Redblacks coach Dyce says Adams will start at QB on Friday
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Ottawa Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce joined TSN 1200 Ottawa on Monday to discuss the Redblacks' quarterback situation, reflections on the team through two games and what to expect for their Week 4 tilt against the Edmonton Elks.
The Redblacks have gotten off to an 0-2 start this season, with losses against the Montreal Alouettes and Calgary Stampeders before taking a bye in Week 3.
They are one of three winless teams in the league, and their 13.5 points per game ranks at the very bottom.
A key factor to the slow offensive start has been the absence of quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who is still recovering from surgery on a broken leg that ended his season in Week 5 in 2022.
"Jeremiah is deeply involved [in our practices] mentally and physically," said Dyce. "He works on reps with our scout team, runs the odd hurry-up offence, and then obviously he's got the physical stuff as well to make sure when he gets out there he's 100 per cent acclimated."
Coming into the season, Dyce indicated that Masoli would miss at least the first two games. He is adamant that Masoli is not dealing with a setback in his recovery process, though complications have arose with the surgery and subsequent staph infection Masoli dealt with in the last year.
"As everyone talked about, he had the staph infection, and that slowed the progress. It's not like he's re-injured anything, we just want to make sure, as valuable as he is, that when he gets onto the field he's 100 per cent ready to go," said Dyce.
Nick Arbuckle started the first two games of the season for Ottawa, but Dyce indicated that the team will go with Tyrie Adams as their starter on Friday against the Elks.
"It looks like this week, we will be starting Tyrie Adams at quarterback," he said. "[Arbuckle] got injured [against the Stampeders in Week 2] and during the bye week that was a concern as well. During the bye week we were working on, formulating some things and this is the direction we decided to go. Arbuckle will dress on Friday, but Adams is the starter."
Dyce is excited for the opportunities that Adams will present for the offence.
"It helps the run game, we can run things like an RPO (run-pass option) offence. When you have someone who's a little bit more of a threat on the perimeter, it forces the defensive line to play things a little bit more true," he said.
"We have an outstanding offensive line who's played some good football, and we're really looking forward to the opportunity of giving them some chances to really lean on Edmonton and be the physical group that they are."
Dyce is aware of issues that need to be corrected with the team, but has also been happy with the way they've played in a lot of areas.
"We would like to see a little bit more success on first down, whether it be running or passing. You don't want to find yourself in second-and-long situations because those are challenging," said Dyce.
"In the CFL, it's tougher to continue to have long drives without explosive [plays] so we'll look to create a few more of those."
"Our [offensive and defensive lines] - very, very happy with the football that they're playing. Obviously, we can get better, but really excited about seeing those guys get back out on the field," he said.
Ottawa seeks to get their first win of the 2023 campaign, and Dyce is aware of some of the threats the Elks can pose.
"The Elks are a very physically blessed team. They have a lot of long athletes who run extremely well," he said.
"They switched their quarterback [on Sunday against the Toronto Argonauts], but it really doesn't matter. Both of their quarterbacks are mobile with strong arms, they can stretch the field," he said. "Edmonton's got a lot of receiving talent and I'm sure they're going to try to utilize those guys."
The Redblacks surrendered 332 passing yards against the Stampeders in their Week 2 defeat, and will need to play better against 2022 CFL All-Stars Steven Dunbar and Geno Lewis.
"One of the things I'm really impressed with [our] guys is their mental toughness," Dyce said. "They have fought, they don't get down on themselves, they stay together and they keep fighting."