July 18, 2014: Toronto Argonauts vs. Ottawa RedBlacks

[Gill The Thrill]

Wow...nevermind off the field, things are getting desperate on the field when we're praying for Maurice Mann to shore up our receiving. We need true receivers, not transplanted QB's from the NCAA to play receiver after surprising some defenders in his first season...I mean Chiles looked very much like a guy who was just playing receiver because nobody was left. He screwed up that corner route on the second last drive that would have put the Argos ahead by 5. It would have forced the Redblacks to score a Major, not a FG to win the game.

And for godsakes, Milanovich...run the friggin ball. The Argos are right now the worst team in the league and also one of the least entertaining to watch....

The Argos better look at the long term and find another QB to take over eventually, could be as soon as next season. I have a feeling where watching a one dimensional Ricky Ray starting to dwindle in performance. First it starts with still throwing for yardage but not for TDs...then it becomes less pass completions inside the 20. These are the symptoms we are seeing with Ricky Ray even when everyone was in the lineup.

Losing to Henry in Hamilton is one thing...losing to Henry Burris as a QB of an expansion team is another bad sign. This is why Milanovich and Ray better be smart and decide to mix in the run a bit more...if they do not, this team is toast, and will not even make the playoffs let alone contend.

[ArgoRavi]

Why is everyone talking about punting into the endzone at the end of the game? The Argos were at their own 51 yard line which means that Waters would have needed a 59 yard punt just to get it to the Ottawa goalline. That was simply not an option.

I just got back from the game and it was an excellent experience attending the home opener for the RedBlacks in what is an absolutely beautiful stadium IMO. The feel of TD Place Stadium is entirely different from what it was at old Frank Clair Stadium, especially sitting on the south side of the stadium.

However, it was a frustrating game, as an Argo fan, to watch. The big thing that was missing on offence tonight was chemistry between Ray and his receivers. He probably has not worked with any of these new receivers before as he did not play with them during the preseason and he just doesn't have the same chemistry with them as he has with the likes of Barnes, Durie and Owens. That sort of thing just doesn't happen overnight either so we will all have to be a little patient. I thought that the offence was better as the night progressed but unfortunately not good enough. John Chiles has gotten off to a sluggish start to the season and really should have caught that late ball from Ray as those are the kinds of catches that he has made before. I thought that Steve Slaton - or "Steve Sultan" as the Ottawa PA announcer repeatedly called him tonight - looked good in his debut. I am partial to him staying in the lineup at this point over Jeremiah Johnson.

Defensively, we didn't give up a TD but they still needed to be a bit better, especially in the fourth quarter when Ottawa finally put together some decent drives. The defence certainly got more pressure on the QB though which was a good sign.

I know that many on here will panic with the 1-3 start but nobody in the east will have more than two wins after this weekend so first place is very much up for grabs. I am still quite confident that the Argos will get it together but we will all have to have a bit of patience with all of the injuries in the receiving corps.

[jerrym]

Although Ray gained 298 yards passing and had a couple of runs for first downs, he was far from his best with a 56.7% completion rate (only second time he has been below 60% since joining the Argos) in an easy to complete short pass offence and two interceptions. However, the offence is now so predictable that it is not so much his fault as the Milanovich for the sameness of the offence from game to game.
They need to get the RBs, whether Slaton, who showed some promise running and receiving, Steele or Johnson to keep teams from pinning back their ears on every play to go after Ray.

[Nob]

I hate losing to Burris. I can't stand him. Don't ask me why.

Bad drops by Chiles. Bad non-call on Ray getting hit to the head. But they happened.

Disappointed that the pass rush, which was dominant in the first three quarters, disappeared in the 4th.

Also very disappointed in Robinson. I counted three plays where he came up very soft. He got to the ball but didn't want to make the tackle. Very weak efforts. I would expect that he should be putting forth a stronger effort knowing that Molden played very well, and should be on the field instead of Robinson.

Coombs HAS to get out of bounds in the last minute of play. Lots of blame on that - Coombs (obviously, and don't give me the "he's a rookie" line, it doesn't matter if you are a peewee or a pro - you have to know the game situation), AND blame the coaches - you have to remind your players of the situation before they go out on the field. You have to remind them to get out of bounds when you can.

A very disappointing loss. Couldn't care less that it was Ottawa's opening night.

[jerrym]

Horton delivered on defence with 8 tackles on defence and ST and ongoing pressure on Burris.
Okalaugo was also big on defence with 5 tackles and 3 sacks.
I thought Carter was playing well until he played the fleet-footed Kierrie Johnson on the line with just over a minute to go, making it easier for him to beat Carter on the long pass.
IMO Coombs is ahead of where Owens was as a receiver (but obviously not in the same ballpark as a returner) when Owens arrived at the Argos in his first season and dropped so many passes.
However, now that Owens is one of the top receivers in the league and has taken so much punishment as a returner, I think he is more valuable as a receiver. Therefore, the Argos need to give serious consideration to making him only a receiver, if they want to extend his career and have him available as a receiver on an regular basis rather than injured as he is now.
Adams is getting better from game to game as is reflected in his 4 catches for 83 yards and the Argos only TD, although he dropped a couple.
On the other hand, Chiles was far from the best that he showed last year, to state the obvious.

