Showcasing the QBs of the future

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/08/2023 (754 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s often said in professional sports that one person’s misfortune is another’s opportunity. With several quarterbacks across the CFL being sidelined by injury, there’s been no better chance to shine at the game’s most important position.

Indeed, only the Toronto Argonauts (Chad Kelly) and Calgary Stampeders (Jake Maier) have started the same player behind centre each week. The remaining seven teams have been forced to call upon their No. 2 pivot, with some clubs having to dig even deeper down the depth chart owing to either another injury or inconsistent play by the first backup.

Losing that many quarterbacks would often be a recipe for disaster for a nine-team league. While you certainly wouldn’t wish injury to anyone, I’d argue there’s a positive spin to it all, in that it’s ushered in a new era of pass throwers, some of whom may just be around for the long haul.

I wrote at the beginning of the season the QB quality in the CFL was in trouble, mainly because of the league’s penchant to recycle the same talent each year rather than giving a chance to a young, up-and-coming prospect. With all the injuries this season, teams have been forced to test their depth and the results have been promising.

Without season-ending injuries in Ottawa to Jeremiah Masoli (Achilles) and then Tyrie Adams (knee), we would have no idea about Dustin Crum, who has since come in and played extremely well with the Redblacks. In recent weeks, we’ve also seen the likes of Winnipeg’s Dru Brown, Edmonton’s Tre Ford, Montreal’s Caleb Evans and Saskatchewan’s Jake Dolegala thrust into action and all have managed to turn heads across the league with flashes of confident play.

There was an obvious need for a changing of the guard at the position and while you’d prefer it to happen in a different way, there’s a real argument to be made the QB talent in the CFL right now is better than it was at the start of the season. Don’t be surprised if we see some of the new faces eventually become household names in the years to come.

With that, let’s dig into the top stories from Week 11 in the latest edition of CFL Rundown.

1) It took several tries, but the Elks finally tasted victory, snapping a 13-game losing streak with a win over the Ticats. As brutal as 1-9 is, it was good for the league that Edmonton finally won. Not so much for the Ticats, who continue to slide down the Eastern standings, tied with the Redblacks for last place. It’s been an incredibly disappointing season for the Grey Cup hosts, to the point where you have to start wondering just how hot the seat is getting for head coach Orlondo Steinauer. Hamilton is 11-17 since the start of last season, after making it to back-to-back Grey Cup appearances.

2) After watching Ford handle the offence in Edmonton the last two weeks, I can’t help but wonder why it took so long to give him a shot? Maybe it was the $100,000 Taylor Cornelius is guaranteed next season as part of a two-year extension, making sense to give him a longer leash, but that doesn’t account for the opportunities given to Kai Locksley and Jarret Doege first. With the Stampeders, Ticats and Redblacks all having sub-.500 records, Ford might actually give the Elks a shot to compete, as long as the odds may be, at a playoff spot. Crazier things have happened in the CFL.

3) Kicker Marc Liegghio had started to convert some of his critics after joining Hamilton partway through the season, going 19-for-20 on field-goal attempts in his first six games with the Ticats. All the goodwill he built up came crashing down in a nightmare performance against the Elks, with Liegghio missing three of his four field goals and his lone one-point convert. You’ve got to feel for Liegghio, especially given the difficulties kicking with a strong wind at Tim Hortons Field, but his stinkers just come at seemingly the worst possible times, this one in a game the Ticats desperately needed to win to stay in the Eastern playoff race.

4) The Elks have brought back a familiar face to help turn things around, hiring Rick LeLacheur as the club’s interim president following the recent departure of Victor Cui. LeLacheur recently served as president of the B.C. Lions, where last year he was given the Hugh Campbell Distinguished Leadership Award, presented annually to an individual who has demonstrated great leadership and made significant contributions to the CFL. He was also the former Edmonton president between 2002-2012. Experience was key in this hire, and it appears Edmonton has got all that and more.

5) It might seem hyperbolic to hear, but it’s certainly not wild to suggest that Brown’s performance against the Stampeders cost him upwards of $500,000. It’s not that Brown stunk up the joint — he was 17-for-27 passing for a modest 171 yards, with no TDs or interceptions — he just wasn’t nearly as explosive compared to a week earlier in a win over the Elks. Had he torched the Stamps, there’s no doubt teams around the league would be rushing to give the pending free agent a two-year deal, likely around $350,000-400,000 per season. I still see Brown cashing in next year, but he’ll likely get a show-me contract riddled with incentives.

6) I was in Calgary this past week and spoke to a few players who were on those winning teams that went to three consecutive Grey Cups between 2016-2018. When I asked what the biggest difference was between then and now, with the Stamps a dismal 3-7 this season, all pointed toward the group being young and inexperienced. Calgary just doesn’t seem to have the horses to compete this season, and if they can’t turn it around soon, their 17-year streak of making the playoffs could come to an end.

7) Jake Dolegala may have saved Craig Dickenson his job, at least for the remainder of the season, after throwing for 239 yards and three TDs in what seemed like an improbable win over the Lions. I hope Dickenson remembers the confidence Dolegala displayed against a stingy Lions D when making his decision on who starts after the team returns from the bye. Dolegala at least deserves another shot, even if it’s against the mighty Bombers in the annual Labour Day Classic.

8) Samuel Emilus sure is making a case to be in the conversation for the league’s most outstanding Canadian, after another stellar performance, this time reeling in five catches for 106 yards and a highlight-reel TD against the Lions. Saskatchewan’s first-round pick is up to 577 receiving yards and four TDs on the season. He’ll have his hands full trying to beat out the Bombers’ Nic Demski, who has slightly better numbers, and Brady Oliveira, who leads the CFL in rushing, but it’s been a great story for the 25-year-old Montreal native.

9) What a gutsy effort by Vernon Adams Jr., who fell one play short of completing the comeback over the Riders. Although he tossed for 455 yards and three touchdowns, compared to one interception, I’m with the Lions pivot when he says he needs to be better to start the game. Part of that had to do with a leaky O-line, but had Adams just protected the ball a bit better, that’s an easy win. The Riders are now 5-5 and firmly in third spot in the West.

10) Losing an 11-point lead with three minutes remaining hurts no matter what the situation is, but it was especially damming for a Redblacks club hoping to make it back to the playoffs. Instead, the collapse just pushed Ottawa deeper down the standings, with the loss coming against an Alouettes team they were chasing. Adding insult to injury, Montreal has now won its last eight games in Ottawa, while the Redblacks have dropped 15 straight to divisional opponents at TD Place.

Jeff.Hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton

Jeff Hamilton
Multimedia producer

Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University’s journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff.

Every piece of reporting Jeff produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.