Same old issues doom Ottawa Redblacks in elimination loss to Saskatchewan (& 10 other thoughts)

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Same old issues doom Ottawa Redblacks in elimination loss to Saskatchewan (& 10 other thoughts)

Photo courtesy: Scott Grant/CFLPhotoArchive.com

For the fifth time in six years, the Ottawa Redblacks will miss the playoffs.

Although technically the 2025 team’s playoff hopes ended with a 20-13 loss to the visiting Saskatchewan Roughriders at TD Place on Friday night, to even the most casual members of R-Nation, the warning signs had been flashing for months.

In a game Ottawa literally had to have, the Redblacks were done in by the same self-inflicted wounds that haunted them all season long. Slow starts, a failure to maximize the talents of their offensive weapons, sloppy turnovers, penalties that wiped out positive plays, and an overall lack of urgency all proved (yet again) too much to overcome.

Here are all my thoughts on the game.

1) Dru Brown’s worst game of the season couldn’t have come at a more inopportune time. The 28-year-old wasn’t the only reason Ottawa lost, but his poor performance — highlighted by three bad decisions that resulted in interceptions– dug his team a deep hole that it never managed to climb out of.

Before being pulled in the third quarter, Brown had completed just 55 percent of his passes for 141 yards, no touchdowns, and three turnovers. He was, in fact, fortunate not to be credited with a fourth interception as the deep jump ball he threw (to his running back?!) was ruled incomplete with the defender landing out of bounds.

Photo courtesy: Scott Grant/CFLPhotoArchive.com

Sometimes, when a quarterback is picked off, it can be chalked up to bad luck. That was not the case with the trio of interceptions Brown threw. The first was a throw he stared down, and on the second and third, he seemingly didn’t see the linebackers, who were always in the lane.

For much of the season, Brown has had a tendency to throw off his back foot into traffic. Sometimes those seemingly lobbed passes hit receivers in stride for decent gains. Other times, they look doomed from the moment the ball leaves his hands.

Complicating the loss is the questions that will now surround Brown as the Redblacks head into the off-season. Following another injury plagued campaign and this poor performance, will the organization still view him as the franchise pivot he was signed to be? Or will they bring in real competition to push him for playing time?

When he’s in a rhythm, Brown certainly looks like an upper-echelon quarterback. In four of his nine starts, he’s amassed more than 300 passing yards, and he’s crossed the 400-yard mark twice. Overall, he’s completed 71 percent of his passes, albeit in an offence that emphasizes short — and often lateral — passes.

On the flip side, Brown once again struggled to stay healthy, being knocked out of games three different times and missing five starts. He’s also only gone 2-7 as a starter this season.

However Ottawa’s next three games play out, when the Redblacks’ season ends on October 24, they’ll head into the off-season with questions surrounding a position that was seemingly settled.

2) Part of the reason there will be questions about Brown’s future in the nation’s capital is due to the development of third-year pro Dustin Crum.

The 26-year-old has grown by leaps and bounds this season. Not only has his accuracy improved significantly, but he’s also demonstrated that, when given opportunities to stretch the field, he has more than adequate arm strength to do so. Those traits, coupled with his game-changing scrambling ability, make the thought of an offence designed specifically for and tailored to his skill set intriguing.

Against Saskatchewan, Crum entered the game in the third quarter. He only had four possessions to work with the rest of the game, but led the drives that resulted in Ottawa’s only points of the game. Overall, Crum completed 75 percent of his passes for 99 yards and a touchdown.

He had a couple of bad overthrows, including missing a wide open Keelan White in the back of the end zone, but for the most part he put the ball where it needed to be. Most importantly, he avoided any turnovers.

Photo courtesy: Scott Grant/CFLPhotoArchive.com

3) When the 2025 season started, I could never have imagined that the Redblacks would struggle to score points. Given the bevy of talent available to offensive coordinator Tommy Condell, it seemed a forgone conclusion that whatever issues Ottawa might have, moving the ball and putting points on the board would not be one of them. Alas, I was wrong.

Who knew slow starts would be a staple of Condell’s offence? The loss to Saskatchewan marked the eighth time through 15 games that Ottawa failed to score a single point in the first quarter. Those deficits loomed large because of the 13 times Ottawa trailed at half-time, they went on to lose 11 of those games.

