On Thursday night, the Toronto Argonauts defeated the Saskatchewan Roughriders 20-19 in front of the biggest crowd of the season at BMO Field.
If the field were 109 yards long, the Argos might have won by double digits. In the end, it was a walk-off rouge that clinched it for the Boatmen.
Here are my thoughts on the game.
Shaking the rust off
Considering it was his first action of the season following a nine-game suspension, quarterback Chad Kelly’s performance must be considered a success. He finished 24-of-39 for 322 yards, no touchdowns and an interception. He saw the field relatively well, was elusive in the pocket, made a handful of sensational throws that only a few guys in the league can make, and got a bit unlucky on what could easily have been three touchdown passes.
After watching Cam Dukes and Nick Arbuckle for the first half of the season, the ball velocity Kelly has was more noticeable than usual. First of all, his sideline-to-sideline range is something most quarterbacks simply don’t have. He threw two rockets to receiver Dave Ungerer III to the wide side of the field that simply weren’t options in the previous nine games. He also threaded the needle deep downfield on a few balls, though two were dropped –- possibly due to how quickly the ball got there. I counted three total drops, not including two that should have been flagged for pass interference in my opinion.
While his vision was good, Kelly did miss seeing two coverage busts, something he rarely did last season. The first was Makai Polk flying up the seam on the right side for what would have been an easy touchdown. Kelly still completed a 53-yard bomb on that play to Damonte Coxie, but that drive ended with a field goal. In the fourth quarter, he missed a coverage bust to his right when Coxie went unguarded up the seam, but he instead completed a short pass to DaVaris Daniels on the left. That drive also ended in a field goal.
Kelly wasn’t completely rust-free, missing on a pair of short passes to Daniels and making two ill-advised throws –- one that got rookie receiver Makai Polk crushed, and one that was intercepted by Marcus Sayles.
Stretching the field
Coming into this game, Toronto had struggled to get their star receivers the football. Damonte Coxie and DaVaris Daniels were averaging fewer than three receptions per game but on Thursday night, Chad Kelly targeted them a combined 18 times.
Last season, Coxie led the league in yards per reception with 20.2 but coming into this one, he had just over 15 yards per catch. Against Saskatchewan, with Kelly at the helm, Coxie averaged 22.4 yards per catch.
Grounded
One element of the offence that wasn’t working against the Roughriders was the rushing attack. Toronto came into this game leading the league in rushing yards per game at 123.9, and my expectation was this number would continue to rise with defensive players backing up to defend Kelly.
Instead, the Argos managed only 54 total rushing yards on 20 carries. The Roughriders defend the run well, second only behind Toronto, but 54 yards was a very low total even against Saskatchewan. Head coach Ryan Dinwiddie should get credit for sticking with the run, something he’s called himself out on for abandoning in previous games, but the offensive line struggled to stick with their blocks all night.
New sneakers
The Argonauts have a short-yardage problem. On four different occasions on Thursday night, Toronto had the ball on the Saskatchewan one-yard-line, yet they came away with only seven total points on those four drives.
Chad Kelly failed to score on two quarterback sneaks and while Cam Dukes did convert one, he failed on his second attempt. Ka’Deem Carey was also stuffed twice prior to crossing the goal line. Toronto even attempted a pass from a yard out, but none of the four receivers to that side turned to look for the ball as it hit cornerback Deontai Williams in the chest before falling to the ground.
In this day and age, where most teams have short-yardage specialists like Tommy Stevens, Chris Streveler, Dakota Prukop, and Dustin Crum, the Argonauts are left without an answer in these situations. Cam Dukes is a great runner but at only a shade over six feet and 205 pounds. He lacks the ideal size for this role.
Famous Amos
DaShaun Amos has very quietly put together an outstanding season and should be included in all-star conversations throughout the second half. His four interceptions and two fumble recoveries have him tied with Saskatchewan’s Rolan Milligan for the league lead with six takeaways.
