Black clouds continue to haunt the Argos on the road

Photo Courtesy of Jon Blacker, The Canadian Press

 

By Eduardo Harari

 

Toronto. – Chris Chamblin never imagined that his return to Regina would be one, he would like to forget. After being beaten last week by the Tiger Cats, Toronto set off for Saskatchewan in hopes of recovering and claiming their first win of the season.

 

It seems that this bad streak is accompanied not only by deficiencies in the playing field, but also by acts of mother nature such as lightning, thunder and storm that delayed the start of the game by more than 2 hours.

 

When the game finally started, the same problems they had against Hamilton began to manifest and although the difference was not so exaggerated as the previous one, the Roughriders managed to take a comfortable 26–0 lead into the dressing room at the end of the first half.

 

Toronto's problems increased as QB James Franklin, running back Declan Cross and offensive lineman Randy Richards were injured in that first half. In the first 2 games of this season the disabled list is already at 15 players.

 

In the second half of the match the Argos managed to contain the Saskatchewan offense to just one touchdown, and they got a score of their own to end up losing the match 32–7.

 

Chamblin addressed the press after the game, mentioning "I believe the boys executed the strategy better in the second half. They are beginning to react and understand what is necessary to play a complete game."

 

On the other side of the field, the player of the game was QB Cody Fajardo who completed 24/31 passes for 2 touchdowns and 430 yards. Kyran Moore for a second week accumulated 100 yards + while William Powell rushed for 77 yards in 15 attempts.

 

In the off-season, Derek Walker was acquired to solve the game over the air and until now his capabilities have not been used to the fullest due to the inability of the QB’s to get out of the box and look for him as he again only received the ball on one occasion for 56 yards. In comparison, his teammates had the opportunity 20 times in shorter plays. James Wilder Jr. whose main role is to run the ball through the ground had four pass attempts in which he failed to accumulate any yardage. The Argos in their first two games have awarded 96 points and scored only 21.

 

The essential question that this Toronto team must ask themselves is why they are not being able to execute the strategies they practice week to week considering they even had an extra week of rest and practice before the start of their season.

 

Toronto will have a new opportunity this Saturday night when it faces the B.C Lions at BMO Field.