YOUR CALL: WHAT IS THE BIGGEST ISSUE FACING THE ROUGHRIDERS?

The fact that there are two CFL teams still searching for their first win isn't much of a surprise after just three weeks. That one of those teams is the Saskatchewan Roughriders is.

This is a team that has been to the last two Grey Cups; a team that many predicted to challenge for top spot in the West again this year.

The Riders were blown out 33-3 by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday, dropping the team to 0-3 for the first time since way back in 2000. That season, they finished an uninspiring 5-12-1, good enough for sole possession of last place.

Saskatchewan hasn't even held a lead through the first weeks and sits tied with the B.C. Lions in the CFL basement.

So what is wrong with the Roughriders? Is it injuries? The offence? The defence? Special teams? Coaching?

Let's start with the injuries. The number of wounded is already piling up on the Riders this year.

Receiver Rob Bagg still isn't back from an ACL injury suffered last season. Neither is kicker Luca Congi. Receiver Cary Koch is also on the 9-game injured list to start the year. Defensively, lineman Brent Hawkins is also on the 9-game while all-star safety James Patrick has missed the last two games.

The injuries to Bagg and Koch, coupled with the loss of Andy Fantuz to the NFL, have certainly been a major part of the Riders' inconsistency on offence.

Quarterback Darian Durant doesn't have the familiarity and trust with some of his targets and the Riders have struggled to sustain drives.

Turnovers have also been big issue. Durant has struggled in this department in the past and the trend has continued this year.

Through three games, Durant has six interceptions and two lost fumbles while striking for only three touchdowns. Against Hamilton on Saturday, Durant completed just 9-of-23 passes for 95 yards with three interceptions before giving way to Ryan Dinwiddie in the fourth quarter.

The running game has also been sub-par. As a team, the Riders have picked up just 191 yards along the ground this season, second worst in the league.

As rough of a start as it has been for the offence, things haven't been much better on the other side of the ball. The Riders have allowed a league-worst 114 points through three weeks, an average of 38 points per game.

The Tiger-Cats came into Saturday's game having scored just 26 total points in their first two games but they put 23 on the board against the Riders in the first half alone.

One of the problems for the Saskatchewan defence has been an inability to mount a consistent pass-rush, giving opposing quarterbacks a lot of time to go through their reads and find open targets. This has translated to the Riders giving up a league-worst 318 passing yards per game and 10 touchdowns through the air. But not all of this falls on the pass-rush unit as the secondary has struggled in coverage as well.

Going into the season, one would have thought that with former Tiger-Cats defensive coordinator Greg Marshall at the helm and former Eskimos head coach Richie Hall running the defence, this would be the strength of the team.

Things aren't going to get much easier for Marshall and Saskatchewan next week either as the Riders travel to Montreal to take on Anthony Calvillo and the undefeated Alouettes.

However, before all the green-clad fans start slamming their fists on the panic button, let's remember that there are still 15 games to be played and the Riders are far from out of the hunt at this early stage.

The B.C. Lions started last season 1-7 and still made it to the playoffs and nearly upset Saskatchewan in the Western Semi-Final.

For the Riders to rally, they will have to address some major issues because if they don't, they could find themselves on the outside looking in come playoff time for the first time since 2001.

So what is the biggest problem facing the Riders? It's Your! Call.