Who knew that another staple of that offence would be a severe lack of explosive plays? With playmakers like Eugene Lewis, Justin Hardy, Kalil Pimpleton, Bralon Addison, William Stanback and Daniel Adeboboye at his disposal, it’s incomprehensible that the Redblacks rank dead last in big plays — defined as 20+ yard runs or 30+ yard passing plays. Things are, in fact, so dire that of the 477 passes thrown by Ottawa quarterbacks so far this season, just 11 (yes, you read that right) have travelled more than 30 yards — and that’s including yards after the catch. I suppose that’s what happens when you run an offence that prefers throwing short of the sticks and hoping something good happens as opposed to having routes run past the first down marker.

Against Saskatchewan, the Redblacks mustered just 15 first downs. Poor first down production — Ottawa averaged just 4.9 yards per first down play — meant worse second down production, as evidenced by the team converting just 25 percent of their second down opportunities. That lack of execution meant that of Ottawa’s 12 possessions, eight failed to gain a first down.

Finally, in a one-score loss, going one of three in the red zone looms large.

4) What makes Ottawa’s offence so frustrating is that, through 15 games, their attack has no identity. It’s impossible to define one thing the offence does well. What’s their bread and butter?

As we’ve established above, it’s not big plays. And it’s not effective long drives. It’s not play-action, misdirection, or RPOs. And it’s not imposing their will via a run-heavy attack, because despite having two talented running backs on the roster, the Redblacks never truly committed to their running game.

Speaking of which, although William Stanback was given 11 carries for 39 yards, Daniel Adeboboye went the entire game without being handed the ball once, nor was he targeted. Given that he’s averaging 5.7 yards per carry on the ground and 8.3 yards per reception, perhaps he could’ve been useful in a game where Ottawa had to win to stay alive and had nothing going on offence for most of the night.

5) For all the issues the Redblacks had with their offence, their defence also wasn’t great. William Fields’ unit bent — and broke — on the first drive, and then seemed to settle in, as Saskatchewan’s next six possessions ended in punts. That’s a bit deceiving, though, as at times, Ottawa’s best defender was a drop or a rare misfire from quarterback Trevor Harris.

The reality is, the former Redblack shredded the soft zone looks that Ottawa repeatedly gave him, as evidenced by his 82 percent completion rate. For most of the night, it was as simple as pitch and catch.

The Redblacks’ secondary wasn’t just porous; almost no catches were contested when Saskatchewan receivers caught the ball. Ottawa’s defenders frequently missed opportunities to wrap them up early and limit the gain. Of Harris’ 341 passing yards, 157 came after the catch (46 percent). A number of players struggled with missed tackles, but perhaps none more than Canadian rookie King Ambers. An eighth-round pick in the 2025 CFL draft, Ambers was a late addition to the game roster as American defensive back Shakur Brown was scratched during pre-game warmups. Ambers did finish with three tackles but had the opportunity to make many more.

Ottawa’s defence held up well against the run, holding Saskatchewan to just 2.8 yards per rush, but gave up 10.3 yards per pass (aka a first down). It was also clear that as the game went on, the Redblacks’ defence wore out. Of Saskatchewan’s 19 total first downs, nine came on their final four possessions.

Defensive back Adrian Frye led the way with six tackles and a sack, while linebacker Adarius Pickett and defensive back C.J. Coldon also each made six tackles. Defensive end Bryce Carter had the play of the game and finished with four tackles, in addition to his fumble rumble.

6) This week’s trade of veteran defensive end Lorenzo Mauldin caught R-Nation off-guard. Even though it’s never easy to see a fan favourite leave town, it was a tidy bit of business from general manager Shawn Burke.

At 33 years old and in the midst of an underwhelming season in terms of actual production, getting a fourth-round pick back for a player on an expiring contract who was likely not going to return anyway makes a whole lot of sense.

With Mauldin in Calgary, the Redblacks started Michael Wakefield and Carter at defensive end. American Chase McGowan and Canadian Aidan John also saw increased snaps, which is never a bad thing for two young players the team will be hoping step into bigger roles next season. Giving them more reps now hopefully fast-forwards their development and growth.

7) As if gifting Saskatchewan eight points off of interceptions wasn’t enough, Ottawa’s special teams made sure to chip in towards the losing effort thanks to their own miscues.

