Game Thread: Toronto Argonauts @ Hamilton Tiger-Cats

[Will]

The Big One (for them anyways) at Tim Hortons Field on Monday, September 4, 2023. I will be at Tim Hortons Field for this one!

Whereas the Argos on paper should win this game, we all know that weird things tend to happen on Labour Day.

[RB957]

And Hamilton's win in B.C. was impressive. All three phases of the game came together. Labour Day game is going to be a good one, and while Argos should be favoured, they better be prepared.

[gilthethrill]

I am told by a reliable source that Mondays game will not be brought to you by “ Marks” but by “OK Tire”….Not OK!

[Skilz]

Roster Shuffle in the Secondary will be an interesting one. McFadden comes in. Either him and Stiggers move spots or one of Carnell/Priester is ready to go.

Haggerty injury could be serious, and Metchie is better at Safety than in the box. Do the Kitties run Butler free and or trust Powell to take shots at our secondary?

Would love to see Adeboboye get more carries to spell AJ and Harris. Harris is going to be needed in late October, so might as well try the Canadian backup now.

[AngeloV]

Would love to see Adeboboye get more carries to spell AJ and Harris. Harris is going to be needed in late October, so might as well try the Canadian backup now.

using 3 ball carriers is a bit much. Especially with a guy like AJ, who gets stronger with each carry. His time will eventually come.

[AngeloV]

There should be a lot of younger fans out to this game, being the only 1pm start this season. I understand the Argos will be hosting a lot of youngsters from Toronto Flag Football for this one. Awesome!!

[OV Argo]

Roster Shuffle in the Secondary will be an interesting one. McFadden comes in. Either him and Stiggers move spots or one of Carnell/Priester is ready to go.

Haggerty injury could be serious, and Metchie is better at Safety than in the box. Do the Kitties run Butler free and or trust Powell to take shots at our secondary?

Would love to see Adeboboye get more carries to spell AJ and Harris. Harris is going to be needed in late October, so might as well try the Canadian backup now.

Their success last game was a mixture of lots of run game with Butler (a decent back but quite over-rated by some IMO) and safe, short passing and Powell did very well with that. The Argo D is better than BC's IMO, but I wish Muamba could be activated to smack Butler hard. They still have Tim White and the new guy Godwin as potential deep threats, but wether Powell has it to air out deep is another matter.

Agreed on Adeboboye - just to add as much offensive diversity as possible, and he might be able to spring 20 plus gainers better than Harris or Ouellette; but most CFL offences just don't see the potential of lots of ground game possibly resulting in big chunk gains (though they are often good with 5 or 6 yard pass plays ???).


Funny how things can change in a football season - a few weeks ago I would have said the Argos throttle the Ticats; but after the last game where the Stamps had tons of offence on the Argo D, and then Ticats going into BC and winning (after losing at home to the Elks ???) - anything can happen, I guess. Very good teams make statement wins though.

[Mocha]

Ticats looked solid against BC. Hope the Argos don't take them lightly here.

[RB957]

There should be a lot of younger fans out to this game, being the only 1pm start this season. I understand the Argos will be hosting a lot of youngsters from Toronto Flag Football for this one. Awesome!!

You mean for the Sept 9 home game vs. the Alouettes, correct?

[ArgoRavi]

Roster Shuffle in the Secondary will be an interesting one. McFadden comes in. Either him and Stiggers move spots or one of Carnell/Priester is ready to go.

While I believe that Priester and Carnell are progressing, I would be surprised to see Priester in the lineup on Labour Day and I am almost certain that we won't see Carnell as I don't believe that he has started practising yet.

[AngeloV]

You mean for the Sept 9 home game vs. the Alouettes, correct?

yes, sorry. Got a little ahead of myself.

[Rich]

Now that the Cats finally have a real OC I expect them to move the ball well even with a rookie QB.

But it won’t matter because nobody’s been able to really stop Kelly’s Heroes yet, this offence simply outscores all comers, and I don’t expect that to change Monday.

[RB957]

Now that the Cats finally have a real OC I expect them to move the ball well even with a rookie QB.

But it won’t matter because nobody’s been able to really stop Kelly’s Heroes yet, this offence simply outscores all comers, and I don’t expect that to change Monday.

