5 things to know about the Eastern Semi-Final
11/01/2024 05:10 PM
The Toronto Argonauts will host the Ottawa REDBLACKS on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. ET to officially kickoff the 2024 CFL playoffs.
The teams split their season series, with the REDBLACKS taking the win at TD Place in Week 14 and the Argos responding with a win at BMO Field in Week 20. The REDBLACKS controlled the vast majority of their win, opening up a 28-3 lead before coming away with a 41-27 win. Six weeks later, the Argos followed a similar path, scoring touchdowns on their first four offensive drives to build a 38-6 lead before taking a 38-31 win that allowed them to play host to Saturday’s game.
Now, with both teams talking about having 0-0 records, they meet for a third and final time with their seasons on the line.
Here are five things to know about Saturday’s game. If you’re not in Toronto, you can catch it on CTV, TSN or RDS in Canada. American and international viewers can watch on CFL+.
2024 CFL PLAYOFFS
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» Buy Semi-Finals Tickets: Ottawa at Toronto
A CHANCE TO EXORCISE SOME DEMONS
This is a game that Argos fans have waited almost a full calendar year for. Last year’s Argos went 16-2, matching the 1989 Edmonton team for the league’s best-ever regular season record. Hosting the Eastern Final, they met the same fate as that Edmonton team, as they fell to an underdog opponent. The Argos committed nine turnovers against the Montreal Alouettes, including four interceptions from quarterback Chad Kelly, while giving up a pair of pick sixes and a 105-yard touchdown from James Letcher Jr.
After Kelly missed the Argos’ first nine games of the season serving a suspension, the team found its rhythm in the final third of the season, winning four of the last five games that Kelly started in (he sat out in the Week 21 finale, with the Argos’ playoff positioning secured).
The Argos weren’t interested much in discussing last year, or what this year’s opportunity presents in light of how their 2023 season ended.
“We haven’t talked about it,” Argos head coach Ryan Dinwiddie said. “New team, right? New year. We’re battle-tested with 18 games this year. Obviously, that’s a focus, taking care of football, ending every drive with a kick. Cover units as well, right? Counting on the return game and we’ve got to stop theirs. They’ve got two great returners.
“I’ve been part of so many games where you give up a punt return, you give up a kickoff return and it doesn’t really end well for you. So that’s been a focus for us this week.”
Kelly said he wasn’t focused on what happened in the past. Argos’ linebacker Wynton McManis said the team has taken the lessons from that game and moved on from them, with new teammates in a new season.
What were those lessons?
“Just the way we finished, the way we’ve got to come out, the way we’ve got to compete,” he said. “What it takes to win the game.”
If there are, or were demons to exorcise, the Argos may have taken care of them in Week 17 when they topped the Als at BMO Field. Dinwiddie said he liked what he’s seen from Kelly this week.
“I expect him to have a big game,” Dinwiddie said. “He doesn’t have to be a superhero, he’s just got to manage the football game. Put us in good spots to be successful.”
BRALON ADDISON, RUNNING BACK
The REDBLACKS have an interesting wrinkle in their depth chart, with veteran receiver Bralon Addison starting at running back. The 31-year-old has primarily been a pass catcher, but has dabbled in returns and taken handoffs in each of his six CFL seasons. REDBLACKS’ head coach Bob Dyce started him at running back last week against the Tiger-Cats in their regular season finale and Addison had eight carries for 38 yards, with six catches for 44 yards and a touchdown.
Dru Brown finds Bralon Addison for six!#CFLGameday on TSN & RDS2
: Stream on CFL+ pic.twitter.com/p1wOJezf5t— CFL (@CFL) October 25, 2024
“Bralon is probably one of the smartest offensive football players I’ve ever been around,” Dyce said.
“He thinks like a quarterback. He has been a quarterback, so from the running back position with regards to protection he’s always on point. He communicates extremely well with the offensive line. Has a great understanding of the run game blocking and then obviously, he’s so dynamic, has such a dynamic skill set as a receiver and a runner.
