Nick Arbuckle is once again highlighting the significance of having depth at the quarterback position in the CFL.
Arbuckle is set to start on Friday night when the Grey Cup-champion Toronto Argonauts take on the Montreal Alouettes. Starting quarterback Chad Kelly suffered a major leg injury during last year’s East Division final and has just been cleared to practice.
Kelly had to undergo surgery for a fractured tibia and fibula that he sustained in Toronto’s 30-28 victory over Montreal. This situation propelled Arbuckle into the starting role for the Grey Cup match against Winnipeg, where he delivered an impressive performance, throwing for 252 yards and two touchdowns, earning him MVP honors in the Argonauts’ 41-24 win.
Kelly, who was named the CFL’s 2023 outstanding player, missed the entire pre-season and the first nine regular-season games last year due to a suspension for breaching the league’s policy on gender-based violence.
Toronto had a 5-4 record before Kelly returned, with Cameron Dukes (4-4) and Arbuckle (1-0) taking turns as quarterbacks. Dukes was recently released during the Argos’ final roster cuts.
Kelly has a remarkable record of 20-5 as a starting quarterback, while Arbuckle has made 25 career starts (10-15).
This situation further emphasizes the need for depth at the quarterback position in the CFL, a lesson not lost on many teams, with eight of the nine clubs currently having backup quarterbacks on their rosters.
On Friday night, Davis Alexander will kick off his first full season as Montreal’s starting quarterback. Supporting him will be veteran McLeod Bethel-Thompson, a two-time Grey Cup champion with Toronto (2017, ’22) who played last season with Edmonton.
Alexander, age 26, had an undefeated record of 4-0 last season while replacing injured veteran Cody Fajardo. However, this marks just his fourth season in the CFL and his first as the Als’ starting QB.
Bethel-Thompson has 60 career CFL starts (27-33) and was the league’s leading passer in 2022, accumulating 4,731 yards and 23 touchdowns as Toronto secured the Grey Cup.
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Dru Brown is beginning his second season as Ottawa’s starting quarterback, with a record of 10-7-1. Behind him are Dustin Crum and Tyrie Adams, both of whom have started games for the Redblacks, though Adams is out for the season after suffering a knee injury during his first CFL start in 2023.
Bo Levi Mitchell, returning for Hamilton after leading the CFL in passing yards (5,451) and touchdowns (32) last year, will aim to become the fastest player in league history to achieve 100 career regular-season wins. He will look to do this when the Tiger-Cats begin their season against the Calgary Stampeders on Saturday.
A victory in Calgary would mark Mitchell’s 141st career start, putting him ahead of Hall of Famers Ron Lancaster (149) and Tracy Ham (151). Injuries limited Mitchell to just six games in 2023, while rookie Taylor Powell made nine starts and one additional start last year.
Nathan Rourke is set to start the season as B.C.’s quarterback. The CFL’s top Canadian player in 2022 returned to the Lions last year after spending some time in the NFL with Jacksonville, New England, the New York Giants, and Atlanta, where he shared playing time with veteran Vernon Adams.
Adams Jr.
B.C. traded Adams Jr. to Calgary and subsequently signed veteran Jeremiah Masoli, who has made 59 career CFL starts with a record of 28-31.
Tre Ford, 27, is set to start his first full season as Edmonton’s number one quarterback. The 2021 Hec Crighton Trophy recipient from Niagara Falls, Ontario, signed a three-year contract extension with the Elks after achieving a 9-9 record since he was picked in the first round of the 2022 CFL draft.
Edmonton traded the rights to Bethel-Thompson to Montreal in exchange for the rights to Fajardo, the 2023 Grey Cup MVP. Fajardo, 33, is younger than Bethel-Thompson (36) and maintains a solid 43-29-1 record as a starter in the CFL.
Adams Jr. faces the challenge of leading Calgary back to the CFL playoffs after they missed the postseason last year for the first time since 2004. The 32-year-old is entering his ninth season in Canada with a record of 38-22 as a starter.
Behind Adams Jr. are P.J. Walker and Josh Love, both new to the CFL. Walker joined the Stampeders late in the previous season, having played in 21 NFL games (with nine starts) from 2020 to 2023.
Trevor Harris, 39, is back as the starting quarterback for Saskatchewan, marking his 13th season in the CFL. However, injuries have limited him to just 17 regular-season starts over the last two years.
Behind Harris is…
Jake Maier, who played 45 games over four years with Calgary (18-26-1), joined Saskatchewan this off-season.
Zach Collaros, now in his 13th CFL season, aims to guide Winnipeg to a sixth consecutive Grey Cup appearance and their third championship. The 36-year-old American recently signed a one-year deal with the Bombers.
However, it is anticipated that veteran Chris Streveler will take the starting position when Winnipeg begins its season against B.C. on June 12. Collaros received a one-game suspension last month for not responding to an off-season drug test.
Streveler, 30, encountered a season-ending knee injury during a 26-21 victory over Saskatchewan on September 7. He secured a one-year extension with the Bombers this off-season and has 13 career starts in the CFL (5-8).
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