B.C. Lions sing Chase Brice blues soullessly in loss to Argos (& 12 other thoughts)

Photo courtesy: Jeff Vinnick/B.C. Lions

The B.C. Lions took to the field in Vancouver for the first time this season on Saturday night, hoping to make music without their franchise quarterback. They couldn’t hit the high notes, failing to score a touchdown and falling 26-12 to the Toronto Argonauts as their woeful ballad continued.

Here are my thoughts on the game.

First start flatline

The Argonauts entered Week 8 as one of the worst pass defences in the CFL, having allowed 348.8 yards through the air per game, 15 completions of over 30 yards, 13 passing touchdowns, and an average of 32 points per game. If you possess a pulse, the early returns have shown that you can throw against the Double Blue.

Somebody better get a doctor to check on Chase Brice, because apparently he lacks one of those.

The 28-year-old looked exactly as everyone had feared in his first career start, proving that last week’s struggles could not be chalked up to a cold arm coming off the bench without adequate practice reps. His first throw, a fluttering incompletion delivered between two eligible receivers, foreshadowed a night of utter frustration.

You could argue that the Lions did too much to protect Brice in the early going, sheltering him with predictable first-down playcalling that ultimately backfired into too many second-and-longs. At this level, you have to trust your quarterback to be able to flip it and rip it, but B.C. didn’t. That may have been because when Brice did need to rip it, he failed to deliver.

Among his laundry list of incompletions was an errant shot to Justin McInnis at the back of the end zone early in the second quarter that never should have been thrown in the first place, a whiff in the direction of Kieran Poissant at the near pylon later in the same frame, and a sailing overthrow of McInnis on a third-and-three gamble in the third quarter. Had any one of those been dropped in the bucket, this game would have looked very different. He also killed another scoring opportunity on a play in which he panicked and essentially sacked himself.

Brice finished 14-of-25 for 163 yards with no touchdowns and, mercifully, no interceptions. He never made the offence feel threatening, even when they were knocking at the door, and his benching with under six minutes remaining in the game came far too late to salvage things.

To his credit, the Appalachian State product stoically faced the music post-game and said he needed to play better, but I’m not sure he deserves another opportunity for redemption. After four years of investment, he is what he is, and that is not good enough.

An assault on entertainment

With Brice tossing a wet blanket over one team’s offence, this game was never going to be worth the price of admission. However, things got a lot worse late in the second quarter when Toronto’s Chad Kelly was forced out with a neck injury.

The former Most Outstanding Player scrambled for a five-yard gain on first down with 2:24 remaining and gave himself up with plenty of time for the defence to react. However, middle linebacker Darnell Sankey dropped in late and landed a shoulder to the side of the quarterback’s helmet, which appeared to leave him stunned on the ground. In some ways, Kelly was fortunate on the play, as Parker McKenna also flew in late from the front, but was partially obstructed from making more significant contact by Sankey’s arrival.

Flags flew, as they should have, and offensive lineman Peter Nicastro cruised in to exact revenge on Sankey. Defensive back Ronald Kent Jr. was also assessed an offsetting unnecessary roughness penalty for the ensuing fracas. The end result was the same: Kelly was immediately assessed by trainers, spent considerable time in the white tent, and was eventually ruled out. Any hope of fireworks for either team exited with him.

Sankey is a physical player, not a dirty one, and I do not believe he operated with any intent to injure. That doesn’t change the fact that this was a blatant illegal play and should be punished accordingly. He’ll almost certainly hear from the league office this week. In a small act of consolation for Argos fans, the veteran defender did get his comeuppance early in the third quarter, when he was stiff-armed to the ground by backup QB Nick Arbuckle.

The public embarrassment from that play probably hurt more than any blow Nicastro delivered during the ground-and-pound.

Breath of fresh air

Kaidon Salter was only on the field for six minutes in this game, but he left a lasting impression that will hang over the Lions all week.

The rookie dual-threat quarterback completed nine-of-15 passes for 121 yards, and added four carries for 12 yards, nearly matching Brice’s output in a fraction of the time. The injection of energy was instantaneous, as he delivered a 16-yard strike to Justin McInnis on his very first throw. That pairing had instant chemistry, as the big-bodied Canadian finished as B.C.’s leading receiver with 89 yards despite catching just three of those from Brice.

Salter is a wild stallion, oozing with raw athletic potential. In his brief audition, there were moments when he couldn’t rein in his arm or where his eyes expanded to the size of dinner plates. There were also bolts of pure electricity. He’s not even remotely ready to be a CFL starter, but the ceiling could be unbelievably high.

In my opinion, the Lions should test that ceiling next week and give the youngster the type of live learning experience that most quarterbacks aren’t afforded until much later. A victory might not be likely, but Brice isn’t exactly improving your odds. Set reasonable expectations and let Salter loose in a developmental showcase.

Lack of imagination

Head coach Buck Pierce has yet to decide on his starting quarterback next week, but regardless of who is under centre, he needs to provide them with a more creative game plan.