Why is everyone talking about punting into the endzone at the end of the game? The Argos were at their own 51 yard line which means that Waters would have needed a 59 yard punt just to get it to the Ottawa goalline. That was simply not an option.

I agree. Even if Waters had got off one of his best booming punts 10 yards into the end zone (a 69 yarder and highly unlikely) the odds on such a long punt are overwhelming that it would have been returned out of the end zone.

[Argo]

However, now that Owens is one of the top receivers in the league and has taken so much punishment as a returner, I think he is more valuable as a receiver. Therefore, the Argos need to give serious consideration to making him only a receiver, if they want to extend his career and have him available as a receiver on an regular basis rather than injured as he is now.

Everybody except the Argos' coaching staff seems to appreciate the logic of your contention... and this issue has been around for quite awhile by now.

[ArgoRavi]

Everybody except the Argos' coaching staff seems to appreciate the logic of your contention... and this issue has been around for quite awhile by now.

In all fairness to the Argos' coaching staff, they did remove Owens from the kickoff return team this year but still had him returning punts. Of course, he was injured returning a punt last week.

[Argocister]

Analysis from the peanut gallery ......
Loved the visit to TD Place .... Looking forward to our move wherever it is....
It was fun to get the rouge et noir fans going especially on their offence

Milanovich is missing Jones , McAdoo,and OShea..... Didn't we get the kicker running on us in the Bomber game too? To me that doesn't look good on Daley. Thank goodness it is the beginning of the season and time for Milanovich to practice hard and have the coaches get this team together. We have the talent... Just need that extra work, details , focus and effort.

We are missing the YAC and the clutch catch that Barnes was famous for .....sigh..... So close but no score.
Isn't Watt a good receiver for these corner throws?

I do like Slaton .... I think the TD place announcer just has dyslexia ....Salton was called all nite.

Was our Defense that much better tonight, or was the rouge et noir Oline not together? I hope it's the former. For the most part they seemed much better than last week.

As I mentioned , thank goodness it is the beginning of the season .... But I agree time to get it going and possibly changes.

Work hard boys.... You can do it!

Hope others can visit the TD Place .... It was fun .... Maybe we can work on our fans......

[Mulder]

nevermind the freakin drops... GO FOR THE SINGLE POINT AND TIE THE GAME!!!!!

IMO that's what the last play looked like they were setting up for. Hook and ladder play, the second receiver was close and if that ball wasn't picked off they would have pulled it off

[ArgoRedneck]

I agree. Even if Waters had got off one of his best booming punts 10 yards into the end zone (a 69 yarder and highly unlikely) the odds on such a long punt are overwhelming that it would have been returned out of the end zone.

I don`t. Place kick for a extra point. A tricky long field goal type kick that is a bouncing rubber ball aimed towards the side of the end zone. Water`s had the tee out for that play and was pissed when not used. TV showed him throw the tee in front of coach M. I know it`s low % but better then a 15 yrd pass with 5 sec left.

[AngeloV]

wow... WTF Chiles!

also... WTF MILANOVICH! why not go for the single, tie it up and go to OT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Major Duck Up! You could tell Waters wanted to go for the single as well, he was holding his arms out like... WTF MILANOVICH

Are you kidding me? They were 60 yards away from the goal line. How were they to go for a single point? You're looking needing a 65 yard punt and no return to get that single point. Having said that, as Mulder pointed out, they may have tried the hook and ladder on the last play with the ladder part resulting in a punt into the end zone to get that single.


My overall take on the game:

John Chiles really disappointed me. The last drop was huge, and he appeared to give up or lose the ball on a couple of corner routes which I thought were well thrown.
Nice first game for Steve Slaton.
I thought Jalil Carter looked very good on the corner. Yes, he was beaten late on the deep ball, but he had good coverage on the play. Perfect throw and nice over the shoulder catch. That's just good football.
Nice game for Tristan Okpalaugo. I thought he played great against Saskatchewan, and again last night. I honestly don't remember if he played last week, because I saw Aston Whiteside in his place most of the game. I think we have a keeper in Okpalaugo.
Waters is having a great start to the season.
Ovearall, this loss was tough to take, but considering all the injured bodies, and knowing how pumped Ottawa must have been in front of a full house for their first ever home game, not surprised with the result.
Hoping the Argos can somehow go 3-2 over the next 5. I think 4-5 in the first half puts them in pretty good shape to finish strong with a (hopefully) healthy line-up and heavy home schedule to finish the season.

[Argo-Les]

LOTS more steve SLATON please
Ricky and slaton seemed too be the only ones who cared!
been a big Chiles supporter but as stated here >>>>big disappointment
D looked real good may have been the opposition tho!
and at least Ham lost as well!
no panic yet>>>>>>>>>>>>>sum butts need too be kicked tho!

