Grey Cup champs struggling as season hits halfway mark

Winnipeg Free Press

2 days ago

While it's wild that the reigning Grey Cup champions could miss the post-season this year, it's also a damning indictment of what has been a messy 2025 campaign for the Toronto Argonauts.
Indeed, Toronto's season has gone from bad to worse, and at 2-7 they are running out of time to turn things around.
Much of the chaos can be traced back to the uncertainty surrounding No. 1 quarterback Chad Kelly, who has yet to play this year after breaking his leg in the Eastern Final last season. The team's handling of the situation hasn't been great, initially keeping him off the six-game injured list — which would have saved the club money on the salary cap — only to add him to the list in recent weeks.
Had head coach Ryan Dinwiddie known he wouldn't have Kelly for much of the season, you'd think he would have brought in a more reliable backup than Nick Arbuckle — Grey Cup MVP honours be damned. But Arbuckle doesn't shoulder all the blame for a lack of execution and efficiency on the field; in fact, he's been one of their better performers.
PETER POWER / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES
Toronto Argonauts head coach Ryan Dinwiddie continues to publicly criticize his team, contradicting his message to his players to not point fingers.
PETER POWER / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES
Toronto Argonauts head coach Ryan Dinwiddie continues to publicly criticize his team, contradicting his message to his players to not point fingers.
Dinwiddie publicly called out his team following a rough loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in Week 3, and he was back at it again after a crushing 46-42 loss to the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday. How could you blame him after Toronto blew a 21-point first-quarter lead, surrendering six touchdowns and 373 yards through the air, along with an interception returned for a score.
Dinwiddie didn't mince words in his assessment: 'I don't think those guys quit on us, but I think we've got some pretenders in the building that like to talk a big game and don't show up on game day. We just don't have enough dogs, man.'
He didn't stop there either, taking a shot at his beleaguered offensive line when asked about Kelly's return, claiming: 'I don't know if I'd put him in front of that O-line.'
Dinwiddie also criticized special teams, noting his displeasure with co-ordinator Mickey Donovan, while also placing blame on the players. This is all happening while Dinwiddie is simultaneously urging his players to ignore the headlines and 'find a way to do their individual self a benefit in playing better and having a better purpose walking in this building.'
It's a contradictory message from a head coach who's giving the media plenty to talk about while telling his players not to point fingers. At 2-7 and sitting alone at the bottom of the East Division, I suppose all ideas for improvement should be considered.
Dinwiddie's last public undressing of his team did result in a victory the following week. It's safe to say he's hoping for the same result this week when Toronto travels to take on another team trying to find its footing in the 2-6 Edmonton Elks.
Although not unprecedented, the path from two wins at the midway point to the post-season is an extremely challenging one, especially with the risk of a divided locker room. No one's going to feel sorry for the Argos, though, not after their success last season, capturing a second Grey Cup in the last three seasons.
While the Argos' struggles are a major story right now, there were plenty of other headlines across the league that caught my attention. Let's get into it in the latest edition of CFL Rundown.
1) B.C. Lions quarterback Nathan Rourke had his breakout moment, dismantling the Hamilton Tiger-Cats defence in a 41-38 overtime victory.
The Canadian pivot looked composed and confident, throwing for a season-high 408 yards and two touchdowns. The win was a crucial one for the Lions, snapping Hamilton's six-game winning streak.
Rourke finally got his timing down with Justin McInnis, as the leading receiver from a year ago hauled in eight catches for a game-high 159 yards. Running back James Butler was also a key factor, finishing with 85 yards rushing on 14 carries and adding another 55 yards through the air on four catches.
The win improved the Lions' record to 4-5, keeping them in the competitive West Division playoff race.
2) It was a tale of two halves for the Tiger-Cats, who were a no-show in the first half, mustering only 60 net yards of offence.
Bo Levi Mitchell came alive in the third quarter, with the Ticats scoring three consecutive touchdowns to turn a 13-7 deficit into a 28-20 lead.
Costly mistakes would ultimately seal their fate. Kicker Marc Liegghio missed two field goals, and a crucial fumble by receiver Tim White in overtime set up the game-winning kick for the Lions.
The Ticats had been playing with fire in their last two games — winning with late-game heroics — but this time, their luck finally ran out.
Thursdays
Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter.
3) The decision by Jason Maas to play an injured Davis Alexander in Week 7 against the Argos is looking even more questionable today.
The Montreal Alouettes quarterback situation has become a mess, with McLeod Bethel-Thompson struggling mightily the last two weeks. His poor play contributed to a 23-22 loss to the Elks on Friday, where he was benched at halftime after throwing a costly pick-six.
