ARGONAUTS.CA STAFF
MISSISSAUGA– After a shortened day yesterday, the players were ready to go bright and early for another two high intensity practices.
After yesterdays impressive showing, Dontrelle Inman was given a chance on the first unit. Early on the added pressure of facing the Ds first unit clearly made his life more difficult, but as the day advanced, he got better and better. By the time the first practice of the day was over he got into a groove. He continued his progression into the second practice and dominated his one-on-ones. Inman has quickly become a player to watch at camp.
Receivers in general were very impressive in one-on-ones. Cory Boyd and Chad Owens made back-to-back diving catches, earning some loud cheers from their teammates.
Jason Barnes was unstoppable early on, catching every ball, including one that was tipped right before getting to him. As good as he has been from day one, the added responsibility he has received from the Maurice Mann injury has really allowed him to step up his game. He wasn’t as involved as the day went on, but that was surely a case of the coaches giving younger receivers more reps.
Among those young receivers was 2012 fourth round draft pick Quincy Hurst; and he definitely took advantage of the opportunity, leaving many defensive backs in his dust. The unfortunate injury bug that has hit the receiver core has allowed many young players to step up and show off the Argos offence’s impressive depth. Coach Milanovich, in his post practice media availability, praised Hurst saying “Yea, he’s pretty good, huh?”
Speaking of injured receivers, Maurice Mann could be spotted on the fence near where the receivers practice, enjoying some Tim Hortons. His morale was high despite missing his second practice in a row, as he could be seen and heard constantly cheering on his teammates. At one point he was even spotted doing push-ups.
For the first time at camp the offence dominated the twelve-on-twelve’s from start to finish. The D made some plays here and there but the offence appeared unstoppable. Especially when Ricky Ray was under center, it seemed like he could do what ever he wanted.
Despite the struggles, the defence was as intense as ever. They were jumping on every loose ball and being very vocal from the sidelines. Communication seems to be a key part of the Chris Jones defence, a system that the players have really embraced.
There was another first for the D today as they went through full walk through’s, this time including the linemen. Jones continues to implement his playbook, and although there is a definite learning curve, the defence seems to be catching on.
There was, however, one bright spot on the defence today: LineBacker Marcus Ball seems to be getting used to life in the CFL. He was inches away from a beautiful diving interception during tweleve-on-twelve’s, and did a great job of dropping into coverage all practice long.
The players will, once again, be on the field at 7:30am tomorrow morning. There is the possibility of a venue change, so make sure you stay linked to argonauts.ca to find out.