Whatever you think about the CFL East through the first third of the season, it’s undeniable that the Western tidal wave has blown the East right out of the water so far. The East as a whole has a combined record of 5 and 16, with only two wins over Western conference opponents in 15 attempts. Yikes.
Good thing Argonauts head coach Scott Milanovich was there to provide some perspective on the situation. “I won’t press the panic button just because we lose a few games. I don’t change what it is we do.” Quite the typical coach’s cliché we hear often in sports, but the bottom line is, he is right. We are only on the initial drop of the long and windy roller coaster ride that is a CFL season. Early trends don’t necessarily last as teams march on towards playoff runs.
Look at the 2012 Toronto Argonauts as an example. Heading into week 18, the Argos were 7-9 and coming off three straight embarrassing losses at home. That week the Argos found their groove and beat the Roughriders on the road, 31 to 26, then followed that up with a 43 to 40 win over Hamilton in the regular season finale. They rolled that momentum right through the playoffs and capped it off by beating Calgary at home in the 100th Grey Cup. Every season, every team has hot streaks and cold streaks. The key is heating up each week when the weather is getting colder each week.
Knowing all of this, Toronto is the favourite to come out on top in the East. Stability within the organization is the key reason. For three years now the Argos have maintained the triangle between Head Coach, General Manager and Quarterback.
General Manager Jim Barker has been building a program since he arrived in Toronto, often referencing the past success of the Montreal Allouettes as the blueprint. While Ricky Ray is the leader of the blueprint, Barker has managed to sign key offensive stars Andre Durie and Chad Owens to contract extensions. He has also stabilized the offensive line with the signings of Offensive Tackle Chris Van Zeyl and Centre Jeff Keeping.
Injuries have spread their way across the CFL this season like we’ve never seen before. Calgary is without their all star running back Jon Cornish and speedy wideout Maurice Price. B.C. has been without Q.B. Travis Lulay for the entire season so far, but it could be argued the Argos have been hit the hardest. The top four receiving weapons for Ricky Ray have all missed games with injuries, including Andre Durie, Chad Owens, Jason Barnes, and John Chiles. Delete the top four receivers for any CFL team and they’re sure to struggle offensively.
The scary part about this for the rest of the East is that despite all the injuries, the Argos are leading the league in passing yards, averaging just over 306 per game. Although the passing yards and organizational stability don’t guarantee success, they do give the Argos a comfort level with one another. In a season with such a rocky start, the Argos’ experience will help them not to lose focus of what is really important: getting their ship tuned up for smooth sailing come November.
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