Many an old-school football offensive coach will tell you that “When you throw the ball three things can happen and two of them are bad.”
The mindset for the Toronto Argonauts secondary differs a little bit. The group feels that completions are unacceptable, incompletions are much better, but boy do they love the idea of an interception.
And why not? It’s a talent-laden group that packs a lot of experience and a hunger for the football.
There are a couple of newcomers who are expected to be a part of the starting group; halfback DaShaun Amos and safety Royce Metchie.
Metchie was able to sign the week before the free agency period officially opened as his rights were acquired from Calgary in exchange for the rights to Cam Judge. Both players used the week-long negotiating period leading up to free agency to work out deals with their new teams. The trade was made so both teams could get the paperwork done before all hell broke loose on February 8, the day the Argos signed Amos, among others.
The Brampton native, who played on the same University of Guelph field the Argos are holding their training camp, is thrilled to be playing close to home again.
“It’s amazing,” Metchie told Argonauts.ca. “Not just home; college, everything. It’s been great; not just for me, but it’s going to be great for my family and everyone. I get to stay home, keep some connections a little strong, which I like. I’m excited.”
It’s been a big year for the Metchies with Royce coming home to Toronto and his brother John, a receiver with Alabama, winning the Jon Cornish Award as the top Canadian playing in the NCAA for a second time. He was a second-round selection by Houston in last month’s NFL Draft.
Now that he’s an Argo, there’s a sense of familiarity for Metchie. He knew exactly what he was walking into when he chose to sign with the organization.
“No surprises. I only say that because I know a couple of guys that were here. I had a little conversation about what it was like, so I had an idea of what I was going to walk into. I think as a pro it’s important to prepare when you’re going somewhere new, to do a little homework to understand what situation you might be in.”
As happy as he is to be home, the Argos are equally thrilled to see how he’s played at the safety spot. His combination of ability and intelligence make him a perfect fit for that position. Metchie is not the only one on the back end to share those traits.
While not a member of the starting group, Tarvarus McFadden has shown why the Argos like him, and there’s a lot to like.
He has good size for a DB at a long 6’1” and 200 pounds. Mentally, he’s a ballhawk, something he showed in his playing days at Florida State. In his sophomore year with the Seminoles, he intercepted eight passes, was named an All-American, won the Jack Tatum Award as the best defensive back in the NCAA, and was a finalist for the Bronco Nagurski Award, which is named after the Ontario-born legend and presented to the top defensive player of the year in the NCAA.
McFadden declared for the NFL draft after his junior season, but it didn’t work out the way he had hoped. In three seasons after leaving FSU he spent time with three NFL teams and one XFL team before signing with the Argos last year. McFadden was asked by Argonauts.ca the differences between his game at its peak with the Seminoles and now.
“At this position you have to have short-term memory,” he replied. “You’ve got to be able to deal with adversity. You’ve got to just keep pushing forward and I fell like the whole time in my career has been that way. I’ve been hit with a lot of adversity, a lot of people would have wanted to give up or wanted to see me give up, but I believe in something that’s bigger than me and I know that I’m supposed to be here.”
He’s known as “T Time,” a moniker that was hung on him when he was a young kid growing up in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. “I used to play offence, so when I’d score, instead of ‘Show time’ I’d get ‘T time.’”
When training camp opened, it was obvious that some pretty good players were going to be looking for work when the process of cutting down the roster began. Second-year defensive back Treston Decoud was among those released this weekend, highlighting how good the talent in the secondary is.
McFadden is appreciative that’s he’s lived to play another day.
“Aw man, it’s just the nature of the business,” a suddenly somber McFadden said. “You never want to see anybody go, but everybody in the business, we all understand that at the end of the day there’s a certain number that’s going to be here. Of course, I’m happy to still be here, but I wish everybody the best who aren’t here anymore, and I hope that all of them get opportunities even if it’s not in Toronto.”
The secondary has come together nicely in camp under Defensive Coordinator Corey and Defensive Backs Coach Joshua Bell, both of whom Metchie knows from his days in Calgary.
With so much familiarity with coaches and teammates, Metchie’s answer was perfect when asked if there are many similarities between this defence and what they ran with the Stampeders.
“You’re going to have to wait for game one,” he said while sporting a broad smile.
Argo fans can’t wait for June 16 to find out for themselves.
ARGO NOTES:
After Friday’s game Head Coach Ryan Dinwiddie told the media that he wanted to work on his teams deep passing game, suggesting the quarterbacks didn’t have to try to be overly precise, just to let the receivers have a chance to make a play. On the first deep ball of the day McLeod Bethel-Thompson did just that and the result was a complete 50 yards downfield to A.J. Richardson…McFadden had a nice interception, perfectly undercutting a receiver right at his break…Practice was cut short by 20 minutes by Dinwiddie, who then told his team at midfield it was “A hell of a workday.”…The Argos had to make their first major round of cuts following Friday’s game. Released were quarterback Antonio Pipkin, receivers Chandler Worthy and Dres Anderson, running back Asnnel Robo, offensive lineman Jake Foshee, defensive lineman Kendall Futrell, defensive back Treston Decoud, linebackers Brady Sheldon and Solomon Ajayi, and kicker Toshiki Sato.