Too many of the Lions’ playcalls, especially early in the game, felt tepid and predictable. His commitment to the run game wasn’t ill-advised given the quarterback situation, but every series seemed to commence with an inside run from James Butler, none of which went anywhere. When that proved unsuccessful, little was done to replace it with a screen game or catch the defence off-guard with misdirection. It felt like the same old thing over, and over, and over again with the very same result.

B.C. is in desperate straits right now. They can’t afford to play it safe or conservative. If your personnel is lacking, then you need to compensate with scheme or imagination. Credit to Pierce for rolling the dice on third down once near mid-field, but other than that it seemed like he was wrapping his team in bubble-wrap and hoping Toronto didn’t pack a pocket knife. You won’t win many games with that mentality.

Fool me twice

Mike Benevides’ defence surrendered 373 net yards of offence to the Boatmen, which isn’t an ideal stat line. The actual nuts and bolts of their performance felt a lot better than that, especially considering the added strain they were under. Mathieu Betts and company produced three sacks up front, and the unit forced five field goal attempts. Against the league’s second-most explosive offence, that gives you a chance.

Toronto scored just two touchdowns, one of which proved to be their only completion of over 30 yards on the night. Unfortunately for veteran defensive back T.J. Lee, he was the victim on each of those plays. The 35-year-old bit on a pair of double moves for Makai Polk in man coverage, both of which ended up behind him in the end zone.

Lee offers invaluable leadership and is still reliable when the play is in front of him, but his ability to recover leaves something to be desired at this stage. The longest-serving Lion was not able to finish the game either, exiting in the second half with an apparent hamstring injury.

Right tackle or wrong tackle?

The Lions dropped a bombshell on Thursday afternoon when they announced the release of starting right tackle Dejon Allen. Acquired via trade ahead of the 2025 season, the former Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman was intended to salve B.C.’s persistent protection woes, but struggled to stay on the field in his inaugural campaign. Though he’s been mostly healthy through five games this year, the team was clearly underwhelmed by his effectiveness and let him go for what they assert are performance-related reasons.

That move was immediately placed under additional scrutiny when Allen’s replacement, Josh Donovan, was bowled over by Shawn Lemon on B.C.’s second series and remained down on the field. The 27-year-old was unable to leave under his own power and eventually had to be carted off. While there was no immediate update on his status, those types of injuries tend to be long-term, if not season-ending.

Chris Schleuger slid over to right tackle and embattled former first-round pick Anu Una took over at right guard for the remainder of the game. It was a middling but functional performance from the makeshift unit, as they surrendered four sacks to an average and under-manned Toronto defensive line. The Lions do have experienced options in Josh Coker and Isiah Cage waiting in the wings to provide an upgrade, but neither is ready to make their debuts quite yet as they recover from serious injuries. This will be it for now.

I was as critical of Allen as anyone during his tenure in B.C. and tend to agree that he fell well short of the lofty expectations. However, it should be noted that the external data from this season doesn’t support that claim. Indeed, ProFootballFocus, an analytics company which grades every snap, has assigned the 32-year-old an overall grade of 72.9 in 2026 — the second-highest mark of any CFL offensive lineman. In the passing game, his 4.2 percent pressure rate placed him seventh among qualifying tackles, while he boasted the lowest rate of negatively graded plays in the run game at the position, with just 7.2 percent of his blocks being defeated.

In general, tackles surrender more pressure than interior linemen due to their exposure on the edge, but Allen’s nine pressures allowed on the season were just fourth-most on the Lions. Michael Couture (18), Kory Woodruff (13), and Schleuger (12) had all been more routinely victimized coming into this game. You can and should take PFF’s numbers with whatever sized grain of salt you have available, but the evidence would suggest that B.C. parted ways with their best blocker.

Based on my rough calculations, the Lions have already spent over $79,000 in cap space on Allen, which includes the $40,000 signing bonus he received to re-sign with the team this offseason. Trimming the remainder of his contract, weeks before his veteran guarantee would have kicked in, gives the franchise over $102,500 in breathing room, though that isn’t as much as you might think when you factor in replacement costs.

You have to wonder if the Lions would have been better off taking the money now lost on Allen and adding it to their unsuccessful offer to retain All-CFL bookend Jarell Broxton in free agency. Hindsight is always 20/20, and sometimes factors outside a team’s control can make the lens seem even clearer, but the reality is this struggling offensive line could have been better and has actually been made worse in the short term.

More cowbell

If James Butler is B.C.’s bell-cow back, then Zander Horvath is the cowbell — and every fan I talk to seems to be doing their best Christopher Walken impersonation, screaming for more of him.

It seemed as if supporters might finally get their wish when the hulking fullback aligned as a tight end in the second quarter and leaked out for a massive 32-yard catch. That would end up being the Lions’ biggest play of the night, but Horvath was never a feature player again. He added one catch for five more yards and carried three times for three total.

B.C. had a formula for Horvath to be successful last year, admittedly when playing with a lead, but they seem to have misplaced it. He is too big of a mismatch to be continuously treated as an afterthought, particularly when Butler hasn’t found a rhythm. He needs more touches to justify his spot on the roster, and the team will be better off once they give it to him.

