HAMILTON — When Chad Kelly is in control, he’s as dangerous as any quarterback in the CFL.
While the Toronto Argonauts star leads the league with 18 interceptions, the strong-armed pivot often more than makes up for it with a healthy dose of big plays.
In Toronto's traditional Labour Day rivalry game, apart from one throw, Kelly was smart, sharp and efficient. As a result, the Argos rolled to a 37-22 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats before a Steeltown sellout of 25,274, putting Toronto (6-6) in firm control of its playoff destiny.
Kelly said his personal turning point was his one interception — a ball picked off by Jamal Peters in the second quarter, leading to a Ticats touchdown that gave Hamilton a 7-6 lead.
“That was the moment where I was like we've got to be meticulous about working down the field and just take our shots when they're needed,” Kelly said. “I thought we were really good at dinking and dunking and taking our shots when they were there. I thought it was just a great team effort.”
A 105-yard touchdown drive to cap the first half with the Argos up 20-7 and a game-killing, 76-yard march to end any hopes of a Ticats comeback bid saw Kelly do what he does best — spread the ball around, while firing into the hands of receivers when necessary.
The Buffalo native’s 319-yard, three-touchdown effort also vaulted him into the league lead in passing yards (3,961) and TD passes (27).
"It wasn't that we made (ball control) a special focus or anything. It was something we continue to talk about. We talk about it at practice and meetings and film,” Argos head coach Mike Miller said.
“Today I thought he did a really nice job with that. Was seeing the field really well, which he usually does. That's what I tell you guys, every week Chad's a guy who's going to give us a chance. Made some really big plays today. So did the receivers and so did the line.”
Kelly’s favourite target was Damonte Coxie, who hit the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his five-year CFL career — all with the Argos — with six catches for 100 yards.
The six-foot-three Louisiana native, who had his grandfather in the stands to watch him in the CFL for the first time, is, in Kelly’s words, "big, fast, physical."
"I really admire how hard he works," Kelly continued. “Each and every day, he just comes to work, he wants to win every single rep. We're on the same page with what we see and we can adjust on the fly out there, which is awesome."
Said Coxie: "Chad makes me better. Chad pushes me every play. Most of the time, he's got a way he wants me to run things. I'm always open to how to improve my game. And Chad is always trying to improve. That's why we get along well. He coaches me up on everything and I'm just listening because I'm like a sponge."
The Ticats, since Bo Levi Mitchell suffered an ankle injury in the fourth game of the season, have had no one with close to Kelly’s talent at the game’s most important position.
Tre Ford got the Labour Day start, and was ruled out with a head injury after a first half in which he was hit hard a couple of times. The Canadian is as fast and elusive as any professional quarterback, as he showed on a 23-yard TD run, but he simply can’t throw the ball like Kelly.
Harrison Frost replaced Ford and promptly overthrew a pass that was intercepted by DaShaun Amos and returned 55 yards to the Hamilton two, giving the Argos a touchdown that pretty much put the game away.
The Ticats — heading in the wrong direction after finishing first in the East last year at 11-7 — are 2-7 without Mitchell and 4-9 overall. The loss gave Toronto the tiebreaker on Hamilton due to the Argos’ 2-1 season-series victory.
The East’s second-place Argos are now 2.5 games in front of the Ticats, who likely have to go 5-0 the rest of the way to prevent a West crossover for the East’s third and final playoff spot.
The Argos likely won’t catch the league-leading Montreal Alouettes (10-2) for first in the East. But they deserve credit for pushing themselves to .500 after playing 10 of their first 12 on the road due to the World Cup, in the aftermath of last year’s 5-13 finish.
"I think we're actually oblivious to (the schedule),” Miller, the team's first-year head coach, said. “I think something that this schedule has given us … is we already feel like it's us vs. everyone. When we come into this, we know it's just us. On that sideline, we're all we've got right there. We continue to prepare that way and play that way. We control what we control and that's execution. Put the ball down and tell us what the down and distance is and let's play."
The Argos return to action Saturday against former Toronto head coach Ryan Dinwiddie and the winless Ottawa Redblacks, while the Ticats have a bye week.
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