Toronto Argonauts head coach Mike Miller takes players ‘into the equation’: Chad Kelly

Photo: Christian Bender/Toronto Argonauts

The path to the Toronto Argonauts’ resurgence this season may be paved through head coach Mike Miller’s ear canal.

Addressing the media for the first time this offseason, quarterback Chad Kelly sang the praises of the team’s new hire, touting his more collaborative approach to the position.

“I think the biggest thing is that he’s a listener. He really takes into the equation what we feel is needed or what we’d like to see change. Obviously, it can change, and he’s the head coach. He overrules everything, but he’s definitely a listener, which we appreciate,” the 32-year-old raved.

“He speaks to us like he’s one of us, so we’re excited about him. He’s a great leader.”

Miller was promoted in December after spending the past four seasons as the Argonauts’ quarterbacks coach, replacing the departing Ryan Dinwiddie. It marks his first head coaching job in an eclectic 28-year career that has seen him do everything from calling plays for Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald in the Super Bowl to coordinating Division III defences. Along the way, he has worked with tight ends, receivers, and both sides of the line of scrimmage.

No job has been more important than working with quarterbacks, however, and the strong relationship built between Miller and Kelly is no secret. During his Most Outstanding Player campaign in 2023, Kelly frequently cited his position coach as a driving force behind his success, and some have speculated that it was his absence due to cancer treatment that contributed to the QB’s undiagnosed concussion and subsequent implosion in that year’s East Final.

The intervening years have been challenging for Kelly, marred by suspension and a broken leg suffered in the 2024 playoffs that forced him to miss the entire 2025 campaign. As he eyes a return to the field after 580 days away, his admiration for Miller is unchanged.

“I think Mike Miller brought some great ideas to the team when he first got here, and now he’s able to expand on that. He’s been a coach at all different positions, all different levels, so he knows how to really communicate with people. He knows what works,” Kelly explained. “He’s coached All-Pro receivers. He knows from the best as an offensive line coach as well. I think there’s just a lot of things that he has in his toolbox that he can help make us better. Whether it’s on the field or off the field, he knows how it’s supposed to be. He’s done it at the highest level.”

Miller’s communication skills will need to be leveraged to fuel player buy-in after a tumultuous year in 2025. Dinwiddie’s abrupt exit to assume dual roles as head coach and general manager with the Ottawa Redblacks came as a shock after he led the Argos to a pair of Grey Cup titles during his tenure, but it also came on the heels of a 5-13 season defined by conflict. The one-time CFL Coach of the Year openly berated his team through the media on multiple occasions and received the lowest coaching staff grade of any franchise in the CFLPA report card.

Despite promoting from within with Miller, Toronto has since undergone substantial changes to its front office, coaching staff, and roster. That has led to renewed optimism from Kelly.

“Our coaching (is) appreciating us, taking in what we say and what we would like to see — that goes a long way with us,” he said.

‘It’s pretty refreshing to hear (new defensive coordinator) Greg Quick talk about the defence and how they manage certain things from a Montreal perspective, because they are really good at what they do, and I think he was a big key of that defence. Just being able to learn from different coaches, how they see things, how they coach. We have some pretty talented coaches now with us that have played the game at a high level. I think, all that together, we all have an excitement that we’re going to have to hold back.”

At the centre of that excitement is Miller, who has defied modern trends and beaten the odds to ascend to the top job at 55 years old. His players know what he’s overcome to reach that position and stand ready to fight for him.

“We’re just excited to go out to bat for a guy who’s been through so much as well with his cancer, and now he’s the head coach. He really didn’t think this would ever come to fruition, and it did,” Kelly said. “We’re excited to play for Mike, and we’re excited about all these new coaches that we have. It’s going to be a change of pace for all of us, but we’re ready for whatever it brings.”

The Argonauts hold the second overall pick in the 2026 CFL Draft, which is scheduled for Tuesday, April 28 at 7:00 p.m. EDT. All CFL training camps are scheduled to open on May 10. Toronto will play its first preseason game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday, May 23, then its first regular-season game against the Montreal Alouettes on Friday, June 12.