Except that we as fans, and perhaps the Argos themselves, may have come to expect and believe that Kelly will throw us out of all trouble. True, he has made amazing throws for big gains, but I personally would like to see longer and sustained drives, rather than a few quick hitters, as exciting as that is. When playoff times come, one of the best things we can do against a good offence, is simply keep them off the field with a long drive. It would also keep our defensive players fresh. As for the D, I hope that coverage in the backfield tightens up, or that we are able to put enough pressure on Powell that he doesn't get time to let the longer passing routes develop. I thought in the Calgary game we had pretty good pressure, but were just a fraction of a second late.

[Waffle]

The injury report for the game is out. Robert Priester was listed as DNP.

https://www.cfl.ca/2023/08/31/argos-ticats-injury-reports-amos-sits-out-sayles-limited-on-thursday/

I haven't seen any info posted anywhere detailing what Amos' injury actually was. On the field it looked like they thought he had a fracture, but the injury report just lists him as DNP.

[paulwoods13]

I haven't seen any info posted anywhere detailing what Amos' injury actually was. On the field it looked like they thought he had a fracture, but the injury report just lists him as DNP.

Dislocated ankle, I believe.

[Will]

Dislocated ankle, I believe.

I saw dislocated ankle as well.

It would be ideal if Robert Priester or Maurice Carnell IV were ready to return to the lineup soon.

[Mocha]

The PFF preview:

TORONTO ARGONAUTS VS. HAMILTON TIGER-CATS

What a Week 12 it was for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, as they not only upset the heavily favored BC Lions, but they did so in dominant fashion with a 30-13 win. QB Taylor Powell played a safe game (69.9 passing grade, no turnover-worthy plays or big-time throws), and they leaned heavily on top running back James Butler, who did not let them down. They’ll have their work cut out for them this week as they take on the top-seeded Toronto Argonauts. The Argos are coming off a big win over the Calgary Stampeders last week and will look to lean on do-it-all RB A.J. Ouellette, who currently has an 89.6 overall grade on the season. That’s better than any player not named Chad Kelly. Toronto is rightfully favored in this Labor Day showdown, but Hamilton is more than capable of pulling off another big upset.

MATCHUP TO WATCH:
WR DAMONTE COXIE, TORONTO VS. CB RICHARD LEONARD, HAMILTON

It’s been a tough season for Coxie, as injuries have plagued what could have been a breakout sophomore season for the receiver. Last week saw a big return for him, as he caught three passes for 102 yards and a touchdown, one of them a contested catch. He’s a tough big-bodied receiver that’s hard to cover. That’s where Leonard will come in. An undersized defender, Leonard started the year as a halfback but has since switched over to outside corner, and it’s been a revelation. Since he made the switch in Week 8, his 83.1 coverage grade is second among outside corners. Quarterbacks have a 46.8 passer rating when targeting him. It won’t be easy to shut down Coxie, but Leonard has proven he can step up and succeed.

PLAYER TO WATCH:
QB CHAD KELLY, TORONTO

As we enter the home stretch of the season, Kelly is once again PFF’s highest-graded player at 90.3 overall. His 16 big-time throws rank third in the league, and his 57.4% deep ball-adjusted completion rate ranks second. Kelly is also one of the best running quarterbacks in the league (80.8 rushing grade). He doesn’t run a lot but when he does, it’s with purpose and almost always comes at a crucial time. Kelly is putting together an MOP-level season, and he’s the player to watch every week for this elite Argonauts team.

[jerrym]

I always get nervous about the Labour Day game when the Argos are way ahead in the standings compared to Hamilton. It always seems to motivate both their fans and players to an extra effort to overcome their inferiority complex when it comes to Toronto in general and the Argos in particular. I can recall many a Labour Day victory by Hamilton over an Argo team with more talent because of this.

["Issues"Mcgee]

Normally I am all about sportsmanship and maintaining the integrity of the game, but that all goes out the window on Labour Day.

Kill Hamilton on the scoreboard, destroy them on the field and mess with them in between plays.

[Will]

I always get nervous about the Labour Day game when the Argos are way ahead in the standings compared to Hamilton. It always seems to motivate both their fans and players to an extra effort to overcome their inferiority complex when it comes to Toronto in general and the Argos in particular. I can recall many a Labour Day victory by Hamilton over an Argo team with more talent because of this.

For every 1991 and 2005, there's also a 1996, 1997, 2006 and 2007. I still hear you though on this, it's always an anxious time.