What’s most impressive about these numbers is that quarterbacks have been avoiding him, which is why he has only 11 defensive tackles compared, for example, to Milligan’s 50. Amos also has a touchdown and was a yard short of scoring a second Thursday night after he picked off Trevor Harris and took the ball all the way back to the one-yard-line before being forced out of bounds.
Renaissance man
DaShaun Amos, Royce Metchie, and Jonathan Jones all had outstanding games for the Argonauts’ defence, but perhaps no one played better than cornerback Benji Franklin. The coaching staff has clearly been looking for a performance like this from the first-year starter.
No one had a slower start to the season than Franklin, who appeared to bust again and again in the first few games, but the coaches stuck with him and it has paid off. Franklin had only a single tackle on the evening, but much like with Amos’ season totals, having a single tackle in a game for a starting cornerback is a badge of honour.
Franklin was asked to play press coverage on the boundary side of the field –- an extremely difficult assignment on a CFL field with CFL rules. He also came away with a beautiful interception near the end of the first half, which led to a Toronto field goal.
The circus is in town
This was Toronto’s annual CNE game with the lights, sights, and sounds of the 145-year-old travelling amusement park serving as a backdrop to the football. As fair-goers peeked over the stadium walls from Ferris wheels, gondola cabins, and drop towers, a season-high 19,327 football fans took in the action from their BMO Field seats.
I enjoy the rides at the CNE but the highlight for me is always the interesting culinary creations in the Food building. I passed on the wasabi ice cream, the fruity pebbles chicken tenders, the tzatziki cheesecake, and the jalapeno lemonade, but I did enjoy a deep-fried Mars bar on a stick. In a video released by the Argos social media team and shown on the stadium scoreboard, several Toronto players sampled some of these treats with varying reactions.
Spicy ice cream?! 🤯 #CNE pic.twitter.com/fxyOIz6mCK
— Toronto Argonauts (@TorontoArgos) August 20, 2024
A tangled Webb he weaves
Along with my broadcast partner Mike Hogan, I might be in the running for the position of president of the Danny Webb fan club. Danny is the equipment manager for the Argos, as he has been for the past 40 years. He was honoured on Thursday night at halftime for his service, receiving a standing ovation from the crowd.
Webb has won seven Grey Cups during his time with the team and, believe it or not, played a big role in the outcome of a few of those games. He outfitted players with custom cleats in the 1996 Grey Cup game in snowy Hamilton, and forced several players to switch cleats at halftime in the 2017 Grey Cup game in Ottawa, taking away their stylish spikes in exchange for shoes he’d kept since doctoring them in 2004. In the 2022 Grey Cup game in Regina, Webb creatively fashioned a heated bench using tape, thermal blankets, and a blow heater, which allowed the Argos to sit in comfort while their opponents from Winnipeg froze on theirs.
On Thursday night, all Argos players and staff were given t-shirts to wear with Danny Webb’s picture on the front and his signature D replacing the zero in the number 40 on the back.
A long time ago on a football field far, far away
Somewhat shockingly, this was Saskatchewan’s first trip to BMO Field since 2019. This sort of thing happens with some frequency in the NFL given that there are 32 teams in two conferences, but it’s a rarity in the CFL with more regular season games and only nine teams.
There was no season in 2020, the two teams only played in Saskatchewan in 2021 due to the shortened season, and in both 2022 and 2023, Toronto’s “home” game against the Roughriders was played in Nova Scotia as a part of the Touchdown Atlantic series.
Go West
The Argonauts have swept the West Division at home for the first time since 2004. Toronto opened the season with a 35-27 home win against B.C. They beat Edmonton 39-36 in Week 3, Winnipeg in Week 8 with a 16-14 score, Calgary in Week 10, 39-25, and now Saskatchewan in Week 12 by a score of 20-19.
They’re 0-1 against the East Division at home in 2024, though they still have an opportunity to beat every team in the league at BMO Field this season with home games remaining against all three East Division opponents.
Next Up
The Toronto Argonauts (6-4) head to Hamilton to take on the Tiger-Cats (2-8) in the Labour Day Classic on Monday, September 2 at 2:30 p.m. EDT.