Now it's up to Caleb Evans to lead the way for a banged-up offence, as Bethel-Thompson has been added to the six-game injured list, putting his availability for the rest of the year in serious question.
The team would have undoubtedly been in a better position had Maas treated Alexander's hamstring injury more seriously and will have an uphill battle trying to catch the Ticats for top spot in the East Division.
4) Kudos to Cody Fajardo for getting his revenge against his former team in fitting fashion.
Down five with less than a minute remaining, Fajardo led the Elks to a much-needed win.
He capped it off with a 15-yard touchdown pass to another former Alouette, Kaion Julien-Grant, with just 15 seconds remaining.
The moment was especially pivotal as it was redemption for Julien-Grant, who had dropped a would-be game-winning touchdown in Week 9 in a narrow loss to Hamilton.
The two embraced in a long hug after the game, a fitting symbol of redemption for both. At 2-6, the Elks are still in a deep hole, but this is a victory to build on.
5) Things just look so difficult for the Redblacks, which is probably why Dru Brown's body language isn't always suggesting he's having fun in the nation's capital.
CHRIS YOUNG / THE CANADIAN PRESS
Redblacks quarterback Dru Brown (left) brought Ottawa back from the dead on Saturday, leading the team to a 46-42 win despite being down 22-1 after the first quarter.
CHRIS YOUNG / THE CANADIAN PRESS
Redblacks quarterback Dru Brown (left) brought Ottawa back from the dead on Saturday, leading the team to a 46-42 win despite being down 22-1 after the first quarter.
The Redblacks earned a second straight victory, this time against an Argos team also struggling with a 2-6 record. But it took everything from their gunslinger, who threw for 373 passing yards and a career-high five touchdown passes, to get the win.
Ottawa trailed 22-1 after the first quarter, and things looked like they were only going to get worse until Brown took over.
His stellar effort resulted in 100-yard performances from Bralon Addison and Justin Hardy, a duo that combined for three of the five touchdowns, with Eugene Lewis scoring the other two.
At 3-6, Ottawa might have just kept its season alive, while the 2-7 Argos made it that much harder to defend their Grey Cup title.
6) The Winnipeg Blue Bombers were in a prime position to get back into the thick of the West Division race, but their momentum came crashing down with a heartbreaking one-point loss to the Calgary Stampeders.
The Stamps clinched the victory with a walk-off 40-yard field goal by Rene Paredes, only one drive after the Bombers had taken the lead with a 63-yard boot from Sergio Castillo.
It was a brutal defeat for the Bombers, who dropped to 4-4 and were swept in the three-game season series by the Stamps for the first time since 2016.
With the win, Calgary improved to 6-3 and now has some breathing room in second place behind the 7-1 Roughriders.
7) When a team holds a seven-point lead at half and then only scores four points in the final two quarters, they don't deserve to win.
Indeed, the Bombers offence is in a lot of trouble, and the issues run much deeper than quarterback Zach Collaros.
The team's aging offensive line is struggling to protect Collaros, preventing him from going through his reads, nor can it consistently bully opposing defensive lines with a vicious run attack.
Winnipeg is starting to look like the old Matt Nichols-led offence that was so heavily reliant on the play of running back Andrew Harris.
We're seeing that again with Brady Oliveira, who accounted for 168 yards from scrimmage against the Stamps, including a team-high 100 yards through the air.
Winnipeg's receiver group is thin without a healthy Dalton Schoen. Keric Wheatfall is clearly not a No. 1 receiver, and while Nic Demski has played well, the Bombers need more or better weapons if they want to contend for a Grey Cup.
The defence is playing well enough to win, they need help on offence.
8) Taylor Elgersma, a Canadian quarterback and Bombers second-round draft pick, got his first taste of NFL pre-season action with the Green Bay Packers, becoming the first Canadian university QB to play in an exhibition game since the early 1980s.
The 23-year-old entered the game with less than three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, completing three of four passes for 24 yards on his lone drive, which finished the game.
Elgersma signed with the Packers as an undrafted free agent in May, dazzling scouts with his six-foot-five, 227-pound frame and athleticism. It's a great story and really cool to see another Canadian making a name for himself down south.
MIKE ROEMER / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Winnipeg Blue Bombers second-round draft pick Taylor Elgersma (left) got his first taste of NFL action Saturday as the Green Bay Packers' late-game pre-season pivot. Elgersma is the first Canadian university quarterback to play in an exhibition game since the early 1980s.
MIKE ROEMER / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Winnipeg Blue Bombers second-round draft pick Taylor Elgersma (left) got his first taste of NFL action Saturday as the Green Bay Packers' late-game pre-season pivot. Elgersma is the first Canadian university quarterback to play in an exhibition game since the early 1980s.
[e-mail]
Jeff HamiltonMultimedia producer
Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University's journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff.
Every piece of reporting Jeff produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.