[1argoholic]

Something better be done soon or Toronto will be Argo-Les.

Milanovich doesn't seem to be able to stray from his original game plan as we've seen in the past. Slaton was doing well but obviously not part of the original plan so he stopped using him.

I don't know, the whole year is starting out in a very frustating way for me. I still can't get all of those empty seats at last game out of my mind. Wait until the Tuesday game against the Pig. Should be a solid 8 thou there.

[Argo]

Something better be done soon or Toronto will be Argo-Les.

Milanovich doesn't seem to be able to stray from his original game plan as we've seen in the past. Slaton was doing well but obviously not part of the original plan so he stopped using him.

I don't know, the whole year is starting out in a very frustating way for me. I still can't get all of those empty seats at last game out of my mind. Wait until the Tuesday game against the Pig. Should be a solid 8 thou there.

The argument can be made that both of Milanovich's former subordinates are currently more effective head coaches than their old boss. We'll see how the rest of the season goes and whether or not Milanovich can adapt both his team and himself as may be required.

[Wobbler]

It's great to see the secondary start to come together. As many have noted, Carter looks like has found a home at boundary corner and I also really liked Dwight Anderson at boundary HB. Yes, he took a roughing penalty, but I kinda liked that penalty. It was an act of aggressiveness, not sloppiness or inattention, and that's a trait I like to see. I also think Anderson might be the best tackler on the team; I hope he gives Shea Emry some lessons.

[Argocister]

It's great to see the secondary start to come together. As many have noted, Carter looks like has found a home at boundary corner and I also really liked Dwight Anderson at boundary HB. Yes, he took a roughing penalty, but I kinda liked that penalty. It was an act of aggressiveness, not sloppiness or inattention, and that's a trait I like to see. I also think Anderson might be the best tackler on the team; I hope he gives Shea Emry some lessons.

There were a few that need lessons on tackling from Anderson. There were a couple of times the D looked like they were out in park playing touch football but the rouge et noir just kept running.

[argotom]

With RR I was glad he went vertical and thankfully more often.
Now if we can only get the the receivers to squeeze the ball, John Chiles being one.
I was getting tired of the hitch and swing passes.

[doubleblue]

My overall take on the game:

John Chiles really disappointed me. The last drop was huge, and he appeared to give up or lose the ball on a couple of corner routes which I thought were well thrown.
Nice first game for Steve Slaton.
I thought Jalil Carter looked very good on the corner. Yes, he was beaten late on the deep ball, but he had good coverage on the play. Perfect throw and nice over the shoulder catch. That's just good football.
Nice game for Tristan Okpalaugo. I thought he played great against Saskatchewan, and again last night. I honestly don't remember if he played last week, because I saw Aston Whiteside in his place most of the game. I think we have a keeper in Okpalaugo.
Waters is having a great start to the season.
Ovearall, this loss was tough to take, but considering all the injured bodies, and knowing how pumped Ottawa must have been in front of a full house for their first ever home game, not surprised with the result.
Hoping the Argos can somehow go 3-2 over the next 5. I think 4-5 in the first half puts them in pretty good shape to finish strong with a (hopefully) healthy line-up and heavy home schedule to finish the season.

That's pretty well sums the game up for the Argos. Missing Owens and Durie was huge I don't care what Milanovich saying the next guys have to step up. They're just not as good.
Don't know what's going on with the O-Line, but Ricky is not getting the same protection as last year. Same players different Coach, plus King and Van Zeyl have switched positions.
Great night, great stadium and long line ups. Been quite awhile since I have had a ride in a School Bus. Fairy tale ending for the REDBLACKS and their fans. Don't know how this School Bus shuttle is going to be accepted in the long haul, but it worked last night. 61 School Buses driving through what appeared or felt like obstacle courses plus pedestrians and bike riders. I have never seen so many bikes at a Football Game. The Glebers must have been nashing their teeth. lol

[ArgoZ]

This is the Dwight Anderson we've come to love and hate over the years. When you consider he was brought in for his experience, I don't think the coaches want the younger players to see those type of plays from a seasoned vet like him.

I wonder if he'll make it to Labour Day on the Argos roster?

It was a clean shoulder hit, problem was the receiver never touched the ball. If he does, it's a great hit. If the rest of the team learned to tackle like Anderson, they would get some more penalties for sure, but that would be one defense feared throughout the league.

[AngeloV]

It was a clean shoulder hit, problem was the receiver never touched the ball. If he does, it's a great hit. If the rest of the team learned to tackle like Anderson, they would get some more penalties for sure, but that would be one defense feared throughout the league.

He knew what he was doing. The ball was already well beyond the receiver when he made that hit. It was a terrible penalty to take. It would have been 2nd and 25 as Ottawa had taken 2 penalties to start the possession, and that penalty resulted in Ottawa extending a drive that led to a FG. When you lose by 1 point, a play like that stands out as a game changer. He's a loose cannon. If he keeps taking stupid penalties (he also had a horrible PI call last week--on a jump ball with 3 db's vs 1 receiver and he still interferes??) I would say bye bye.