Old school, same problem

The B.C. Lions special teams unit has had a couple of bounce-back outings following the firing of coordinator Cory McDiarmid, but Saturday’s display won’t draw much praise from new coach Dennis McKnight.

The ever-dangerous Janarion Grant had a pair of 35-yard returns, one on punt and one on kickoff, and routinely looked like he was one tackle away from scoring. Twice, that tackle came courtesy of punter Carl Meyer, bringing his season total to six. While the CFL stats page is generally unnavigable, I believe that places the South African in a three-way tie for the team lead, which is not ideal.

Meyer told me in the locker room that he’s enjoying getting back to the physicality he lost when he switched to football from rugby. I’m happy for him, but it would be better for the team if he never had to make another tackle.

Defensive gems

The Lions were criticized early in the season for their failure to find fresh talent, but it appears they’ve uncovered a couple of gems on the defensive side of the ball.

Weak-side linebacker Parker McKenna has consistently gotten better every week, and brings an element that was lacking from this defence whenever it has been forced to start Ben Hladik the past two years. The Washington State product collected six tackles and a sack in this one, never finding himself far from the football.

Former NFL draft pick Stantley Thomas-Oliver has also been an uplifting addition at cornerback, particularly in his consistency as a tackler. His obliteration of Makai Polk, which knocked Toronto’s top receiver from the game, was the hardest hit I’ve seen this year. You could see the play developing, but the violence with which he closed still took me off guard.

So close

On a night where touchdowns were hard to come by, both teams took a turn coming up just short at the end of each half.

The Argos’ gaffe before the intermission fell squarely on the shoulders of receiver David Ungerer III, who ensured he’ll never get a future head coaching job thanks to his poor clock management. Toronto snapped the ball with about 10 seconds remaining, and had he hit the turf immediately following his red zone reception, there would have been time to attempt another play. Instead, he was held up by Deontai Williams and others, denying Nick Arbuckle a shot at the end zone.

At the end of the game, it was Justin McInnis’ turn to be stopped at the one-yard line, denying Kaidon Salter an exclamation point on his debut. It took a lot of fight to keep the Pierrefonds, Que., native out of the end zone, but the Argos managed. Alas, it would have been lipstick on a pre-slaughtered swine anyway.

Home, sweet home

The Lions made their return to BC Place on Saturday for the first time since November 1, 2025, ending their seven-week eviction due to the FIFA World Cup. The club signed a new three-year lease for the building on Friday and got the first opportunity to break in the freshly laid artificial turf, which looked pretty slick.

I expressed some concern last week about what this return would look like from a crowd perspective, given B.C.’s current record and the absence of Nathan Rourke. Clearly, those were unwarranted. Despite the weather disagreeing with the organization’s pool party theme, 21,438 fans showed up to welcome the Lions back — a very solid number considering the circumstances. Kudos to the sales and marketing team for getting butts in seats; sadly, their job isn’t getting easier.

Returning to the venue took on an added significance after news broke on Friday evening that Lions owner Amar Doman has officially expressed his interest in purchasing the stadium from the Government of British Columbia.

While sources have emphasized that Doman’s interest pre-dates the current posturing by the Vancouver Whitecaps, it would be naive to dismiss the broader context. It’s not a coincidence that this story got out on the same day that a government minister indicated to Postmedia that the province would be open to selling BC Place to the MLS franchise in their pursuit of keeping them in Vancouver.

The Lions have offered a stark contrast to the Whitecaps’ grovelling for a sweetheart deal from PavCo, the Crown corporation that runs the stadium, and threats of relocation. Though they share many of the same concerns, the CFL franchise has handled things like the guy wearing sunglasses at the poker table, keeping it internal and handling their business in a professional manner. This feels like Doman calling someone’s bluff, or at least ensuring he’s got a stake in the final showdown.

I think it’s unlikely that Doman ends up owning the stadium in the end, but he’s got deep pockets and powerful friends. The more likely scenario — and the best one for all involved — is some sort of management agreement that sees both teams operate as partners. While a vocal minority of Whitecaps fans seem to be insulted by that suggestion, claims of superiority require a certain level of cognitive dissonance when you lost $45 million last year, and you operate within a Ponzi scheme propped up by a 40-year-old Argentinian. The Lions are a historic franchise that averages higher local attendance and holds a much larger share of the national television audience, while being much closer to profitability. They shouldn’t play second fiddle to anyone.

West is best, except…

There is no way to sugarcoat this: the B.C. Lions’ season is hanging by a thread.

Sitting last in the West Division by two games, with everyone above them looking like heavyweights, the path to the playoffs appears unimaginably difficult. Another misstep could prove fatal, and even the franchise’s very best might not be enough to sneak in.

On an optimistic note, B.C.’s record through six games now matches that of the infamous 2011 Grey Cup team. There is hope, but that squad were one in a million.

The Lions (1-5) only have five days to figure out how to change the narrative, as they visit Winnipeg on Thursday, July 30. Could Nathan Rourke rush back for that game? It seems unlikely, but desperate times call for acts of pure desperation.

J.C. Abbott is a University of British Columbia graduate and high school football coach. He covers the CFL, B.C. Lions, CFL Draft and the three-down league’s Global initiative.