Brammer feels right at home at right guard

Jacob Brammer has become a fixture at right guard and, moreover, in Saskatchewan.

Brammer is to make his 31^st consecutive start at the same spot on the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ offensive line when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers pay a visit on Sunday for the 61^st Labour Day Classic.

“It has been a blessing for me,” the third-year Roughrider said after Thursday’s practice at Mosaic Stadium.

“My first year, I kind of got in there due to an injury and tried to make the most of my opportunity. Our O-line room and our coaching staff really helped me. It has been a big testament to them to see where I can go in this league.”

After playing college football at Vanderbilt and North Texas, Brammer made five CFL regular-season starts as a rookie on the right side of the offensive line — three at guard and two at tackle. He also was the front-line right guard for both playoff games in 2024.

After missing the 2025 opener with a back injury, Brammer returned to the lineup and started the final 17 regular-season games at right guard. He then helped the Roughriders win the Western Final and the Grey Cup, earning All-CFL honours along the way.

“It was a blessing to be able to get that accolade,” he said, “but, honestly, I’ve tried to leave everything from last year in the past and move on to this year and focus on going 1-and-0 each week.”

Along the way, he has helped the Roughriders win seven of their first 11 games as defending Grey Cup champions. Entrenched as a Roughrider and in the community, he will never engage in a figurative spiking of the football. There is much left to accomplish despite his already-impressive resume.

“I’m still pretty hard on myself,” he said. “There are still things — week to week, year to year — that I want to improve on every time.

“I never really feel like it has all clicked together. There’s always room for improvement.”

Such a mindset is essential for a professional athlete, who lives in a “what have you done for me lately?” world — one in which every snap, whether it be in practice or in a game, is evaluated.

“I think that’s what you need,” Brammer said. “Having the vets and our coaching staff and everything with this team has helped me a lot.

“Maybe in college, I could see myself at times getting a little bit complacent with where I was at. Coming here, learning from the vets and everything, you can’t get complacent. I feel like that really helped my game a lot.”

Helping out off the field is also a priority for Brammer. He spent the past off-season in Saskatchewan, dedicating countless hours to visiting schools across the province as a Player Ambassador for the Roughrider Foundation.

“I heard about that, spoke with some guys who did it, and loved it,” said Brammer, 27, who hails from the Houston suburb of Richmond, Texas.

“It’s a good chance for me to get out and interact with the community. You go to all the small towns that maybe don’t get a lot of outreach during the season. Getting to go there and seeing how much it means to the whole province is pretty surreal.”

INJURY UPDATE

There was encouraging news on the injury front on Thursday.

Receiver KeeSean Johnson (back) and cornerback Marcus Sayles (quad) were full participants in Thursday’s workout after not practising on Wednesday.

As well, running back A.J. Ouellette (knee) and receiver Johnny Johnson III (head) were full participants on Thursday after being limited the previous day.

Defensive back Kerfalla Exume (ankle) was limited on Thursday after not practising one day earlier.

Linebackers Nick Wiebe (knee) and Josh Woods (ankle) have yet to practise this week.

Defensive lineman James Vaughters was limited on Thursday after being a full participant to begin the week.

Fullback Albert Awachie (ankle) and defensive back Jaxon Ford (ankle) have been full participants on back-to-back days.