Whether it was Lewis Ward missing another field goal — this time pushing a kick wide right from 48 yards out — or Global linebacker Tyron Vrede erasing a 97-yard punt return touchdown with an unnecessary block in the back, the Redblacks’ special teams had plays that factored into the one-score loss. The 10 points not scored were literally the margin of defeat.

Even though his return touchdown didn’t stand, Pimpleton had a heck of a game returning the football, averaging 12.3 yards per punt return (with a long of 23 yards) and 23 yards per kickoff (with a long of 34). Though he was “limited” (and I do use the term very loosely), it still felt like it was only a matter of time before Pimpleton busted off another long return. He truly is one of the most dangerous return men in the league, and his ability to flip the field in the blink of an eye is why returner DeVonte Dedmon was healthy scratched and likely won’t return to the team in 2026.

It was good to see punter Richie Leone return to the team. His best kick of the night was a perfectly placed 49-yard punt that pinned Saskatchewan on their two-yard line. Overall, Leone averaged a field flip of 37.8 yards per punt. In terms of kick coverage, it was a full team effort, with seven different players registering a special teams tackle.

8) The announced attendance of 18,250 was Ottawa’s third biggest crowd of the season, which really speaks to how far the organization has fallen in the eyes of the fan base. As always, it’s worth remembering that announced attendance is really tickets distributed, because there definitely were not that many butts in seats.

The mood in R-Nation is understandably dour, and it will take drastic measures to restore faith in a fan base that had dwindling patience since the team’s 2018 Grey Cup loss. The on-field results have been in a steady decline since then, and just when it seemed like last season’s 9-8-1 record represented a turning of the corner, the 2025 season has shattered those illusions.

9) So where do the Redblacks go from here? A coaching change seems like the obvious choice since the Redblacks are 18-36-1 since Bob Dyce took over in 2022, but unlike previous seasons, where there were clear head coaching candidates set to be available, there is no real buzz around any specific names right now.

The roster as constructed seems to have enough talent, but it’s fair to question if that talent has been used properly by the coordinators on both sides of the ball. On his way out the door, Mauldin referenced that he felt he was never the right player for the scheme William Fields was running with his defence. That problem is that while coordinators should have their own foundation for their playbooks, great coordinators tailor their schemes to what the players they have available to them do best. Has that been the case in Ottawa in recent years?

There’s the real issue of injuries. Year after year, it feels like the Redblacks are among the most banged-up teams in the CFL. While the numbers themselves have been staggering at times, it’s not just the quantity but the quality of the players injured. Frequently, it’s been Ottawa’s most important players ending up on the six-game injured list. Perhaps it’s time to review the team’s strength and conditioning program or how the team practices.

Finally, the bigger picture must be considered as Ottawa’s issues predate this coaching staff, this general manager, and these specific players. Ultimately, this is a team that has posted a 27-73-1 record and made a single post-season appearance (which featured them getting blown out) since losing the Grey Cup on a skating rink in Edmonton on Nov. 25th, 2018. That level of futility is damning in any league, let alone one with just nine teams.

Something is off with the franchise, and it feels like it needs a full reset. I don’t know how that is achieved, and there’s certainly no quick fix on the horizon, but it’s clear the status quo isn’t working. Something has to give.

10) With the loss, the Redblacks drop to 4-11 on the season and are officially out of playoff contention. The defeat marks Ottawa’s fourth consecutive loss and firmly plants them at the bottom of the CFL standings.

It’s disappointing because, despite everything that had gone wrong this season, they somehow still controlled their fate coming into this game. Had they managed to win, they would have had an opportunity to put serious pressure on Montreal thanks to an upcoming home-and-home series with their Eastern rivals. Instead, for the first time since their 2017 East-Semi Final win, Saskatchewan left TD Place victorious.

Given that there’s nothing left to play for standings-wise, the Redblacks must use these final three games to see what they have in their younger players and to once more evaluate any veterans they feel can be part of the solution going forward. For that reason, I’d personally like to see quarterback Tyrie Adams get at least one start. Adams has patiently bided his time on the practice roster this season and is on an expiring contract. What better way to see if he should be brought back than to give him a chance to showcase what he can do when the games actually count? These next three games could also be a way to reward other practice squad players who have diligently toiled away at their craft this season.

Some might think fans would accept nothing less than the team continuing to trot out their regular starters in an attempt to win every game, but R-Nation is not a dumb fan base. As long as the team is upfront about their intentions — looking towards the future while coaching aggressively to win — fans will be accepting.

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