Toronto Argonauts head home empty-handed after another miserable loss

The Toronto Argonauts ended their three-game road trip with their worst game yet, a brutal shut-out loss to the Edmonton Eskimos.

The Toronto Argonauts woeful season continued Thursday, as costly turnovers led to a 26-0 thrashing by the Edmonton Eskimos. The loss drops the Argos to 0-6 on the year and pushes head coach Corey Chamblin’s losing streak to 15.

It was a miserable evening for Toronto, one where their offence continued to struggle. Of the Argos seven first-half drives, four of them were two-and-outs. Another was a pick.

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This inefficiency led to the half-time benching (all be it, for a quarter) of McLeod Bethel-Thompson, and Dakota Prukop was given the reigns for the third quarter.

With the running game being held to under 50 net yards yet again, and any receiver not named Derel Walker struggling to get downfield, the team had its worst outing on the three-game road trip that has seen the Argos spend 15 straight days on the road.

But what will hurt the most for Toronto fans from this game is the complete lack of progress that had thus far been the only glimpse of light in this now mature season.

For the first five losses of this 2019 season, one aspect of the game clearly jumped out, a hole in the ship that was making the team’s first win elusive.

Each week, the Argos would improve upon that issue, only for another one to cost them the victory the next time out. It was a frustrating process, but at least fans could cling to a sense of progression – a building-blocks process that would surely lead to victory eventually.

That fell apart last night, when the Argos regressed in every way. No positives to cling to here – this team is reeling.

The Argos now head home to BMO, where they will host the first-place Winnipeg Blue Bombers next week. And as the season enters its third month, it’s hard to see things getting better with the Argos host Winnipeg, Edmonton, and Montreal in August.

Two of those teams have comfortably handled the Argos already this season, the other Is surging in the standings and vying for first in the east. Add in the fact that the Montreal game will take place out East as part of the CFL’s touchdown Atlantic series, and is therefore not truly a “home” game, and this team could be 0-9 heading into labour day.

But coming home has its advantages. The attendance at BMO may be a soft spot for some, but the Toronto Argonauts haven’t won a game that was not played at BMO since 2017.

They also have a much-needed bye week coming after the Winnipeg game, a chance for the team to reassess its plan of action, and hopefully make the changes necessary to become competitive the rest of the way.

That bye week could bring with it the return of James Franklin, the man who won the starting job at the start of the season. With a new QB and a rested team, the Argos may be able to push forward the rest of the way.

Amazingly, the East is still somehow survivable, and even the west crossover team only sits two games ahead of the Argos for the final spot in the playoffs. It seems a pipe-dream now, but this is the CFL, where 66.6 % of the league makes the playoffs and 2 games back with 12 to go isn’t “impossible.”

But to start down that path, the Argos need a win and that has proven to be the problem.

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What did you think about the Argos loss to the Eskimos? Do you believe they can turn things around? Let us know in the comments below.

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