CFL Pre-Season Preview: One burning question for all nine teams

The grind of CFL training camp will give way to pre-season action starting Monday when the Calgary Stampeders host the Edmonton Elks in the first of 10 exhibition games.

Things get going for real on June 8 when the Stampeders entertain the B.C. Lions in the season opener.

As usual, there was plenty of roster movement during the off-season.

At most, two teams will have the same opening-day quarterback in 2023 that they had in 2022 — two-time reigning MVP Zach Collaros of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and, maybe, Jeremiah Masoli of the Ottawa Redblacks, if he is healthy. However, seven of nine head coaches are back — the exceptions are Khari Jones of the Montreal Alouettes and Paul LaPolice of the Ottawa Redblacks.

Let’s cross the country and ask one burning question about each team.

Montreal Alouettes: Was GM Danny Maciocia able to withstand off-season ownership drama?

The good news for the Alouettes is they finally have a local owner with deep pockets in Pierre Karl Peladeau.

The bad news is Peladeau didn’t take over the team until March, buying it from the CFL after it purchased the team from a previous ownership group that fell apart.

That meant the reigning East Division runner-up went through free agency without an owner — and there were key departures, notably quarterback Trevor Harris (Saskatchewan), receivers Eugene Lewis (Edmonton) and Jake Wieneke (Saskatchewan) and linebacker Adarius Pickett (Toronto).

The Alouettes just couldn’t compete for many of the CFL’s top free agents because of their ownership situation, but the hard-working Maciocia did everything in his power to maintain a competitive roster.

Maciocia, who took the head coaching reins early last season after firing Jones, replaced himself as head coach with former Saskatchewan offensive co-ordinator Jason Maas and signed ex-Roughriders quarterback Cody Fajardo to take Harris’ spot — a free-agency trade if you will.

The latter two men certainly have something to prove. If they can bounce back after down 2022 campaigns, it will go a long way toward making the Alouettes a contender for an East crown.

The Alouettes haven’t played in a Grey Cup since 2010, the longest active streak in the CFL.

Ottawa Redblacks: Can head coach Bob Dyce get the team on the winning track after having the interim tag removed?

Longtime CFL assistant Bob Dyce was named head coach of the Redblacks this off-season after getting the interim job for the final four games of 2022 following the firing of LaPolice.

It’s an opportunity that didn’t present itself for Dyce after he was interim head coach of Saskatchewan in 2015.

Ottawa’s special-teams co-ordinator since 2016, the Winnipeg native has done a good job with that unit and the team played hard for him after the coaching change.

But there will be much more pressure this year, the second under GM Shawn Burke, after last year’s 4-14 showing — which included an 0-9 mark at home. The Redblacks were terrible in many close games under LaPolice — and Dyce has to figure out how to get them on the winning side of those tilts.

A huge success as a franchise after returning to the league in 2014, the Redblacks have struggled the past three seasons and are at risk of losing fans if they don’t turn it around.

Having Masoli back should help after he suffered a season-ending leg injury in Week 4 last year.

Dyce has a new offensive co-ordinator with head coaching experience — Jones — and a new defensive co-ordinator — ex-Montreal DC Barron Miles.

Toronto Argonauts: Is Chad Kelly ready to be a top starting quarterback?

After winning the Grey Cup with the Argos last year, McLeod Bethel-Thompson decided to return south of the border and play with the USFL.

That elevated Kelly, last season’s backup, to the starter’s role and the team has no experienced CFL backup on the roster.

The nephew of former Buffalo Bills star quarterback, Chad Kelly orchestrated a game-winning TD drive for the Argos in last year’s Grey Cup against Winnipeg after Bethel-Thompson was hurt.

Kelly certainly has an interesting resume, along with a big arm and the ability to scramble.

Mr. Irrelevant as the last pick in the NFL Draft (253^rd overall by the Denver Broncos in 2017), the Ole Miss product saw barely any time with Denver and the Indianapolis Colts over four years before coming to Toronto in 2022.

Kelly hasn’t been a regular starter since 2016 in college. Seven years later, he has a golden opportunity — and might just earn another crack at the NFL if he can succeed in Toronto.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats: Can QB Bo Levi Mitchell return to MOP form with a new team?

After an outstanding run with the Calgary Stampeders, Mitchell lost his starting job to Jake Maier midway through last season.

The Stampeders traded the pending free agent’s rights to the Ticats in the off-season and he then signed a three-year deal with Hamilton. He's joined by a marquee linebacker from the Stamps — Jameer Thurman.

There’s no doubt the Ticats needed better play at the quarterback position after Dane Evans stumbled last year.

