Latest news with #DominiqueRhymes
CTV News
3 days ago
- Sport
- CTV News
Calgary Stampeders hitch quarterback wagon to 'Big-play VA' Vernon Adams Jr.
Calgary Stampeders quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., right, hands the ball off to Jeshrun Antwi during first half CFL preseason football action against the Edmonton Elks in Calgary, Saturday, May 24, 2025. The Stampeders look to Adams to help turn the team around in 2025 after missing the playoffs last season. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh The road back to the CFL playoffs goes through Vernon Adams Jr. in Calgary. The Stampeders acquired the quarterback from the B.C. Lions a month after their worst season in two decades concluded in 2024. Calgary finished last in the CFL with a 5-12-1 record. The Lions choosing Nathan Rourke their No. 1 pivot, and Calgary looking for an upgrade after two and a half seasons of Jake Maier brought the 32-year-old Adams to a team looking for a turnaround in 2025 after missing the post-season for the first time in 19 years. 'He's Vernon Adams, he's Big-Play VA, so he's going to bring Calgary back to where it used to be,' predicted receiver Dominique Rhymes. 'He's used to being a winner, so he is going to be bringing that winning culture, and I think it's going happen immediately.' Adams denies B.C.'s preference for Rourke injects extra motivation into him as a Stampeder. 'No, not at all. I'm blessed, I'm grateful,' the Californian declared. 'I'm happy a team wants me and I'm here. It's the start of a new journey and it's great.' The five-foot-11, 195-pound pivot led the CFL in passing yards in 2023 (4,769) and ranked second in touchdowns (31). He was in the conversation for Most Outstanding Player in 2024 with B.C. before he was sidelined with injury in August. CFL quarterbacks often get disproportionate credit for wins and blame for losses in a team game, but there's no denying the position's importance in a three-down league. 'One twelfth, but quarterback play is vital,' said Stampeders coach and general manager Dave Dickenson, a former CFL quarterback himself. 'I don't need fancy plays. Make plays, sure, but do what is required to win. He's done that in his career. He is definitely a guy that is a winner and finds ways to win ball games even sometimes when he maybe he's not having his best stuff. 'I really believe halfway through the year, he was odds-on favourite to win the MOP last year and injuries kind of derailed it. Careers are weird that way. They definitely take you from one city to the other. I think he's happy to be here and we just got to provide him the support so he can be Vernon.' New Stampeder quarterbacks coach Dakota Prukop has had a close view of Adams' career since Prukop played for Montana State and Adams for Eastern Washington in the Big Sky Conference. Both men eventually transferred to Oregon, with Prukop a Duck a year after Adams. The two men continued to circle each other in the CFL before crossing paths at Lions training camp last year. 'Vernon's a veteran in the CFL, but this is his first year in this playbook,' Prukop said. 'His ability to pick up this playbook in the way he has and have the details in this play book has been something really impressive. That has not surprised me. I saw his professional habits when we were together in B.C. 'I don't want to say he's a gamer in the sense that he does not do well outside of a game, but he has an extra gear on game day. When you couple that with his professionalism and being a true pro, and then he has that extra gear in game day, if the pressure is on, if the score is tight, he's the guy you want in your huddle.' Since throwing his first CFL pass for the Montreal Alouettes in 2016, Adams has amassed 16,190 career passing yards with a 64-per-cent completion rate. He's thrown 86 touchdown passes, as well as 54 interceptions, while rushing for 24 touchdowns. 'My thing was I threw too many interceptions,' Adams said. 'Just want to make sure I'm protecting the ball and getting my playmakers the ball. Let them do the rest.' -- Donna Spencer This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 7, 2025.
