Game Thread - June 14, 2025 - Argonauts vs Stampeders

[shatto]

. D on the whole did a good job but were hurt by some long throws and outstanding catches by the Calg WRs, especially Philpot. The front seven sacked Adams 3 times and put him under pressure most of the game. However on occasion they lost contain and allowed Adams to pick up yardage. Other than that, the Argos did a really good job shutting down the Calg running game. Ojo did not see any time on D but did play on special teams--time to work him into the rotation?

. McManis left the game with an injury just as he did in the Montreal game. Hope it is nothing serious as the team needs him on the field. Christmas was also injured which left the D line with only 2 DTs (Lanier and J Williams). M Williams had a good game both as passer catcher and runner. McMahon left early with what looked like a minor injury but he did not return. IMO, he is an excellent change of pace RB but not an every down player. It would have been nice to have Zorn as a backup RB. Since he should be a good special teams player, it was a surprise to see get cut.

. Arbuckle played an average game but his interceptions hurt the team. Wonder how long before Kelly returns? Coxie had his usual superb game with just shy of a 100 yards and a brilliant TD. Ungerer and Herslow were the returners and though sure handed never looked dangerous retuning kicks. So why wasn't Turner dressed? He could have taken Herslow's place as a WR and would have been a more dynamic returner.

. The OL had a much better game. They certainly have the talent--maybe they just need time.

[OV Argo]

Argos need to add to the RB room....immediately.

They may have to bring back either Mitchell or Kevin Brown. Only one healthy running back now.

Walter Fletcher is another good RB that's out there too. A Canadian RB would be helpful too.

Is McMahon out with injury now?

Still baffled by the release of a proven explosive RB in Kevin Brown; and too bad / so sad that draft pick Joey Zorn got no real look at tailback - anybody notice the performance of top U Sports RB Matthew Peterson in the recent Bomber game ?

[Will]

McMahon suffered an injury early in the game.

29 points in 2 games isn't going to cut it obviously, and neither is two touchdowns in two games. By the time the Argos could start building any semblance of momentum of offense, the defense had tired and Calgary was able to move to ball more freely in the 4th Q.

[Scooter McCray]

Had the pleasure of meeting Will, Adam Gosse and Daniella Ponticelli post game in Liberty Village.

This season is going to be interesting. I thought the East would be the stronger division again this year. It could still play out that way, but doesn't look like it now.

Ottawa and Hamilton are Ottawa and Hamilton.
Montreal are looking excellent.

Toronto with their off season departures cannot afford any injuries to starters this year. I thought Arbuckle would be a better QB, for his experience last year, but he has not taken ownership of the
job. Kelly is badly needed. Hopefully he is ready this week.

I picked Calgary to be the worst team in the league. They do not look like it.

BC, Winnipeg, Saskatchewan all look good.

It's going to be a fun season.

[paulwoods13]

O-line was much better than last week, but still had some terrible busts. Moore had at least two whiffs in pass pro. And their run blocking was sporadic.

D-line was also better than last week, but failed to contain Adams at a couple of critical junctures.

The secondary had some aggravating near-misses, altho to be fair they were often right with the receiver as Adams hit a guy with pinpoint accuracy.

Williams looked good, and would look even better if the o-line opens bigger holes.

Arbuckle is a competent QB and would be fine on a team that has its act together in other places, but it's a lot to ask him to make up for failings on the two lines and elsewhere.

Our lack of speed at receiver is glaring. Polk is hugely missed. Herslow (who replaced Mital for much of the second half) strikes me as a useful backup but not special enough to start.

If McManis is out for any length of time, the defence -- like the offence at the moment, and the return game -- will lack any sort of discernible identity.

Late in the game, Kelly called the entire offence together on the sideline for some of speech (presumably intended to fire them up) but it did not produce the result we were hoping for. Based on Dinwiddie's comments after the game, there seems to be little or no chance we'll see Kelly against Sask. Argos will be a home underdog this week.

Personnel decisions and deployment warrant a lot of questioning, IMO. Two experienced RBs were cut, along with a promising rookie, and now we're down to one guy, also a rookie. The Argos appear to treat the special teams as their own unit, apart from offence and defence. Ojo, Hergott and Hansen never played a snap on defence, even after a d-lineman was injured, and don't hang around with the d-line on the sideline. Same goes for Mayala, Varga, Harelimana, Edouard and Blackburn. In past years, Mace did a much better job of integrating all the d-linemen, at least, into the defence.

[ARGO57]

The Argonauts have managed to go from a ton of depth and experience at RB to being woefully thin at the position all within a couple of weeks.
Sure you can’t predict injuries but letting quality experienced backs (Carey and Brown) walk doesn’t seem so wise right now.

[TrueBlueGuy]

Had the pleasure of meeting Will, Adam Gosse and Daniella Ponticelli post game in Liberty Village.

This season is going to be interesting. I thought the East would be the stronger division again this year. It could still play out that way, but doesn't look like it now.

Ottawa and Hamilton are Ottawa and Hamilton.
Montreal are looking excellent.

Toronto with their off season departures cannot afford any injuries to starters this year. I thought Arbuckle would be a better QB, for his experience last year, but he has not taken ownership of the
job. Kelly is badly needed. Hopefully he is ready this week.

I picked Calgary to be the worst team in the league. They do not look like it.

BC, Winnipeg, Saskatchewan all look good.

It's going to be a fun season.

I see you left out the Elks...so they are a good candidate for 2025's worst team?
Stamps were very mediocre for 1st half. Argos gifted them a pick-6. And what was with
Arbuckle so often throwing into double-coverage? Can the Argo receivers not get open?

[gilthethrill]

Had the pleasure of meeting Will, Adam Gosse and Daniella Ponticelli post game in Liberty Village.

This season is going to be interesting. I thought the East would be the stronger division again this year. It could still play out that way, but doesn't look like it now.

Ottawa and Hamilton are Ottawa and Hamilton.
Montreal are looking excellent.

Toronto with their off season departures cannot afford any injuries to starters this year. I thought Arbuckle would be a better QB, for his experience last year, but he has not taken ownership of the
job. Kelly is badly needed. Hopefully he is ready this week.

I picked Calgary to be the worst team in the league. They do not look like it.

BC, Winnipeg, Saskatchewan all look good.

It's going to be a fun season.

I see you left out the Elks...so they are a good candidate for 2025's worst team?
Stamps were very mediocre for 1st half. Argos gifted them a pick-6. And what was with
Arbuckle so often throwing into double-coverage? Can the Argo receivers not get open?

Arbuckle's deep passes took too long to get to thier destination, giving Calgary DBs time to recover.

[Unplayable]

I had to watch a recorded version. Thank goodness for fast forward.

With all the losses on defence, and Kellys absence, the results so far have been pretty predictable. What has been surprising is the mediocre play of Arbuckle and special teams (due to injury no doubt). There is no player on defence or offence who has looked like they are capable of taking over a game.

The Argos have 3 games before the bye week. Its unlikely they will beat the Roughriders even if Kelly plays. The Ottawa and Hamilton games will be interesting. Even if they start 0 and 5 the season will not be over.

[argolio]

Had a great time at the game even if it sucks that we lost.

Predictions by a few Argo talking heads that we could have a rough start to the season look to be true. Kelly's injury, big losses on D, and three new o-line starters (I count Hunter moving to right tackle as new) have been tough obstacles. I expect management will make the changes needed to make the team a playoff threat.

As for Calgary, rumours of Dickenson's football demise were greatly exaggerated.