5 things to know about the Argos ahead of the 111th Grey Cup
Yesterday at 06:00 PM
The goal all season long for the Toronto Argonauts has been to be here, as one of the last two teams standing, battling for the 111th Grey Cup.
The Argos head into Sunday’s game against a familiar opponent, in the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, but do so with a significant wrinkle to the plan, as Chad Kelly was lost to a leg injury in the Eastern Final that spelled the end of his season. Nick Arbuckle will get the start in Kelly’s place, giving the six-year CFL vet a tremendous opportunity to bring the Argos organization its 18th Grey Cup.
They can go into this game bolstered by the fact that they took both of their regular season meetings against the Bombers, grinding out a pair of low-scoring, defensively-minded wins. The most significant part of that is that Arbuckle was on the field for that first win back in Week 8. He made 12-22 passes for 87 yards, taking over quarterbacking duties for then-starter Cameron Dukes, in a 16-14 win.
Here are five things to know about the Argos as they inch closer to game day.
111th GREY CUP
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QUARTERBACK CHANGE ABOUNDS
Kelly’s injury instantly shifted a big media spotlight over to Arbuckle, as he is thrust into the starting role for a Grey Cup game. It’s not the only QB move that the Argos made this week.
The team made an interesting addition in the wake of the Kelly injury, signing Bryan Scott on Monday. That could stem from backup QB Cameron Dukes‘ hip injury that he sustained in the team’s regular season finale in Edmonton. Scott brings an interesting journey of his own, having been on the Argos’ roster through last year and was with the team for its first nine games in 2024 before being released.
Where do you think Scott landed after he was released? In a perfectly poetic sequence, the Bombers signed Scott in mid-September after their backup QB, Chris Streveler, was injured and lost for the season. The Bombers let Scott go two weeks later, leaving him as a free agent up until the week of the biggest game of the year.
HERE TO STEP UP, SCORE TOUCHDOWNS WHERE NEEDED
The Argos’ defence stepped up its game through the regular season and is playing at a furious pace through the playoffs. The team had a pair of pick six touchdowns to get past the Ottawa REDBLACKS in the Eastern Semi-Final.
Last week in Montreal, the defence was a perfect combination of being intuitively on top of things and being in the right places at the right times, as they scored another pick six and punched their ticket to Vancouver with a five-turnover performance. You can also throw in Benjie Franklin‘s end zone interception of a Cody Fajardo two-point convert attempt as well; Franklin finished with two interceptions, including his second pick six in as many games and had four tackles.
“I think we’re just growing as a football club,” Dinwiddie said of what the defence has given them in the playoffs.
“We had to play our best football toward the end to get to where we need to be. I think our d-line has played outstanding. You look at the veteran presence from (DaShaun) Amos, Wynton (McManis) making everyone around them better.
“Just great men on that side of the ball, great work ethic. They’re working their butts off and I’m proud of their effort. I’m certain they’re going to play well on Sunday.”
THIRD PHASE ON POINT
It could be easy to just think about the Argos’ defence as a means of changing the game. When you do that, Janarion Grant has you right where he wants you.
The Argos’ returner used the Eastern Final to send yet another post-season reminder to opposing teams and fans across the country about just how dangerous he can be at this time of year. Really, the danger only subsides between December and April.
Grant took a 71-yard punt return back for a touchdown against the Als, marking his fifth return TD of his stellar season. The score inched the Argos back within three points of Montreal at that point, with under two minutes to play in the first half of a game that saw the Argos’ offence get out to a slow start.
“He gives us that (ability where) any moment we can have a big play,” Argos head coach Ryan Dinwiddie said. “We played a little bit on offence with him, a little bit more last week. We gave him some opportunities, obviously, we’ve got to do that again this week. Any time they kick the ball, we feel like we can score.”
Grant isn’t just about touchdowns, though. He’s about consistency. He led the league in punt return yards this season (989) and punt return average (14.8). He was second in kickoff return average (24.4 yards) and was second in the league in combined return yards, with 2,162.
“They have two other phases that are on fire right now,” Bombers’ head coach Mike O’Shea said this week, noting that his team can’t afford to fixate on the fact that the Argos are starting their backup quarterback on Sunday.
BIG PLAYS FROM DAMONTE COXIE
A knee injury kept Damonte Coxie out of the Eastern Semi-Final. The team’s second-leading receiver this season, Coxie made up for his lost time in last week’s Eastern Final. The 27-year-old, third-year Argo had a game-high 105 receiving yards on five catches and added a spectacular touchdown catch that gave the Argos their first lead of the day in the dying moments of the first half of the game.
Coxie’s return bolstered a receiving corps that was able to flex its depth in his absence. Rookie Jake Herslow filled in for Coxie in the Eastern Final and pulled in a touchdown against the REDBLACKS, while rookie Makai Polk has looked like an in-his-prime vet, finishing the season at the team’s leading receiver.
Coxie heads into this game facing a Bombers’ defence that allows a league-low 234.8 passing yards per game and one that holds opposing quarterbacks to a league-best 86.9 QB efficiency rating. His big play ability will be needed and will be put to the test on Sunday.
WHO GIVES THE CODY FAJARDO SPEECH THIS YEAR?
In the moments after the Montreal Alouettes lifted the 110th Grey Cup, word began to trickle out about a fiery speech that Cody Fajardo gave his team the day before they would top the favoured Bombers. The Alouettes posted it shortly after and his teammates were right; their quarterback didn’t hold back, delivering an all-time great pre-game speech that had the Als fully motivated by the time they took the field on game day.
Heading into Sunday’s game as the underdog, which Argo could provide those kinds of fireworks?
“I always give those guys a platform,” Dinwiddie said.
“I think Wynton is the leader of our football club. He’s very relatable with everybody on all three sides of the ball.”
Dinwiddie said as long as it’s a natural and authentic, the floor is open to a player in those moments.
“Don’t force it,” he said. “If you’re authentic and you’ve got a message (go ahead). We always try to have a message each day throughout this week to get our guys ready.
“I think we’re past the talking stage. I think our guys are dialled in. You see them in practice, they’re having fun, they’re care free, because they’re prepared and they’re very confident and we have to do it on Sunday.”