“I think we saw last time we’re out here (in Week 20). He’s a very tenacious individual, tough to bring down and just does an outstanding job being a balanced football player.”
REDBLACKS’ QB Dru Brown said Addison’s experience playing a number of positions gives him a unique perspective on the game.
“He’s very versatile. He can catch the ball, he can run routes, he can protect, he can run the ball effectively. He’s kind of a do-it-all type of guy. I think he unlocks a lot of things that we can do.”
ARGOS WILL BE WITHOUT DAMONTE COXIE
The Argos updated their depth chart late Friday afternoon to change receiver Damonte Coxie‘s status from game time decision to out. The team’s second-leading receiver, Coxie has been battling a knee injury through the week, unable to practice.
While he was listed as a game time decision, Dinwiddie said that he didn’t want to put Coxie out on the field and risk further injury. The team moved Coxie to the one-game injured list and added defensive lineman Jordan Williams to the active roster. Jake Herslow, who had two catches for 55 yards and a touchdown last week in his season debut against the Edmonton Elks, will start in Coxie’s place.
REDBLACKS HAVE PLENTY OF X-FACTORS
Playoff games are often determined by something out of the ordinary happening, with points coming from somewhere other than an offensive touchdown. Despite being 6.5-point underdogs, the REDBLACKS can go into Saturday’s game confident in all three phases of play.
Veteran kicker Lewis Ward has hit three walk-off field goals this year to help give the team its first winning record since the 2018 season.
“I always say to the guys, the longer the time is that we spend together, the more money you've got in the bank," Dyce told Postmedia this week, speaking about Ward. "A rookie may come in and he's got (a junior bank account). He doesn't have too much in there. But a guy like Lew, he's got plenty of RSPs with me."
In the return game, Devonte Dedmon and rookie Kalil Pimpleton have game-changing ability. Pimpleton was especially impressive in the late stages of the REDBLACKS’ comeback bid in Week 20 at BMO Field, looking like a video game glitch at times as he slipped past defenders to shorten the field.
Damon Webb‘s big game against the Argos in Week 14 — he had a pair of pick-sixes — draws a lot of attention, but don’t forget about Brandin Dandridge, either. The cornerback only got into action in Week 11 due to a knee injury and has a pair of interceptions on his resume this season. Dandridge had five interceptions in 2023 and scored a pair of defensive touchdowns.
DRU BROWN’S PLAYOFF DEBUT
We looked at this earlier in the week, but playoff debuts can be a tricky thing for a quarterback. Brown has had a perfect role model to emulate for the past three years in Winnipeg, as he watched Zach Collaros rack up Grey Cup wins and Most Outstanding Player awards in the process.
Watching Brown speak on Friday, dressed in very appropriate red and black flannel with a black tuque on, that Blue Bombers’ vibe still emanates from him. As he downplayed the pressure that comes with the playoffs and compartmentalized the next game in front of him as just that, you could have easily closed your eyes and heard Collaros or Bombers’ head coach Mike O’Shea saying the same things. That stoic presence is what has Dyce unconcerned about the brightness of lights or the increasing size of a stage.
“Dru’s greatest strength is he’s extremely consistent, and he’s been the exact same way, attacking the task at hand,” Dyce said.
“I joke with him, I tell him I see him in the coach’s office as much as I see the rest of the coaches. He’s prepared well, done a great job executing what Tommy (Condell, the REDBLACKS’ offensive coordinator) has asked. The other thing I really like about Dru is the fact that he maintains a very even keel at all times. He doesn’t get too up, doesn’t get too down, just attacks the challenge in front of him.”
Lining up against him in practice through this season, Webb has gotten a good sense of what the team’s starting QB is all about.
“I expect him to do great things. He’s had a great week of practice, the way he prepared himself. From the outside looking in, just watching him, he’s very prepared. I think he’s ready to go out there and prove why he’s the up-and-coming future quarterback in the CFL, make a big name for himself. These are type of games that put your name up there with the greats. I think he’s ready for that.”
