MONTREAL - Cody Fajardo knows the roles are reversed.
The reigning Grey Cup MVP still likes where his Montreal Alouettes stand compared to the Toronto Argonauts 12 months ago, because they know what it takes to win as the underdog.
The Alouettes and Argos are facing off in the CFL鈥檚 East Division final for the third consecutive year on Saturday at Molson Stadium.
Last year, Toronto was the defending champion with the league鈥檚 best record. This time around the Alouettes are in those shoes.
鈥淲e're in a better spot than they were in last year,鈥 Fajardo, the quarterback, said Friday near the Alouettes鈥 locker room at Olympic Stadium. 鈥淲e understand what their mentality has to be to come into our stadium and win that football game.
鈥淲e understood what it took, how locked in we were last year in order to beat the best team in the CFL, and so we know what it takes to win or lose this game tomorrow.鈥
Montreal forced nine turnovers 鈥 including four interceptions by Toronto quarterback Chad Kelly 鈥 in a stunning 38-17 upset last year at BMO Field after the Argos posted a historic 16-2 record in the regular season.
With Montreal (12-5-1) now the team to beat, Toronto is eager to flip the script.
"No question,鈥 head coach Ryan Dinwiddie said. 鈥淯s playing at home last year was disappointing, we had a good fan base that was (in Toronto) for that game. They've got a sellout so it's going to be a great environment.
鈥淵ou've got to win on the road when you don't get a first-round bye so we've got to go in there in order to get to our goal to play in the Grey Cup.鈥
Toronto (10-8 in the regular season) finished second in the East but has the hotter hand entering the game. The Argos have won five of their last seven, including a 58-38 victory over Ottawa in the East semifinal last week.
Meanwhile, Montreal went 2-4-1 in its last seven games and hasn鈥檛 played a meaningful contest since clinching first in the East on Sept. 28 鈥 despite losing 37-31 to Toronto on that same date.
The Argos won two of three games against the Alouettes this season, exposing a shaky Montreal run defence by rushing for over 100 yards on each occasion.
Montreal鈥檚 defence has been at the forefront of the team鈥檚 success dating back to last season, but this year it ranked seventh against the run.
"They got a great offence, they got a great O-line, great scheme, and a great running back in Ka'Deem Carey,鈥 Montreal safety Marc-Antoine Dequoy said of Toronto. 鈥淭hat will be our mandate 鈥 we definitely have to stop the run. They're a great team, (but) I'm confident that we'll be able to do this job."
Kelly, last year鈥檚 most outstanding player, missed the first nine games of this season for violating the CFL鈥檚 gender-based violence policy.
After shaking off some rust, he rounded into form late in the season and dominated with 358 passing yards, four TDs on 18-for-20 completions and a rushing major against Ottawa.
Alouettes head coach Jason Maas believes Kelly likely exorcised some playoff demons with that performance.
"He's probably a better quarterback because of it,鈥 Maas said. 鈥淲e're going to face the best Kelly that we've seen because he's gone through that adversity."
However, one area Montreal still excels in is limiting explosiveness. The Alouettes allowed the fewest 30-yard completions this season.
鈥淭hey play really sound defence,鈥 Kelly said. 鈥淣oel (Als defensive coordinator Noel Thorpe) is a heck of a coach back there, obviously 24 (Dequoy) a really good player.
鈥淭hey're going to try to rattle us, they're going to bring pressure. We know they like to do weird things that other teams throughout the CFL might not do so we're going to have to be ready.鈥
After getting off to a hot start, the Alouettes鈥 offence didn鈥檛 fire on all cylinders during the team鈥檚 end-of-season dip.
Over the final seven games, Fajardo posted a highest single-game total of 240 passing yards while running back Walter Fletcher鈥檚 best on the ground was 53, although both facets showed promise in a 28-27 loss to Winnipeg to end the season.
With all that in mind, Fajardo said it feels like Montreal can embrace an underdog mentality after all.
鈥淚t feels like the same situation,鈥 he said. 鈥淓verybody wanted to talk about Toronto all last year, and going into this game seems like everyone wants to talk about Toronto.
鈥淚t's lit a fire under the guys, I'll be honest with you. Lit a fire under me.鈥
NOTES: Alouettes star receiver Austin Mack (hamstring) was on Montreal鈥檚 depth chart after missing practice Thursday, but listed as a game-time decision. Defensive lineman Mustafa Johnson is out. 鈥 For Toronto, receiver Damonte Coxie is a game-time decision after missing the East semifinal. Linebacker Fraser Sopik is off the injured list.
鈥 With files from Dan Ralph in Toronto.
This report by 春色直播was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
