VANCOUVER — A player here this week in Vancouver with a non-participating team was talking about just how long a Grey Cup week can feel for the players in it.
The teams arrive on Monday and can begin practising on Tuesday, with their week of work officially getting underway on Wednesday. Their regular patterns of working out, practice, team meetings and maybe some media are blown up for these few days. Time slows down, they said. The five days it takes to get to Sunday can feel like 15 of them.
The wait is just about over for those ready-to-go players, for the thousands of fans who are headed to BC Place on Sunday and for millions of people across the country and beyond. The 111th Grey Cup is just two days away. CFL.ca’s writers have been thinking about many of the same things that you have. How will Nick Arbuckle perform, stepping in for the injured Chad Kelly? Can the Bombers end their two-year Grey Cup drought (we know; they’ve endured worse)? Can the Argos do this? Who’s taking home the individual hardware on Sunday night? We attempt to answer these questions in this 111th Grey Cup edition of The Weekly Say.
111th GREY CUP
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WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FROM NICK ARBUCKLE ON SUNDAY?
Matt Cauz: I expect a better game than many people think. Nick already faced the Winnipeg defence once this year, made three winning passes against Montreal and has so much support around him. I don’t expect him to light it up but I think he’ll give us a good game.
Kristina Costabile: Nick is going to play a lot better than many people are thinking he will. As long as he doesn’t try to do too much, which the Argos have been talking about all week, and limit mistakes against that tough Winnipeg defence, I think he’ll be fine.
Marshall Ferguson: Smart, smooth, risk averse and high efficiency.
Arbuckle was thrust into the national spotlight after Chad Kelly‘s season-ending injury in the Eastern Final (Thomas Skrlj/CFL.ca)
José Ferraz: A solid execution of the game plan. The Argos have preached all week that Arbuckle doesn’t have to be the hero and I expect the veteran quarterback to live by those words on Sunday.
Vicki Hall: Not sure if Nick Arbuckle can write the fairytale here, but I expect him to play a disciplined, smart game. He’ll put the ball in the hands of his offensive weapons — and, if all goes to the Toronto game plan, the defence and special teams will take it from there.
Chris O’Leary: A lot of us instinctively jump to Ryan Dinwiddie being thrown into the 2007 Grey Cup game and how it fared for him. This isn’t the same situation for Arbuckle. I think if he follows Dinwiddie’s advice and doesn’t try to do too much — something Chad Kelly was guilty of in the early stages of the Eastern Final last week — the Argos have a shot.
Patrick Steinberg: We’re talking about a guy starting the biggest game of his career with more perspective than he’s ever had after all the adversity he’s faced over the last five years. I honestly think we’re going to get a solid night with limited mistakes from Arbuckle, allowing his strong run game and defence to also play a big part in Sunday’s game plan.
WHO WILL BE THE TOP RECEIVER IN THE GAME?
Cauz: Nic Demski, Zach Collaros‘ safety blanket. Kenny Lawler was the big star in the Western Final but I will go with the receiver who saw 10 targets against the Roughriders. Toronto’s bend-don’t-break pass defence will mean plenty of receptions for Demski.
Costabile: How can it not be Kenny Lawler? Lawler was last week’s top pass-catcher (which I correctly predicted, by the way!) They’ll need a veteran who’s been there, done that to be the guy in the biggest moment of the year. He can answer the bell.
Ferguson: Nic Demski. Dude is so smooth and always seems to meet the moment. He’s hungry and knows chances like this wont keep coming around forever.
Ferraz: Kenny Lawler. Despite how talented the receiver group in Toronto is, it’s hard to bet against Lawler (and Zach Collaros).
Hall: Gotta go with the hot hand(s) in Kenny Lawler.
O’Leary: Kenny Lawler feels like a safe guess here, given what we saw last week in the Western Final. These are games where your vets step up and I think that’s what Lawler will do on Sunday.
Steinberg: I’ll go with Ontaria Wilson, just knowing how much attention Kenny Lawler is set to receive after his torrid last few weeks. Lawler will happily play decoy if it means a Grey Cup title.
WILL THE ARGOS SCORE A NON-OFFENSIVE TOUCHDOWN?
Cauz: The odds say no but the personnel says yes. Between that Argonauts pass rush, the instincts of Wynton McManis and all things Janarion Grant I will go with a resounding yes.
Costabile: Yes. I think this will be a defensive score though. The Bombers cover team has just been too good, they haven’t allowed a punt or kick return touchdown this season, and I don’t know if Janarion Grant, even with how talented he is, will be able to break free.
Ferguson: They have to if they want to win the game, no way around it.
Ferraz: I’m going to go with no. The Bombers haven’t allowed a single punt or kick return touchdown in 2024, so it’s hard for Janarion Grant – despite how good he has been – to break one, and defensive touchdowns are too unpredictable.
Hall: Yes. Absolutely. My picks are Wynton McManis and/or Janarion Grant, for obvious reasons.
O’Leary: If you asked me this at the start of the playoffs, I’d say probably not, but that defence has been especially keyed in through its past two games and Janarion Grant, as we saw last week, loves a big stage. TLDR? Yes. The answer is yes.
Steinberg: As strong as Toronto’s defence has been all season, I’m going to say no.
WHO WILL BE THE GAME’S MVP? MOST VALUABLE CANADIAN?
Cauz: Let’s go with Ka’Deem Carey running behind an elite offensive line on a night where it will be all hands on deck for every Toronto skill position player. As for Most Valuable Canadian, let’s go with St. Catharines, Ont.’s own Lirim Hajrullahu. I expect a close game between the league’s two best teams. The margin of victory easily could down to one field goal.
Costabile: Brady Oliveira. Double dips at CFL Awards night and at the game.
Ferguson: Zach Collaros finally gets over the three-year hump and adds another diamond-worthy performance to his already big, shiny career while Nic Demski plays leading man on the receiving end and barley gets the MVC vote over teammate Brady Oliveira.
Ferraz: Brady Oliveira, both.
Hall: Zach Collaros MVP. Brady Oliveira will add another trophy to his collection with MVC.
O’Leary: I could have a recency bias, having just seen him pose with a pair of distinguished awards less than 12 hours ago, but Brady Oliveira seems like a safe bet here. Maybe for both, Henoc Muamba style?
Steinberg: Zach Collaros, Kevens Clercius.
WHO WILL WIN THE GAME?
Cauz: Toronto with the upset, 24-22 over Winnipeg.
Costabile: For the W. I’m going with Winnipeg.
Ferguson: Bombers start fast, Argos reel them back in and Winnipeg steps on the gas in third quarter to pull away.
Ferraz: Winnipeg. It’ll be a close, hard-fought game but the Bombers’ experience will give them the final edge.
Hall: Winnipeg. Adversity makes way for victory, pain leads to joy — the Blue Bombers have learned from the last two Grey Cup defeats. It’s their time.
O’Leary: Have you seen my picks record this year? I’m sparing both teams the kiss of death and abstaining.
Steinberg: Winnipeg.