TORONTO — If the Toronto Argonauts had to exorcise any playoff demons, they ran them out of BMO Field on Saturday.
Standing on the ground of their 2023 playoff collapse, the Argos put together an impressive 58-38 win over the Ottawa REDBLACKS, setting the stage for a dramatic Eastern Final re-match with the Montreal Alouettes.
The Als will host the Argos on Sunday, Nov. 9 at Molson Stadium.
Chad Kelly (18-20 passing, 358 yards) threw four touchdown passes, out-duelling Dru Brown in the two teams’ third high-scoring, entertaining game of the season. Their 90 combined points tied the CFL record for points in a playoff game. Makai Polk went over the 100-yard receiving mark and had a touchdown, while DaVaris Daniels had a pair of touchdowns for the Argos.
Wynton McManis had 10 tackles and an interception for the Argos, setting up the team’s first of two defensive scores.
In his playoff debut, Brown (46-61 passing, 476 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions) set CFL records with 39-plus completions and 60 pass attempts in a playoff game.
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Brown moved the ball well for the REDBLACKS on their opening possession, pushing the ball to his receivers on a 12-play, 68-yard drive. That included a gutsy third-down conversion at the 10-yard line that Brown was barely able to push the necessary ground to cover. They weren’t able to find the end zone, though and settled for a 17-yard field goal from Lewis Ward at 5:41 to take a 3-0 lead.
The REDBLACKS’ offence controlled the game early, holding the ball for 11:47 of the game’s first 15 minutes. Brown orchestrated an 11-play, 83-yard drive next, that he capped off by finding Bralon Addison, who was on the depth chart as a running back, on a four-yard connection for the game’s first touchdown at 12:44. Addison’s catch was an instant highlight, as he used the helmet of Argos’ defensive back Royce Metchie to haul in the pass. Ward’s convert made it a 10-0 REDBLACKS lead.
The Argos didn’t have a lot of momentum in the opening quarter, but they found some late. Lirim Hajrullahu‘s 44-yard field goal went through with zeroes on the clock, getting his team on the board at 10-3.
The REDBLACKS’ defence asserted itself early in the second quarter, with Lorenzo Mauldin IV getting a straight shot at Kelly, with his hit forcing the ball loose for Bennett Williams to recover at Toronto’s 23-yard line. The Argos’ defence stood tall with the short field, though, forcing Ward back onto the field to kick a 20-yard field goal at 5:23 to push the socre to 13-3.
From a relatively silent first quarter, the Argos’ offence exploded into the game just nine seconds later when Kelly fired a 70-yard bomb to receiver Makai Polk. The rookie got in behind REDBLACKS’ defensive back Money Hunter to make the catch and raced to the end zone, bringing a hungry crowd to its feet. Hajrullahu’s convert went through at 5:54.
While the REDBLACKS’ offence continued to work its way into Argos’ territory, the defence ensured that Ward stayed busy. His third field goal of the game came from 17-yards out at 11:03, giving his team a six-point lead at 16-10.
For the second time in the game, Kelly and the Argos fired back with an immediate response.
Kelly found DaVaris Daniels for a 41-yard connection that he ran to the end zone at 11:37, on just a two-play, 70-yard drive. Hajrullahu’s convert gave the Argos their first lead of the day, at 17-16.
The REDBLACKS’ offence closed out the half with what they were looking for, as Brown led a nine-play, 76-yard drive that he finished off with an eight-yard touchdown pass to Jaelon Acklin. Ward’s convert put the REDBLACKS in front 23-17 with just six seconds left in the half.
The team made a decision that cost them on their ensuing kickoff, with Richie Leone skirting the ball along the grass. The ball was recovered by the Argos at the Ottawa 46-yard line, which made for easy work for Hajrullahu, who connected from 53 yards to make it a 23-20 game at the half.
Kelly took a big hit as he slid on a 15-yard run, with Frankie Griffin getting flagged for unnecessary roughness to move the ball to the REDBLACKS’ 38-yard line. Kelly was pulled from the game by the CFL’s injury spotter, briefly sending backup Nick Arbuckle into the game. Kelly returned with his team at the nine-yard line and promptly found Daniels for his second touchdown catch of the day, just 2:29 into the third quarter. Hajrullahu’s convert put the Argos up 27-23.
Kelly and Polk flaunted their chemistry again as the QB found him for a 57-yard connection to move the Argos to the REDBLACKS’ 26-yard line. Kelly finished off the five-play, 86-yard drive himself, keeping the ball and juking his way into the end zone from 15 yards out at 7:51. Hajrullahu was out once again for the convert, putting the Argos up 34-23.
Ward came out once again at 13:59, thanks to an Argos’ defence that continued to bend but not break. Ward’s 42-yard field goal made it an eight-point game, at 34-26 to go into the fourth quarter.
Kelly and the Argos continued to pour it on in the final frame. He threw his fourth touchdown pass of the game to cap a 70-yard, eight-play drive with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Jake Herslow, who started in place of the injured Damonte Coxie. Hajrullahu’s extra point put the Argos up 41-26.
The REDBLACKS worked all the way to the Argos’ one-yard line, desperate to narrow the margin with the clock working against them. Their third attempt on the short yardage plunge was rewarded with six points after the play was reviewed. Brown missed Dominique Rhymes in the end zone on the team’s two-point conversion attempt, leaving them down nine at 41-32 at 7:02.
With the REDBLACKS at the Argos’ 32-yard line, Brown was intercepted by McManis at the 22-yard line. The linebacker lateralled the ball to Tarvarus McFadden, who took it all the way back for the touchdown, putting the game out of reach. Hajrullahu’s convert made it a 51-32 game.
The Argos weren’t done yet. Benjie Franklin read Brown’s pass for an interception and a 71-yard return for a second defensive trip to the end zone, helping blow the game open at 58-32.
Brown led his team on one final touchdown drive, finding Addison for his second major of the day, but it didn’t do much to tame the boisterous crowd at BMO Field, which roared as its team won its first playoff game since it hoisted the 109th Grey Cup in 2022.