Last season a pair of Canadians received more playing time than at any point in their young CFL careers. Both took advantage of the opportunity and are once again trying to impress at the Toronto Argonauts training camp.
Dejon Brissett was selected with the second overall pick in the 2020 CFL Draft. In his first two seasons he didn’t see a lot of time at receiver; the most catches he had in a year was 10, the most yards 131.
Last season Brissett became a bigger part of the offence with 38 catches for 594 yards and 5 touchdowns. He’s become the playmaker the Argos thought they’d acquired when they used such a lofty draft pick to select him.
This year the expectations are even higher. He’s been a part of the first offensive unit each day during practice and he’s been making plays when given the chance.
“My goal this year is to be reliable,” he told Argonauts.ca. “To be somebody that everyone has confidence in, make the routine plays and to make the spectacular ones too – just to contribute to every part of the offence and every part of the game including (special) teams.”
The Mississauga native, who attended Loyola Secondary before attending prep school in Illinois, has shown he can pull off the highlight catches. Last year on the second play of the July 21 game in Hamilton, Brissett pulled off a circus catch, adjusting to the ball in mid-air by spinning clockwise, reaching up with one hand, and with his back to the goal line and him falling to the ground, making the catch for a 50-yard gain, setting up a Cameron Dukes touchdown run shortly thereafter.
The Argos have some serious depth in their Canadian receiving corps. Veterans Brissett, Dave Ungerer III, Tommy Nield, and Ritchie Sindani are joined by Kevin Mital, the fifth-overall pick in this year’s CFL draft.
Five talented players, two starting spots. Does this lead to fierce competition, or is this a case of a high level of talent pushing each other to make the entire group better?
“A little bit of both,” said Brissett. “We all want to play, we all want to be on the field, so iron sharpens iron for sure. The good thing about this group is that as much as we’re competing, we’re helping each other out. I feel like we’re doing well.”
Dan Adeboboye was someone the Argos hoped would slide to the 15th overall pick in the 2022 draft, at one point trying to trade up to get him. He didn’t touch the ball often as a rookie running back but saw more action on offence last year and showed why the Argos were so keen to draft him.
He carried the ball 41 times for 187 yards and a touchdown. His average per carry was a whopping 7.0, the best in the CFL among running backs with at least 20 carries. He was also among the best Argos on special teams, recording 13 tackles.
He brings versatility to the team, as well as a team-first attitude.
“My personal goal is to just do my job again,” he told Argonauts.ca. “I’ve been blessed to have a job that I love to do. This life is so much bigger than me. I’m here to make the people around me better. I’m here to give them hope, give them focus, give them determination and lead by example the best way that I know how.”
The product of Northern Secondary is a man of strong faith. It’s something that’s exceptionally important in his life and he uses that core of values to help make him a better teammate.
“I look to that as an example of a servant/leader,” he explained. “I want to serve my teammates; I want to serve the coaches. I want to be here to lead the team in whatever way that is, if it’s on offence, great. If that’s on special teams, great. If that’s cheering the guys on from the sideline, great. I’m just here to serve my team and hopefully we can be as successful as we possibly can be.”
The Argos arguably have the best Canadian starting talent and Canadian depth in the league. It will continue to improve this year with additional contributions from players like Brissett and Adeboboye.
ARGO NOTES: The team worked on no-huddle on Thursday. The offence looked sharp with Cameron Dukes at QB, driving the ball some 50 yards on its three plays to move inside the 10-yard line. Rookie defensive back Chris Steele then made back-to-back plays in the end zone, the first along the sideline, the second a fantastic knockdown on a crossing route along the goal line…Bryan Scott would later hit Trea Shropshire with a perfect ball down the left sideline for a 30-yard TD…Ritchie Sindani continued to make plays, including a couple of TD catches during ‘skelly’…The team again spent a decent amount of time on special teams. Punter John Haggerty had players on the sidelines oohing and ahhing while watching several of his punts sail through the air, forcing returners to retreat to make the catch. The third-year Argo has had a stellar camp so far.