After a slow start to the season, things are starting to turn around for the defending Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts.
The Argos are coming off a refreshing bye week after winning back-to-back contests to push their record to 4-8 on the season, keeping them in the thick of the playoff race in the East Division.
Toronto sits third in the East, just two points behind the 5-7 Montreal Alouettes and are set to begin a two-game homestand on Saturday against the Edmonton Elks (5-7) followed by the aforementioned Als next Friday.
“We just worry about our approach each day,” Argonauts head coach Ryan Dinwiddie told TSN 1050’s First Up on Friday morning. “Continue to get better. We’re growing as a football club. I told the guys yesterday, ‘Our arrow’s going up, let’s keep working.’ You can’t worry about the standings too much or get caught up in that. We just got to focus on winning football games and what it’s going to take to win on Saturday.”
One of the main reasons for the recent turnaround has been the career season from quarterback Nick Arbuckle.
Regular start Chad Kelly suffered a devastating leg injury late in last year’s East Division final against the Alouettes, forcing Arbuckle behind centre for the 111th Grey Cup against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
The 31-year-old career backup won the Grey Cup MVP as the Argos captured their second league title since 2022.
With Kelly still sidelined to start the 2025 season, Arbuckle has kept the Argonauts in playoff contention by posting the best numbers of his career.
Arbuckle has thrown for 3,828 yards with 23 touchdowns and 10 interceptions over 12 games.
Kelly, who won the CFL Most Outstanding Player award in 2023, returned to practice this week, leaving to speculation that he might be ready to return to game action.
The Argos are staying with Arbuckle as their starting quarterback for now, however.
“Nick’s playing great football. Obviously deserves to play and Chad is our franchise quarterback at the same time. You want to get him on the field as soon as you can,” Dinwiddie said. “He’s not quite ready yet. Nick deserves to play, he’s playing good football, probably the best of his career. Probably one of the best quarterbacks in the league right now, the way he’s playing. I’m very proud with Nick’s growth and resilience.”
Dinwiddie says Kelly is considered week-to-week, adding they won’t make a decision on his playing status until he’s fully healthy.
“We watch him practise, he’s moving around better and he’s making progress. I want to make sure he can protect himself and don’t put him a tough spot. He’s not there yet.” said the coach. “It’s really week-to-week right now. As soon as he’s healthy enough to protect himself and get on the field, we’ll make the decision then.”
