With rookie camps already underway and training camps right around the corner, CFL football is officially back.
As teams start their preparation for the 2026 season beginning June 4 on TSN, every franchise has one big question heading into the new campaign that needs to be answered.
Can returning faces get the Argonauts back to Grey Cup contention?
After claiming two of the past three Grey Cups and making the playoffs every year post-pandemic, the Toronto Argonauts crumbled in 2025.
Injuries to key players – including quarterback Chad Kelly, who missed the whole season recovering from a broken leg suffered in the 2024 East Final – derailed the season, as the team lacked depth to overcome the issues after losing an abundance of talent to free agency over the past three years.
Toronto plummeted down the standings as a result, finishing with a 5-13 record, the second worst in the CFL and the team’s worst finish since 2019.
In the off-season, the Argos went out and brought back some of those players they lost that helped Toronto win two championships, particularly on defence. Defensive linemen Ralph Holley and DeWayne Hendrix and defensive backs Adarius Pickett and DaShaun Amos are back in the double blue and ready to contribute to winning in Toronto once again.
Amos and Holley return after one year away, as Amos put up 45 tackles and four interceptions with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats last season while Holley spent time with the NFL’s Cleveland Browns.
Pickett and Hendrix return after two years away, with the former putting up 136 tackles over the past two seasons with the Ottawa Redblacks and the latter recording 38 tackles and eight sacks with the Tiger-Cats and BC Lions.
While offensively no former players came back to Toronto, their “returning faces” will come in the form of getting healthy from injury. Kelly, receiver Damonte Coxie, and offensive linemen Ryan Hunter all missed varying amounts of time last year and will be ready to lead the offensive unit once again in 2026.
There were a lot of changes in the Argonauts organization along with the players heading into the new campaign, as only three coaches were retained from last year’s staff, including new head coach and offensive coordinator Mike Miller.
Miller has been in Toronto since 2022, being a part of the staff for the past two Grey Cup wins alongside these returning players. And while Miller is a new face as head coach following Ryan Dinwiddie’s departure, it’s also a familiar one, just like the players.
So, can these returning players return Toronto to contention? They’ve done it before, but it remains to be seen if this group can replicate the success with this “same but different” feeling.
