win games in the CFL comes with experience. We’ve got a lot of young guys, but, hopefully, we can get the turnaround. We’re going into the second half of the season.

“It’s all about the team. I’ve been on teams where we’re all young guys and it’s just about clicking and gelling on the field. These past couple of games, it hasn’t happened on a consistent basis. We do show flashes of us being a good team, but we also show more flashes of us being a bad team right now.”

Elks general manager and coach Chris Jones told the media repeatedly through the