Argos @ Montreal Game Thread

[AngeloV]

Polk and Coxie both missed a lot of training camp, so I will overlook their bad games tonight. Kahmann to me is a keeper. Polk may be the one that comes out when Herslow is healthy.

[OV Argo]

Very promising Argo O on display- Chad looks real good and O-line much improved.

D & STs are another matter: next to no play-making from the defense, other than one big hit by Priester and one forced and recovered fumble; non existent pass rush basically; missed tackles galore; receivers wide open (Snead dropped 2 easily makeable deep shot TD catches); and you can't have a FG kicker missing 2 makeable FG plus give up a blocked punt TD.

Gotta clean up those 2 things or it will be a long, losing season.

[gilthethrill]

Really wanted the Argos to snap Alexander's win streak. Very winnable game and lots of positives. Only concern on D was the pass rush, but giving up a Punt block at that time of the game is inexcusable. Very optimistic that this team will win it's share of games.

[ARGO57]

Coxie and Polk had off games tonight; once they get going, look out!

I feel frustrated with how many points the offence left out there. There were the two missed field goals but the Argos also kicked one from 12 yards out. When you get to the 5, you have to score TDs. That's 10 points in total at least that were squandered.

The o-line was fantastic, Hicks looked good at RB, and Mital, Kahmann, and Ungerer all played well. Kelly is going to be even better once the kinks are all worked out.

The defence needs to improve but I thought there were a lot of positive signs there, too. You can see what Mike Miller is talking about when he preaches about this team playing physical football because they certainly did tonight.

I echo your sentiments Ravi, lots of positives tonight and some things that need to be cleaned up particularly on defence.

[TICATS SUCK !]

Considering how little Chad Kelly has played in the last couple of years, I was pleasantly surprised at how well he played. We were giving Alexander way too much time to find his receivers, who were open a lot of the time. Obviously, the special teams unit let us down. Yes, there were definitely some tackling issues on D. The Argos put up a good fight on the road against one of the best teams in the league. I'm encouraged by what I saw and look forward to seeing what this team can do.

[paulwoods13]

That was a hell of a game, very entertaining. Lots of positives for the Argos, but also some important negatives that contributed to a disappointing final outcome.

Positives

• The offence looked very strong and dynamic. Loved to see so much no-huddle.

• Kelly missed on a few throws, but overall looked as good as he did for much of 2023.

• Three receivers -- Mital, Ungerer and Kahmann -- looked great.

• Hicks seems to be better than anyone we trotted out at RB last season, and Isaiah Smith looked good on a couple of second-half touches.

• Goss made a great play to force a fumble.

• Argos put a scare into what might be the best team in the league, and put everyone on notice that they are going to be a dangerous team to play against.

Negatives

• Despite the big yardage we piled up, some of Miller's play-calling was highly questionable. A deep (incomplete) pass on second-and-three comes immediately to mind, but there were a few other times when he seemed to prefer kill shot attempts to methodically moving the chains. And how many touches did Hicks have in the second half? Two?

• The only impact the three starting LBs made was on special teams.

• The pass rush wasn't nearly good enough, and it looked to me like Kongbo got hurt late.

• The secondary, other than Franklin, seemed utterly lost. Terrible games for Amos, McFadden and Priester.

• STs were bad all night except for the one nice Grant return.

• Despite that nice return, I'm increasingly concerned about Grant. He seems to love letting punts bounce rather than catch them in the air, and he heads for the sideline frequently.

• Coxie and Polk were never on the same wavelength as Kelly (which makes his 400-plus yards even more impressive).

[paulwoods13]

One more thing: While Lirim will almost certainly get his act together quickly, I wish Miller would be more aggressive in deep. Trying field goals from the 20 and in makes less sense than it used to now that no rouge gets awarded on a miss and the ball comes out to the 40 regardless of made or missed. You're handing the opposition great field position for no reward if you miss. The defence last night probably didn't deserve a vote of confidence, but why not go for it and, if you fail to get a first down, force the opponent to march 90 yards instead of 70?

[Scooter McCray]

That was a tough loss. The Argos had opportunity to bury the Als in the second half. Missed FGs, dropped passes and overthrown balls to open receivers, and inability to generate a pass rush snatched a road win away.

Lots to be positive about. Kelly was very good, and should only improve. These next 6 games are going to be a grind. 3-4, has to be the goal.

If Polk & Coxie can get in sync with Kelly the offence can be lethal.

[ARGO57]

That was a hell of a game, very entertaining. Lots of positives for the Argos, but also some important negatives that contributed to a disappointing final outcome.

Positives

• The offence looked very strong and dynamic. Loved to see so much no-huddle.

• Kelly missed on a few throws, but overall looked as good as he did for much of 2023.

• Three receivers -- Mital, Ungerer and Kahmann -- looked great.

• Hicks seems to be better than anyone we trotted out at RB last season, and Isaiah Smith looked good on a couple of second-half touches.

• Goss made a great play to force a fumble.

• Argos put a scare into what might be the best team in the league, and put everyone on notice that they are going to be a dangerous team to play against.

Negatives

• Despite the big yardage we piled up, some of Miller's play-calling was highly questionable. A deep (incomplete) pass on second-and-three comes immediately to mind, but there were a few other times when he seemed to prefer kill shot attempts to methodically moving the chains. And how many touches did Hicks have in the second half? Two?

• The only impact the three starting LBs made was on special teams.

• The pass rush wasn't nearly good enough, and it looked to me like Kongbo got hurt late.

• The secondary, other than Franklin, seemed utterly lost. Terrible games for Amos, McFadden and Priester.

• STs were bad all night except for the one nice Grant return.

• Despite that nice return, I'm increasingly concerned about Grant. He seems to love letting punts bounce rather than catch them in the air, and he heads for the sideline frequently.

• Coxie and Polk were never on the same wavelength as Kelly (which makes his 400-plus yards even more impressive).

Good recap.
The lack of pass rush was very evident and no doubt put additional pressure on a secondary unit that may require some tinkering before they come together.
I also disliked the long pass on 2nd and 3.
Coxie and in particular Polk weren’t good at all last night, I suspect that will be corrected in the film room.
I think they have found a keeper in Kahmann and yes Mital and Ungerer were also very good!
The frustration is they easily could have won that game with the elimination of a few mental errors but in general a huge improvement over the crap we witnessed last season.

[shatto]

My only comment is about Polk. Last year, he did not play as well as his first year with the team. This year he does not inspired confidence with his play. With Herslow and Miller in the wings, Polk may find himself sitting, if his play doesn't improve.