Week 5 Preview: Ottawa Redblacks at Toronto Argonauts

It’s week five in the CFL and the Toronto Argonauts are coming off a week of rest after going 1-1 on the road, returning home for their final regular season match up against the Ottawa Redblacks.

Another week has come in the CFL and the break is over for the Toronto Argonauts (2-2-0).

After a crazy week four match up against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (One that Karen Kuldys wants to forget) which resulted in a 33-35 loss, the Argos come off their longest break of the season and look ahead to their second match up against the Ottawa Redblacks (1-3-1).

The Redblacks are on short rest this week. They’re playing in a unique situation as the CFL has labelled this game for Ottawa as their second week five game due to the odd number of teams in the league. They snatched their first win of the season after beating the Montreal Alouettes 19-24 and sit third in the Eastern Division.

As always, we take a look at the two teams previous games, what to look out for and what they’re hoping to gain out of it.

Toronto Argonauts

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As mentioned before, the Argos lost a game that slipped away from them after an impressive effort from special teams.

The boatman have a new (and most likely permanent) kick returner in Martese Jackson after having a combined kick and punt return yards of 339.

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Ricky Ray went 27-for-46 against Winnipeg, throwing for 330 yards (his lowest of the season) and two interceptions. The receivers had a tough time getting things going with no player catching for more than 100 yards.

However, the Argos get a key receiver in Jeff Fuller back who missed last week’s game with an injury. Also a note to make in the running back position, James Wilder Jr is starting against the Redblacks.

Overall, the Argonauts are hoping to remain first in the division and avoid back-to-back losses.

Ottawa Redblacks

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The Ottawa Redblacks are coming off their first win of the season against Montreal in front of their home crowd.

The defending Grey Cup champions currently sit third in the division with a record of 1-3-1 and are hoping to continue their winning ways.

Quarterback Trevor Harris completed 29 of 41 passes throwing two touchdowns while Greg Ellingson led the receivers with 149 yards and a touchdown.

Harris continues to dominate through the air throwing for at least 300 yards or more in four of his last five games but has only one win to show for it.

However, it was the defence that shined against the Alouettes. The Redblacks forced three fumbles from three different players, caught two interceptions and a made one sack.

A win tonight against the Argonauts would bump Ottawa to the top of the East division but losing the season series against the Argos could have an impact on how things shape out in the East. They’re also trying to even out the season series after losing a nail biter two weeks ago at home.

Wrap Up

There you have it. Tonight’s match up also comes with some pre-game festivities. The Argos are honouring the 1996 and 1997 Grey Cup Champions and their dominant run during that time. Apart from that, they’re adding their 24th member to the All-Time Argos list in Doug Flutie.

Flutie will also be commemorated with his own bobble head. The first 10,000 fans will receive their own Doug Flutie bobble head.

Next: Maple Leafs: Too soon to judge Lamoriello's tenure?

Anything else that we missed? Anything that you’re looking forward for tonight’s game? Let us know in the comments below. Kickoff is at 7:30 on TSN4 and TSN 1050 Radio.