In so many ways, Saturday afternoon at BMO Field was horrendous for the Toronto Argonauts. The 38-20 score in favour of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers was much more favourable for the Argonauts than it actually was. The Argos offence scored just four of the 20 points. Two of the touchdowns were scored on fumble recoveries by the Argos and James Franklin was iffy at best.
The crowd at BMO Field was extremely disappointing with just 10,844 showing up to watch Matt Nichols and the Blue Bombers tear up the Argonauts defence. The crowds won’t change overnight but the Argonauts are failing to capitalize on winning the 2017 Grey Cup and even though the team on paper looks very similar to the 2017 edition, there is something very wrong with the 2018 Argonauts.
Problems on Both Sides of the Ball
On offence, there is seemingly no spark right now. James Wilder Jr. has been unable to get going much like he was in 2017. That’s not entirely his fault as the offensive line has failed to open up holes for Wilder. However, it does look as if Wilder is always trying to get around the edge instead of inviting contact and trying to run defenders over like he did a season ago. Wilder is bigger than some linebackers in the CFL, yet he seems to not be using his size to his advantage.
The receiving corps has been less than impressive. Of course, it’s the quarterback’s job to get the receivers the ball but S.J. Green and Armanti Edwards have failed to get open consistently. There is no third threat offensively for Franklin to get the ball to and it’s leading to more double teams and stacked boxes in zone defence to ensure it’s tough for Green or Edwards to get open. The Argonauts offence needs a third man to step up and there isn’t anyone on the rise just yet.
Defensively, the Argonauts have looked lost quite often this season. The loss of Victor Butler may be the biggest of all as there’s no consistent pass rush from anyone other than Shawn Lemon. Injuries have forced Justin Tuggle into the linebacker position with Marcus Ball, who has been his normal steady self.
Injury Woes
There have just been so many key injuries on defence for the Argonauts to this point. Last game, the Argos were missing:
- Cassius Vaughn
- Matt Black
- Qudarius Ford
- Taylor Reed
- Johnny Sears Jr.
- Bear Woods
- Frank Beltre
- Akeem Jordan
There is a ton of talent injured right now which isn’t helping things but the veterans who are in there haven’t been as advertised. T.J. Heath and Ronnie Yell have been disappointing to date and Abdul Kanneh has yet to have much of an impact. At some point, new defensive coordinator Mike Archer needs to be questioned.
Finally, special teams looked dreadful on Saturday. Ronnie Pfeffer missed two field goals early on which came back to really hurt the Argonauts. Martese Jackson has yet to return a touchdown but hasn’t had much of a spark like he did on special teams a season ago.
Ramifications
Overall, there is a lot of things awry with the defending Grey Cup Champions but there is still a ton of talent that could flip the switch at any time. That time needs to be this Friday night at the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. When the Argonauts entered the home and home stretches with Edmonton and Winnipeg at 0-2, many fans likely would have expected to come out 2-4. That is still in play and needs to happen for Toronto.
A loss would send the Argonauts to 1-5, which would potentially leave them as far as six points behind the West crossover team, six points behind first-place Ottawa and four behind second-place Hamilton. A win would guarantee the Argonauts falling no further than one win behind the crossover Western team and potentially bring them two points behind first in the East.
Regardless of the scenarios, Friday night is a must-win for the Argonauts as they will follow this tough start with games vs. Ottawa, bye week, vs. B.C., at Montreal, at Hamilton, vs. Hamilton. A 2-4 record heading into that stretch could vault the Argonauts up the standings quickly. Heading in 1-5, the season is on life support and would be tough to imagine them coming back for a playoff spot.
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