Redblacks find a way to lose to Argos despite Henry Burris' 426 passing yards

The vast majority of the time in a CFL game, if your quarterback throws for 426 yards with a 88.9 per cent completion percentage and doesn't toss an interception, you're going to win. That wasn't the case for the Ottawa Redblacks Sunday, though, as they still found a way to lose 30-24 to the Toronto Argonauts despite Henry Burris' remarkable passing performance. It was another illustration of what's gone wrong for the Redblacks this season, as they've done plenty of things right, but are still just 4-4. They were doomed by poor penalties and poor late-game play Sunday, and they'll have to sort that out if they don't want to keep wasting good offensive showings.

Burris' play Sunday was incredible, as he not only put up amazing yardage, but only had four incomplete passes on 36 attempts. Yes, he did fumble twice (with one lost), but his overall play was incredibly impressive. He also spread the ball around well, hooking up with six different receivers (another sign of how Ottawa's offseason receiver upgrades have paid off; five of the six players who recorded catches Sunday are new to the team this year). Ernest Jackson and Greg Ellingson led the way with six and four catches for 114 and 110 yards respectively, but fellow additions Brad Sinopoli (seven for 85), Chris Williams (five for 58) and Maurice Price (four for 28, plus a near-miss on a late deep route that could have been crucial). The only veteran Redblack who caught a pass Sunday was running back Jeremiah Johnson, who had six catches for 31 yards to go with his 41 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries. That's an indication of how much better Ottawa's receiving corps is this year, and how well Burris can play with a capable group of receivers.

The Redblacks still have a lot of issues, though. Penalties were a problem for them again Sunday, with some late ones proving particularly bad, and their defence had its own struggles against the pass. Argonauts' quarterback Trevor Harris threw for 266 yards and three touchdowns with a 67.7 per cent completion mark, and although Ottawa picked him off once and did a decent job of controlling the run, they gave up too much in the passing game. They were occasionally able to stop Toronto short of the end zone, but Argos' kicker Swayze Waters made all three of his field-goal attempts and averaged 50.6 yards on seven punts, meaning that the Redblacks often were pinned deep (especially considering that Williams and Chevon Walker were unimpressive in the return game). Ottawa also struggled with late-game playcalling and execution, often trying too-difficult deep passes, taking bad penalties, and giving up a critical sack to Toronto defensive tackle Cleyon Laing that eventually decided this one. The Redblacks have some potential, and their passing game was certainly strong Sunday, but there are plenty of problems with this team still. They'll need to resolve them if they don't want to waste further solid offensive performances.