National Post
7 days ago
- Business
- National Post
Guide to the 2025 Calgary Stampeders: 'It definitely has changed here'
Article content 'We want our fans also to feel like it's maybe a different look and a different feel and a different vibe,' Dickenson said. 'And we thought Vernon would help us there. Article content 'Flash is good. It's about winning, though.' Article content The team also went out and got a few new shiny weapons for Adams, including receivers Dominique Rhymes and Tevin Jones — both CFL stars in their career — and young Damien Alford — picked first overall in the 2025 CFL Draft. Article content 'I'm very excited,' Adams said. 'I like us. I like what we did in free agency. We got some size and some speed. And we've got some depth. I'm excited about this year, about everybody we picked up. Article content Article content It became quite the project on the other side of the ball for the Stamps. Article content So much so that the defence is foreign to fans, with just a handful of returning players on the 2025 roster. Article content The changes are everywhere, with linemen Mike Rose and James Vaughters, linebackers Cam Judge and Micah Awe and defensive backs Demerio Houston, Branden Dozier, Tre Roberson and Kobe Williams all no longer with the Red and White — and those are just the high-profile names. Article content However, top pass-rusher Folarin Orimolade returns to the Stamps, with whom he was with from 2018-22, bringing plenty of promise of increased pressure up front. 'Flo' is the prized return from the trade sending effective linebacker Judge to the Toronto Argonauts. Article content To boot, it's now longtime NFL coach Bob Slowik running the show as defensive coordinator, replacing Brent Monson, who took the brunt of the coaching blame — along with longtime special-teams boss Mark Kilam — for the Stampeders failures the last few seasons. Both Monson and the popular Kilam were fired by the franchise immediately after last season closed without a playoff game for the club for the first time in 20 years. Article content The Stamps are hoping 71-year-old Slowik brings what the defence needs to make a turnaround. Article content 'I can't say that it always works, but I do think sometimes a fresh voice or fresh voices — in this case with the staff that we have — maybe will make a difference,' Slowik said. 'You also need some new blood as far as the roster goes. That can't remain the same, either. So we'll see how things go. Article content Article content 'I know we're going to start from the ground up. That's what I can tell you. We're starting with fundamentals and staying with fundamentals and not trying to get too far ahead of the game.' Article content Article content Perhaps the biggest surprise was the axe of receiver Cam Echols, who proved dynamic in limited action for the Stampeders in his rookie season of 2024. Article content Fellow speedy pass-catcher Ishmael Hyman was also cut ahead of the deadline. Article content 'We wanted to get different types of (receivers), meaning we want some size, some speed, some quickness and some backups,' Dickenson said. 'The guys that we brought in did a good job — showed that they were starters. Article content 'We drafted Damien Alford number one. He's ready to go now. So we got a little bit more depth than we've had. And sometimes, if you know guys and if injuries happen and you want to bring vets back, I think you can do that. And with the young guys. I think it's sometimes important to take a little bit longer look and try to develop those guys.'
CTV News
28-05-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Vernon Adams Jr. and Dominique Rhymes reunite as Calgary Stampeders
Calgary Stampeders quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. throws a pass against the Edmonton Elks in Calgary on May 24, 2025. Adams and Dominique Rhymes (15) have reunited as Calgary Stampeders after a season and a half as B.C. Lions teammates. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. and receiver Dominique Rhymes want their shared history to be an advantage, for each other and their new team, as both men settle into becoming Calgary Stampeders. The Stampeders acquired Adams in a trade with the B.C. Lions in November. Calgary and Adams, 32, quickly agreed to a restructured contract for this season and 2026. Rhymes compiled more than 1,000 receiving yards for the Ottawa Redblacks last year, but he and Adams were Lions teammates for a season and a half after B.C. acquired the quarterback from the Montreal Alouettes on Aug. 31, 2022. 'When I got traded to B.C., he was probably the only person on that team who made me feel like I was part of the team,' Adams said Tuesday at Stampeders' training camp. 'I get traded there, I get thrown into the starting spot right away. I don't know the offence, I'm struggling a little bit. The position at quarterback is different. Everyone, they love you when you're winning and then, everyone blames you when you're losing. 'He was the only one after a bad game, after anything, he would always be there by my side. I'll never forget that from him. For that, I owe him everything.' The Lions swung the deal with the Als because starting quarterback Nathan Rourke was injured. Rourke's return to B.C. last season after his NFL stint essentially put Adams on the market, and Calgary was a motivated buyer. Adams threw the ball to Rhymes more than 100 times and for more than 1,000 yards over the combined 2022 and 2023 seasons after the quarterback's arrival in Vancouver. Rhymes sat out eight regular-season games in 2023 because of knee and foot injuries. 'We've been good brothers ever since then and, yeah, playing together in '23 really helps when we came here to Calgary,' Rhymes said. The 31-year-old receiver says Adams joining the Stamps was a compelling reason for him to sign with Calgary in February. 'I've had success with him in the past and history repeats itself,' Rhymes said. 'We challenge each other. If I'm not doing it right or catching the ball right, he'll let me know. If he's not throwing the ball, I'm going to let him know. 'We want to be great for our team. We have that relationship where we're not afraid to critique each other, because we know we want the best out of each other.' Adams asked Calgary's head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson in the off-season if the team could find a big receiver, and the Stampeders managed to reunite him with the six-foot-four, 215-pound Rhymes. 'We did want to surround Vernon with at least one guy he's familiar with, with size,' Dickenson said. 'There were some options out there and I didn't know if Dom was going to be available, but he was and happy to have him.' Adams and Rhymes put in advance work before training camp getting to know their other receivers by congregating in Houston with Reggie Begelton, Jalen Philpot, Daylen Baldwin and Tevin Jones. 'We're there for the week and speed training, receiver training, quarterback training,' Adams said. 'Just getting that timing down.' While Dickenson has several decisions to make before Saturday's roster cut-down day, there's less mystery at receiver because Philpot, Begelton and Rhymes are established veterans. Calgary opens the regular season June 7 at home against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and former Stampeder quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell. The Stampeders completed their pre-season early with Saturday's 31-4 win over the Edmonton Elks, so Dickenson says players still need to prove themselves in camp. 'We're using this still as heavy evaluation. I don't know if you noticed, but it was a very physical practice,' the coach and GM said. 'We put our pads on, we went after each other, and it was high-tempo. That's when you usually separate things.' Donna Spencer, The Canadian Press
