For the first time since 2014, the Saskatchewan Roughriders have opened the season with a victory.

Contributions from key offseason additions helped power the Riders past the defending Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts, 27-19, in front 29,788 fans at Mosaic Stadium on Friday night.

"(A win to open the season) is better than a loss, we've been there where we had to pull ourselves out of a hole, now it's time that we get use to doing this a lot and it becomes the norm," said Head Coach Chris Jones, who won his first season opener with the Riders. 

There was solid performances from all three phases for the Riders in the win, but the defence specifically looked to be in midseason form as they held Ricky Ray and the Argos offence to just 265 total yards and only 55 along the ground.

Defensive end Charleston Hughes made his presence felt in his first game in Riders' green, as he posted three sacks in the first half, including the 100th of his CFL career.

Hughes, Willie Jefferson and the Riders' defensive line were able to get after Argonauts quarterback Ricky Ray all night long, disrupting the veteran's rhythm.

"We got the win and that's what we set out to do, I set out to get my 100th sack and I did that, and I got three in the game, so it's like woo!," said Hughes. 

"If you're having fun, that means you're playing confident and you're playing with a certain type of swagger on the field that the offence can't compare to that."

Defensive back Nick Marshall returns an interception for a 66-yard touchdown in the Riders' 27-19 win over Toronto on Friday night at Mosaic Stadium. (Photo: Sask. Roughriders)

There was two key moments where the Riders' defence really stepped up.

The first came at the end of the second quarter when rookie running back Tre Mason fumbled deep in Riders' territory, giving the Argonauts a chance to put points on the board before halftime. A sack from Hughes made sure Toronto would only come out with three points and the Riders would take a 14-4 advantage into halftime.

Then in the fourth quarter, Toronto cut the Riders' lead to 17-12 with a James Franklin one-yard touchdown, but on the Argos' next drive, rookie defensive back Nick Marshall returned an interception 66 yards for the score to really seal the win for the Riders.

"We called the same two defences all night, we adjusted to the different personnel groupings and different formations and did a good job in man coverage and did a good job of pressuring Ricky," said Jones.

The quarterback questions for the Riders were answered in the game as Zach Collaros started and played well in the victory.

"It feels great, it just feels good to start the season off on the right foot," said Collaros. "We deserved to win the game and it was all three phases did a great job."

Collaros finished 18-of-25 for 203 yards and a touchdown, while he complete a pass to nine different receivers. 

The Riders went two-and-out on their first three possessions, but once Collaros settled in, he put together a strong game for the Riders.

"I thought Zach managed the game real well," said Jones. 

Naaman Roosevelt was Collaros' top target in the win with three catches for 30 yards and the lone touchdown, which came in the second quarter and made it 11-1 for Saskatchewan.

Rookie Jordan Williams-Lambert also had a team-high three catches with 23 yards.

Kicker Brett Lauther provided 13 of the 27 points for the Riders in the win as he was good on four straight field goals -- 45, 43, 46 and 32 yards -- after missing his first of the season.

Another offseason addition in Jerome Messam showed that he's still a force to be reckoned with as he turned out 72 rushing yards on 21 carries in his return to Saskatchewan.

Messam sent out a tweet after the game referencing the CFL Top-50 released earlier this week and how he felt he deserved to be ranked higher.

"I'm just sick of the disrespect," said Messam. "I've got a statement to make every time that I play football because I train hard and I know what I'm capable of, I don't know why every year I've got to fight to get recognition. How is Andrew Harris 26 guys better than me? Are you serious?"

All the success from the offseason pickups is a good sign of things to come for the Riders, but Jones wasn't about to get ahead of himself, "It's one win, validation is when we put a whole bunch of them together and at the end of the year, we host a playoff game, get the Grey Cup and win it," he said.

The Riders have a short week ahead as they will head to Ottawa to face the Redblacks on Thursday night.