Toronto Argonauts inability to execute on offence in second half a concerning trend

The Toronto Argonauts once again found themselves with the lead heading into the first half but provided a window for the Calgary Stampeders to score 12 unanswered points to take a 22-19 victory.

Many fans left BMO Field frustrated with how the team performed especially on offence. Considering the only touchdown the Argos allowed in the second half came off a pick-six, it’s understandable why many were left shaking their hands.

When you compare the play of both teams in this game it’s clear where the Stampeders thrived and pulled away from Toronto. It was their ability to move the ball on first down especially with the quarterback change leading to a drastically different outlook to this game in the second half.

Toronto finds themselves in a position where the margin for error is very slim considering the Montreal Alouettes have picked up two straight wins. The pressure now increases with their next two games against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats who could overtake second place if they pick up back-to-back wins.

There will be some storylines to follow this week including the status of Ja’ Gared Davis who was ruled out in the second half with a knee injury. Also, what does head coach Ryan Dinwiddie do to light a fire under the offence which has now had two-straight underwhelming performances.

Here are some observations from the game and what it means going forward.

Bethel-Thompson and receivers continue to be out of sync

After a relatively clean first half where he was able to get the ball down the field, Bethel-Thompson seemed to be struggling to get on the same page as his receivers.

There were drops, balls thrown in one direction but receivers going in another. No play demonstrated that more than the interception that changed the complexion of the whole game.

Looking to push the ball down the field, Bethel-Thompson unloaded a throw that sailed over one receiver and was well behind Kurleigh Gittens Jr. and was taken back to the house by safety Elie Bouka.

“It was man coverage and I just couldn’t get into the throw,” Bethel-Thompson said about the interception. “DD (DaVaris Daniels) was running cross face and I just tried to put it high but put it too high obviously it was a bad ball and can’t say more about it.”

Both teams were definitely have some challenges with the condition of the field as many struggled to get their footing at times. However, the Argos should have an advantage in those situations considering that is their home field but it wasn’t on Saturday.

Simply put, this is not an offence that will be able to compete with the best especially with the team’s struggles on second down. Against Calgary, they were 10-for-26 (38%) and only had 61 yards on the ground (4.4).

AJ Ouellette was the Argos leader with 92 receiving yards and had the longest play from scrimmage (24 yards). The team still struggles to get Gittens Jr. to produce like a No. 1 receiver as he had only 41 yarrds on six receptions (6.8 yds per play).

The Stampders put a stamp on the win by causing a fumble on a quarterback sack by Shawn Lemon which was recovered by Cameron Judge.

Bethel-Thompson could have had better protection in the pocket but given the injuries on the offensive line, they certainly could have used more plays to get the ball out of his hands quicker.

Stampeders offence gets spark from QB change

We caught a glimpse of the old Bo Levi Mitchell on the first play of the game as he found Shane Bane Jr. for an 80-yard completion. The Argos defence was able to limit Calgary to three points but more importantly, they kept Mitchell in check for most of the first half allowing just 129 yards after.

This prompted the Stampeders to make the quarterback change with Jake Maier coming in to start the third quarter. It took some time for the backup to establish a rhythm but once he did, it allowed Calgary to get the ball into scoring position

While Maier didn’t come in and dominate the game, he was definitely more efficient that Mitchell and only had the one mistake on the interception in the endzone. Without the quarterback change, it would have been tough to see the Stampeders getting back in the game.

Chad Kelly reignites short yardage unit

It’s been well documented the struggles the Argos have had when trying to pick up a few yards on a quarterback sneak. Against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, we saw Chad Kelly start rushing to the edge rather than up the middle, and it has proven to be more effective.

Against Calgary, it was a couple of short yardage plays that turned into big runs including one for 21 yards and another that would turn into 15 yards after a facemask penalty.

Unfortunately, on a second and short in the fourth quarter, Calgary’s defence was able to get to the edge keeping Kelly from getting the first down. There is definitely work to be done for the Argos to be better in these short yardage situations but you will definitely take the progress made.

Missed opportunities to capitalize on turnovers

The Argos defence was able to make some big plays on a couple of mistakes from Mitchell that should have allowed for them to have a sizeable lead.

Unfortunately, the Argos couldn’t do more than score field goals with 12 of their 19 points coming from the leg of Boris Bede. If they find a way to get another touchdown, this likely ends up being a victory for Toronto.

When the defence has three turnovers, there’s not much more that a team can ask for. Unfortunately, Calgary won the turnover battle and it was the mistakes made by the Argos that ended up being the difference.

Credit the Stampeders for making sure their mistakes didn’t put them in a hole that they would have been tough to climb out of. Being down only 16-10 at halftime felt like a mini victory in a way because they kept the score within reach.

In the end, this was a lesson the Argos need to learn from as they cannot let performances from the defence go to waste like this.