Toronto Argonauts offence struggles in loss to Montreal Alouettes
The Toronto Argonauts dropped a crucial game to the Montreal Alouettes, with their offence unable to come through when they needed it to.
There is no such thing as a guaranteed win in the CFL and the Toronto Argonauts found that out the hard way in their 25-22 loss to the Montreal Alouettes.
Toronto got a taste of their own medicine, as Montreal was able to overcome adversity and make plays when they needed to. The Als played with desperation and came out with a more aggressive approach on offence and defence.
John Bowman shrugged off a torn bicep to record a sack and five tackles for the Alouettes, who rallied around the absence of Tyrell Sutton with Antonio Pipkin showing his potential. Pipkin was able to get the offence going with BJ Cunningham, Eugene Lewis and Ernest Jackson each getting 75+ yards through the air.
McLeod Bethel-Thompson and Armanti Edwards continued to show their developing chemistry with Edwards getting 114 yards on four catches, but the other Argos receivers weren’t able to get similar production.
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On defence, the Argos got Bear Woods back; despite having to wear a cast to protect his broken hand, he still managed to lead the team in tackles with nine. Unfortunately, the offence didn’t put the defence in a good position, especially in the fourth quarter.
It wasn’t like the entire game was disappointing from an offensive perspective, but when the Argos were marching down the field on the first possession and settled for a field goal, they failed to set the tone.
"“We made too many mistakes,’’ Marc Trestman told Frank Zicarelli of the Toronto Sun. “We had penalties in all three phases that really stopped drives or inhibited us from moving the football at the wrong time. Great effort, but we have to be more disciplined.”"
There were moments where the Argos could have taken control of the game, such as on a punt which Martese Jackson almost took to the house but stepped out of bounds, or Declan Cross fumbling the ball and leading to a field goal.
Despite all that, the Argos still had a chance with a minute left to send the game to overtime and managed to get to the Alouettes’ 45 yard line. The next play they tried to inch closer but were stuffed, lost yardage and missed the kick.
Toronto will need to put this game behind them and focus on their home-and-home series against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, who they are now chasing for second place.
It appears that the Argos are close to signing Duron Carter, who at this point would be a welcomed addition to the offence. According to Zicarelli Toronto could be without Cassius Vaughn, who reportedly suffered an Achilles injury.
The team also saw Anthony Coombs, Declan Cross, Eric Striker and Marcus Roberson leave the action, but with their next game not until Labour Day they might not be in in a terrible spot.
Next. Signing Duron Carter a worthwhile gamble. dark
Are the Argos in trouble after losing a pivotal game to Montreal, or can they get back on track? Let us know in the comments below.