Time to dream.
While I would love to keep Collaros, there are only two chances of that happening: slim and none, and I wouldn't bet on the first choice as he will be drafted by Ottawa, signed as a free agent or traded so we get something for him because he has already indicated he wants to be #1 qb now. Future Hall-of-Famer Ray is simply too great to give up in order to keep a very promising young qb (many of whom in the past did not have the glorious careers that were projected for them). Harris has shown some promise in his brief appearances.
At running back, there are major questions, not about the talent of Kackert but his ability to avoid injuries. Norwood showed he is a very capable RB but there are also questions about his health, which is not surprising as he is a 30 year old RB (and will be 31 in July 2014) who already had plenty of wear and tear on him from his NFL days when he became an Argo. In the Eastern Final he was injured once again in the second quarter and never carried the ball again although he still blocked. The fact that they did not replace him with Steele suggests they do not have a lot of faith in him. Furthermore, at 37 next year, Jeff Johnson would be a RB Methuselah, and Woodson has not shown much as a college or pro player since his second college in 2007 when he gained 1,183 yards and then was seriously injured early the next year. The Argos need to do some serious recruiting for both import and non-import RBs. They need a capable Canadian backup who is at least serviceable if the import(s) go down in a game, even if this means making a trade or signing a free agent. We definitely missed having a decent Canadian backup yesterday.
As a group we have a lot of talent and depth. However, the Argos need to stop using Owens on ST, not simply because, after so much wear and tear, he is not anywhere near the super special teams player of his first three years with the Argos, but keeping him on ST is almost certainly going to shorten his career as one of the league's most outstanding receivers due to the ever growing number of injuries. Therefore the Argos need to do some recruiting of returners for training camp.
The offensive line does a reasonable job on pass defence but is spotty on run blocking, but this could be a function of Milanovich's pass-heavy offence. When BC put more focus on run blocking late in the season, it produced big results, especially when combined with an alternating RB Harris-Logan system. The Argos failure to run in the second half of the EF, IMO, contributed to Hamilton being able pin back their ears and focus on getting to Ray. We need a better pass-run balance.
Kickingwise, Waters is the best punter in the league and has shown great consistency in FG kicking once he got in the groove. A respectable Canadian backup for the future and for insurance would be an asset on the PR.
Our linebackers probably are our most talented defensive players.
Gabriel is one of the fastest improving players in the league and Watkins, when not injured or missing, provides all-star coverage. However, the Argos should bring in lots of defensive backs to challenge the other incumbents. Robinson has a nose for the ball but is not very good in coverage as was seen yesterday against Fantuz. If the Argos are going to sign any quality free agents, this should be one of their top priorities.
Mitchell provides an anchor to the defensive line, Maybin may develop into a good DE but is still pretty green. In general, however, there were too many times this year when other teams could easily run through the DL. In other words, serious recruiting is needed here as well.
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