The Toronto Argonauts (8-6) hosted the Edmonton Elks (10-4) on Saturday afternoon at BMO Field. Before the game, the Elks moved running back ShunDerrick Powell to the one-game injured list and promoted Montrell Washington to the active roster.
Edmonton got the ball to start the first quarter at the 48-yard line. Running back Justin Rankin had two carries for 11 yards, and quarterback Cody Fajardo threw two passes for 25 yards to the 26-yard line. Kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 33-yard field goal to give the Elks a 3-0 lead with 11:44 left.
The Argonauts had the ball on the 40-yard line. Quarterback Chad Kelly threw a 56-yard pass to Tyler Kahnmann to the 14-yard line. Then, Kelly avoided pressure before throwing a touchdown pass to Kevin Mital for a 7-3 lead with 10:38 left on a two-play drive for 70 yards. Kelly did limp to the sidelines after the play.
Late in the first quarter, Toronto had the ball on the 29-yard line. On the second play, Chad Kelly threw a 48-yard pass to David Ungerer III, plus a roughing the pass penalty on Edmonton moved the ball to the 18-yard line. On the next play, Kelly rushed for six yards to the 12-yard line before the drive stalled. Kicker Lirim Hajurllahu made a 20-yard field goal for a 10-3 lead to end the first quarter. Toronto’s offense had 143 yards, and Edmonton’s offense had 56 yards.
In the second quarter, Toronto’s offense moved the ball to the 13-yard line. On the next play, Edmonton’s defense pressured Kelly, forcing him to overthrow his wide receiver Tyler Kahmann, and intercepted by Kordell Jackson in the endzone. Cody Fajardo threw three passes for 59 yards to move the offense to the one-yard line. Fajardo snuck his way into the endzone, tying the game 10-10 with 4:49 left on a seven-play drive for 80 yards.
Late in the second quarter, Toronto had the ball on the 31-yard line. Chad Kelly threw three passes for 51 yards to the 28-yard line. On the next play, Kelly threw a one-yard pass to Kevin Mital, but Edmonton defensive back Chelen Garnes punched, resulting in a grade-two unnecessary roughness penalty and moving the ball to the 19-yard line. On the next play, Toronto wide receiver Damonte Coxie and Edmonton defensive back J.J. Ross also got at it, with getting unnecessary roughness penalties. Then, Edmonton’s defense brought pressure to Kelly. Kelly escaped several times before running to his left side and throwing a 19-yard touchdown pass to Dymere Miller for a 17-10 lead with 2:16 left on a seven-play drive for 91 yards.
Edmonton’s offense moved the ball to the 11-yard line, where kicker Vincent Blanchard made an 18-yard field goal. The Elks trailed the Argonauts 17-13 at halftime.
Toronto’s offense had 283 yards, 10 first downs, and five for eight on second down. Quarterback Chad Kelly went 13 of 19 for 289 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and one carry for six yards. Running back Qualan Jones had one carry for no yards. Wide receiver Kevin Mital made four catches for 78 yards and one touchdown, while David Ungerer III made three catches for 60 yards, and Dymere Miller made two catches for 33 yards and one touchdown.
Edmonton’s offense had 226 yards, 13 first downs, and 6 for 13 on second down. Quarterback Cody Fajardo went 14 of 19 for 169 yards, six carries for 13 yards, and one rushing touchdown. Running back Justin Rankin had eight carries for 44 yards. Wide receiver Austin Mack made four catches for 61 yards, and Joshua Cephus made three catches for 37 yards.
In the third quarter, Edmonton had the ball on the 51-yard line. On the third play, Cody Fajardo threw a 31-yard pass to Austin Mack to the 11-yard line. Toronto defensive back Benjie Franklin was hurt after the play when he made contact with a teammate. The Elks moved the ball two more yards before kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 16-yard field goal. The Elks trailed the Argonauts 17-16 with 10:41 left.
Toronto quarterback Chad Kelly threw a 57-yard pass to Dymere Miller to the 13-yard line. Two plays later, Kelly attempted to throw the ball to Damonte Coxie in the endzone, but Edmonton defensive back J.J. Ross made a one-handed interception.
Cody Fajardo threw two passes for 25 yards to the 36-yard line. On the next play, Edmonton center David Beard snapped the ball over Fajardo’s head. There was a scramble for the ball before Toronto defensive lineman Ralph Holley came away with the ball, broke a tackle, and scored a touchdown for a 24-16 lead with 6:37 left.
Edmonton’s offense had the ball on the 36-yard line. They moved the ball to the four-yard line. On the next play, Cody Fajardo overthrew Austin Mack, and it was intercepted by Benjie Franklin in the endzone to end the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Toronto would go two-and-out. Edmonton had issues holding on to the ball. Returner Montreal Washington fumbled the ball on a punt return, but the Elks were able to keep it. Later, Cody Fajardo completed a seven-yard pass to Justin Rankin. Toronto defensive back Derek Slywka hit the ball out, and Edmonton recovered it on the 11-yard line. Kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 19-yard field goal. The Elks trailed the Argonauts 24-19 with 11:31 left.
After Toronto went two-and-out, Edmonton had the ball on the 35-yard line. Running back Justin Rankin had five carries for 23 yards to the 35-yard line. Kicker Vincent Blanchard attempted a 42-yard field goal, but he missed it wide right with 6:09 left.
Late in the game, Edmonton had the ball on the 40-yard line. The Elks moved the ball to the 17-yard line. On the next play, Cody Fajardo’s pass intended for Joshua Cephus was intercepted by Tarvarus McFadden in the endzone to end the game. The Argonauts beat the Elks 24-19 to clinch a playoff spot and end Edmonton’s four-game winning streak.
Toronto’s offense had 354 yards (373 passing yards, one yard rushing, 18 yards lost), 14 first downs, 6 of 15 in second downs, 2 for 5 in the redzone, and the team was penalized seven times for 56 yards. Quarterback Chad Kelly completed 19 of 31 passes (61.3%) for 373 yards, two touchdowns, two interceptions, and one carry for six yards. Running back Qualan Jones had two carries for one yard.
Wide receiver Dymere Miller made three catches for 90 yards and one touchdown, while Kevin Mital made four catches for 78 yards and one touchdown, and Tyler Kahmann made two catches for 67 yards. The defense made 66 tackles, one tackle for loss, two sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and one touchdown.
Edmonton’s offense had 483 yards (360 passing yards, 152 rushing yards, 29 yards lost), 30 first downs, 15 of 30 in second downs, 1 for 6 in the redzone, and the team was penalized six times for 65 yards. Quarterback Cody Fajardo completed 31 of 42 passes (74%) for 360 yards, two interceptions, 12 carries for 63 yards, and one rushing touchdown. Running back Justin Rankin had 21 carries for 89 yards and five catches for 47 yards.
Wide receiver Austin Mack made seven catches for 116 yards, reaching the 1,000-yard club for the season, and Brendan O’Leary-Orange made eight catches for 65 yards. The defense made 27 tackles, six tackles for loss, two sacks, two interceptions, and two forced fumbles.
Next Friday, the Toronto Argonauts visit the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at 8 pm on TSN, CBS Sports Network, and CFL+, while the Edmonton Elks host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday at 7 pm on TSN and CFL+.
