Alonzo Addae, Eugene Lewis return for Ottawa Redblacks

Photo: Gord Weber/3DownNation. All rights reserved.

The Ottawa Redblacks will have two key veterans back in the lineup when they host the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday night. The team released its official depth chart on Thursday.

Alonzo Addae will start at safety after spending last week on the one-game injured list with a head injury. The 28-year-old native of Pickering, Ont. has played 53 regular-season games over five seasons with Ottawa, making 97 defensive tackles, 13 special teams tackles, seven interceptions, and one forced fumble. He was a full participant in practice this week.

Eugene Lewis will also return to the lineup after sitting out last game with a shoulder injury. He was a full participant in practice this week. The six-foot, 200-pound target is the CFL’s leading active receiver, making 480 catches for 7,368 yards and 47 touchdowns over 118 career regular-season games with the Montreal Alouettes, Edmonton Elks, and Redblacks.

Keelan White, who was limited in practice this week with an ankle injury, has been listed as a game-time decision. Binjimen Victor, who started for Lewis last week, has been moved to the practice roster. The 29-year-old made two receptions for 32 yards in a loss to the Montreal Alouettes.

The Redblacks have made a handful of other changes to the roster, cutting quarterback Nicholas Vittiato in favour of McLeod Bethel-Thompson. The veteran quarterback is listed as the backup to Jake Maier with Bryson Barnes as the third-stringer.

Jelani Stafford has been promoted to the active roster and will start at defensive tackle alongside Michael Wakefield. The six-foot-one, 300-pound defender, who was a two-time 1,000-yard rusher in high school, made 107 total tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, three pass knockdowns, and two fumble recoveries over 38 games at the University of Connecticut. He also played some running back, racking up 15 carries for 22 yards and six touchdowns.

Adrian Frye has returned from injury and will start at field-side cornerback after sitting out the last two games with a groin injury. Shakur Brown, who made six tackles over two starts in Frye’s place, has been moved to the practice roster.

Depth linebackers Lucas Cormier and Jamie Pettway have been added to the active roster after missing the game against Montreal. In corresponding moves, Josh Connors has been placed on the practice roster, and Aaron Casey has been moved to the one-game injured list.

Kemari Munier-Bailey has also been promoted to the active roster. The 24-year-old native of the United Kingdom was previously a first-round pick in the CFL Global Draft by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. In a corresponding move, veteran defensive tackle Blessman Ta’ala has been demoted to Ottawa’s practice roster.

The Ottawa Redblacks (0-3) will host the Saskatchewan Roughriders (2-1) at TD Place Stadium on Friday, July 3 with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EDT. The Roughriders are coming off a 40-34 loss to the Toronto Argonauts, while the Redblacks dropped a 37-35 matchup against the Montreal Alouettes.

The weather forecast in Ottawa calls for a high of 30 degrees and a 70 percent chance of rain. The game will be broadcast on TSN and RDS2 in Canada and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune in on 620 CKRM in Regina or TSN 1200 in Ottawa.

Ottawa Redblacks