Jamie Nye: Obvious Riders storyline for 2021 with release of Hughes

The best thing about Charleston Hughes’ release from the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Wednesday is we don’t have to talk about whether he’ll be a Rider in 2021.

Now we can look at the roster without him and see general manager Jeremy O’Day has more of his plan to execute in the coming weeks and months.

There are holes on the defensive line and linebacking corps, but I’ll remind everyone of the date. It’s Feb. 4.

Next Tuesday is free agency and there are plenty of good defensive players available and players who will come in cheaper than what Hughes was asking. Now, will they have double-digit sacks? Maybe not, but teams can succeed in a pass rush and produce pressure without having the league’s sack leader.

We also don’t know about the new faces that will be arriving as the Riders have been loading up along the defensive line with first-year CFLers.

But don’t fool yourself. When the ball is kicked off, we’ll be evaluating the Riders’ defensive line where Hughes lined up very closely.