LUCAS PALLESCHI – ARGOS ADMRIALS INSIDER
TORONTO – An uncharacteristic loss last week by the Toronto Argonauts puts them in third place with 12 points in the East and a whole lot of pressure to beat the Hamilton Tiger Cats on Saturday. Last week’s matchup marks the third time this year that the Argos were unable to score a single touchdown. Traditionally this would raise a few questions, but in a practical sense it’s plain and simple.
The emphasis for this week’s matchup must be put on how much the Argos want to play in the post-season. While I can sit here and nit-pick everything they should work on in order for that to happen, there is just one underlying factor that could improve their game significantly for this week and thereafter.
The Will to Win.
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Related: Argos vs. Ticats |
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VIDEO: Ray Knows It’s Must Win |
Will is a huge driving factor in sports that almost always separates the good from the great. It’s the every being and fibre inside a person and team that proves to be unstoppable when the going gets tough. It’s the force behind success and in sport it is everything.
For the most part, I do believe the Argos have will, especially the will to win, they just need to motivate their will a little bit in order to bring back their type of play that allowed them to win three games in a row. More importantly, to come into this week’s matchup with the type of game that shows not only the Tiger-Cats, but teams around the league that these Boys in Blue are a force and when all is said and done will be the last team standing in November.
Luckily for the Argos, a team that possesses so much skill and talent, the type of game plan they should adopt this week is simple. Scrap safety and go for high energy. The Argos are going to want to set a precedent, especially after their less than stellar performance last week. Their play this week should reflect a hard and fast game similar to what enabled their fourth quarter comeback against Hamilton just two weeks ago. Their first play of the game should be their biggest so they can get the fans into the game right away and feed off of the energy in the stadium.
It will also be important for the O-Line to keep Ray clean as that allows him to go through his progressions and find the open receiver. The more time Ricky is provided, the more potent the Argos vertical attack can be.
The Tiger-Cats were another team that had trouble putting the ball in the end zone last week. The Argos can dismantle them by using every opportunity to be versatile in their passing attack. Let’s not forget that with the Argos two points back of second place with only three games left; they have to do whatever it takes to win