Mitchell, 33, led the Stampeders to four Grey Cup berths and was the CFL’s most outstanding player twice during a 10-year run in Hamilton, but all those achievements came before 2019.

Since then, he’s battled injuries and has not been the same standout player.

With Hamilton hosting the Grey Cup game this year, the franchise couldn’t afford to enter 2023 with an unproven quarterback. The Ticats need the best version of Mitchell to have a shot to win at home and break the CFL’s longest Grey Cup drought — since 1999.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers: Will the return of WR Kenny Lawler lead the team to new heights?

There’s not much bad to say about the Blue Bombers, other than the fact they lost to Toronto in a close Grey Cup last year, denying Winnipeg a three-peat.

While the loss stung, there was no reason for the Blue Bombers to make major changes. For the most part, they have stuck with their core, bringing back the majority of their big names along with two-time reigning CFL coach of the year Mike O’Shea.

A familiar face also returns in Lawler, who led the league in receiving yards in 2021 before signing with Edmonton last year.

On a team without a stable starting quarterback, Lawler still put up 894 receiving yards in 12 games last year.

Now, working with Collaros, he gives the Bombers a big 1-2 receiving threat with reigning rookie of the year Dalton Schoen.

Saskatchewan Roughriders: Can coach Craig Dickinson and GM Jeremy O’Day right the ship?

After guiding the Roughriders to appearances in the West final in their first two seasons, Dickinson and O’Day hit a major roadblock last year.

With the Roughriders hosting the Grey Cup, the team nose-dived after a 4-1 start and missed the playoffs at 6-12.

Off-field problems combined with an on-field mess to create the feel of dysfunction.

The Roughriders, however, resisted the urge to part ways with their football ops leaders — Maas and Fajardo were instead thrown overboard.

Harris now gets a shot in Saskatchewan after a nice season last year in Montreal. He’ll have to hope the offensive line has improved in Regina after the Roughriders gave up a franchise-record 77 sacks last year.

Edmonton Elks: Can GM/coach Chris Jones orchestrate another Year 2 turnaround?

In his previous two runs as a CFL head coach, Jones has seen his team improve both times in his second season — Edmonton won the Grey Cup in 2015 after going 12-6 the previous year and Saskatchewan went 10-8 and lost in the East final in 2017 after going 5-13 in 2016.

There was a bit of a revolving-door feel to the Elks roster in 2022 as Jones tried to find some pieces to stabilize a franchise that has been going in the wrong direction for several years.

The Elks finished 4-14, but the team did appear to identify a starting quarterback in Taylor Cornelius.

The team was busy in the off-season, signing Lewis and ex-Ticat Steven Dunbar Jr. to give Cornelius top receiving threats.

Lewis has continually put up big numbers with an Alouettes franchise that seemed to change quarterbacks every few weeks until Harris locked down the job last year. He’s poised for another big season if Cornelius can step up.

The Elks desperately need some success as attendance has been poor in recent years for what once was one of the CFL’s flagship franchises. Edmonton has lost an astounding 17 games in a row at home — a streak that dates back to the pre-pandemic 2019 season.

Calgary Stampeders: Can the team get over the West semifinal hump?

The Stampeders have made the playoffs 17 years in a row, easily the longest active streak in the league.

That’s fine and dandy, but they’re going to need to do more to help boost sagging attendance numbers at aging McMahon Stadium.

The Stampeders have lost in the West semifinal the past three seasons — a stretch in which the division rival Winnipeg Blue Bombers have been the class of the league.

They’re betting on Maier to take his game to the next level now that he’ll have his first training camp as the No. 1 man under his belt.

Defensively, some key cogs are gone — including Thurman and defensive end Shawn Lemon (signed with B.C. but released on Sunday). Julian Howsare comes over from Hamilton to try to fill Lemon’s shoes.

B.C. Lions: Can QB Vernon Adams Jr. come anywhere close to matching Nathan Rourke’s production?

The Lions, and the CFL as a whole, lost their most marketable star when Rourke signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars this off-season.

Rourke was that elusive Canadian quarterback to break through, putting up massive numbers before suffering a mid-season foot injury.

The Lions acquired Adams Jr. in a trade with Montreal after Rourke was sidelined, and he kept the Lions in the playoff mix before the star QB returned at the end of the season.

Now, with Rourke gone, Adams Jr. gets a chance to prove he can be a No. 1 guy again after losing his job in Montreal. It’s unfair to expect him to be Rourke, but he’ll need to be good for the Lions to return to the West final and perhaps take that next step.

The Lions also acquired Evans in a trade with Hamilton and he could push for playing time after last season’s disappointment. Evans helped the Ticats advance to the Grey Cup game in 2019 and 2021.