Notebook: Mitchell Picton is savouring his second go-round

SASKATOON — Saskatchewan Roughriders receiver Mitchell Picton may be a CFL rookie, but he’s a training-camp veteran.

The 23-year-old Regina product attended the Roughriders’ training camp in 2017 before returning to the University of Regina Rams for his final season of U Sports eligibility.

The lessons Picton learned at Saskatchewan’s camp last year no doubt helped him during the Rams’ season, but he’s also putting them to use as he tries to make the Roughriders’ roster this year.

“It has been big knowing what to expect and knowing the speed of the game,” Picton said after a practice at Griffiths Stadium on the University of Saskatchewan campus. “Having a little bit of a jump start on knowing the offence and knowing the guys has helped, too.

“Being buddies with some of the guys in the locker room was nice coming in and makes things a little easier off the field.”

Saskatchewan selected Picton in the fifth round (37^th overall) of the 2017 draft and took the 6-foot-2, 200-pounder to training camp. He was released at the end of camp, went back to the U of R, re-signed with the Roughriders in November and practised with them during their playoff run.

Picton believes his second training camp with the Roughriders has gone well, as he has seen regular progress in his game. That said, he also had a bit of a hiccup in the form of a shoulder injury that kept him out of Saskatchewan’s lineup for its pre-season opener in Edmonton on May 27.

“That was hard,” Picton said of missing the 35-12 loss to the Eskimos. “I’ve never really had to deal with injuries before in my life and never missed games because I’ve been injured.

“It was a first for me, but it’s all part of the process and I’m just trying to stay positive.”

Roughriders head coach-GM Chris Jones already has said Picton will play Friday when the team plays host to the Calgary Stampeders in the final exhibition game for both teams.

That was huge news for Picton, who once again will get to play in front of family and friends at Mosaic Stadium.

“That game is very important to me,” he said. “I need to have a great performance, execute all my assignments and essentially just play my game to try to make this football team.”

Picton has been getting a lot of work at receiver and on special teams during training camp, but Jones said that the rookie will have to physically get bigger and stronger before he can contribute on a full-time basis.

Picton admitted that his shoulder issue kept him from working out the way he wanted in the off-season. Therapy instead of training was the priority through the winter and spring, so he wasn’t able to add much bulk to his frame.

“It’s a bit of a challenge,” he said of Jones’ comments. “But that’s fine with me. I agree with him and it’s something I need to work on.”

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The Roughriders added another name to the list of walking wounded on Tuesday.

Cornerback Nick Marshall, who has been working with the starting defence through camp, left practice after dislocating a finger. Marshall didn’t return to the field after departing, but Jones said the rookie would be fine.

Offensive linemen Dariusz Bladek, Dalton Houghton and Josiah St. John, receivers Rob Bagg and Chad Owens, defensive back Tristan Doughlin, linebacker Brandyn Bartlett and defensive lineman Makana Henry all missed the practice with various ailments.

Offensive linemen Dan Clark and Terran Vaughn also were dinged during practice, but finished the workout. So did defensive back Jeremy Cutrer, who was sent flying after an accidental collision during a passing drill.

“(Injury scares are) part of it when you compete,” Jones said. “If we went out and played backyard basketball, there’d probably be a couple, too.

“We went out today, we competed and that’s what you do when you put a bunch of big guys out there. Even though they don’t have pads on, sometimes there are going to be things that happen.”

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The practice was filled with competitive drills as the Roughriders try to gear up for Friday’s game.

There was a special-teams drill that pitted offensive linemen against defenders, the usual offence-versus-defence passing scenarios and, for the first time in a few days, full-on one-on-one matchups between the offensive and defensive linemen.

The latter drill produced a bit of a scrap between guard Travis Bond and defensive lineman Curt Maggitt.

“I thought the competition was good today,” Jones said. “The big boys got testy down there in one-on-ones so it felt a little more like a game.”

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The Roughriders made one roster move Tuesday, releasing defensive back Chris Lyles and signing DB Reggie Hall.

Hall, 22, is a 6-foot-3, 208-pounder out of Opelika, Ala. He played 39 games over four seasons at Jacksonville State University.

Lyles, 23, played seven regular-season games for Saskatchewan in 2017. He registered 19 defensive tackles, one pass knockdown and one fumble recovery.