What we learned about the Ottawa Redblacks in their 2025 CFL season opener
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The Ottawa Redblacks wasted absolutely no time in carrying over one of their worst habits from last year into their 2025 CFL season opener.
When quarterback Dru Brown was inexcusably called for a time-count violation before the first snap from scrimmage, it was not only a harbinger of things to come on Thursday night at Regina’s Mosaic Stadium, but also a reminder of a problem that plagued them through the majority of the 2024 campaign.
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In the 31-26 loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Ottawa gifted the home team more than the length of a football field’s worth of free turf by taking a total of 12 penalties for 126 yards.
The Roughriders, by comparison, drew just five flags for 85 yards.
“We’ve got to be more disciplined,” linebacker Adarius Pickett told TSN1200’s AJ Jakubec in a media scrum after the game. “Even special teams-wise, (the offence) was starting with bad field position.
“We’ve got to address that,” Pickett added about the downpour of flags. “We’ve definitely got to watch the film and see exactly what was transpiring to get those penalties. I know it kind of seemed like it was one-sided, but it is what it is at times when playing on the road, and we’ve got to expect that. We’ve got to be more disciplined in practice, making sure that we practice the right way so we can play the right way in the game.”
Sound familiar? It should.
Last season, the Redblacks led the CFL in penalty yards with 1,357 (75.38 yards per game) while finishing second in penalties with 138, just three behind the Edmonton Elks.
The good news is they finally cleaned up their act following a Week 19, 19-12 loss to the Montreal Alouettes in which they were penalized 12 times for 122 yards.
In the final three games, they were flagged a total of eight times — and that’s including the five penalties for 55 yards they took while being pounded 58-38 by the Toronto Argonauts in the East Division semifinal.
While falling to 0-1 isn’t an ideal start to the season — and yes, they were abysmal during a second quarter that saw them outscored 19-0 — it should be remembered that in the five-point loss to a team that is considered a legitimate Grey Cup contender, the Redblacks still had a chance to change the outcome with a successful last-minute drive.
And also that they might not have even been in that position had they not drawn so many flags.
What else did we learn about the Redblacks in Game 1?
Here are a few things:
Some injuries hurt more than others
Without solid Canadian right tackle Zack Pelehos (foot) and free-agent signee Peter Godber (hand) at centre, the Redblacks had to go with ratio-changing American Darta Lee, who was making his first CFL start, and Jacob Ruby, a veteran offensive lineman who is not accustomed to snapping the ball.
While all the blame can’t be placed on the replacements, Brown was sacked four times and hurried out of the pocket too often.
Brown, who still managed to put up outstanding numbers (34-of-41 for 413 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions), suffered what appeared to be a hip injury on a last-drive sack. He said after the game he’ll be ready to go for Friday’s home opener against the Montreal Alouettes
To be determined is the status of starting safety Alonzo Addae and linebacker Bennett Williams, both of whom left the game before it was over.
We should find out if they’ll miss any more time and if the team suffered any further injuries when the Redblacks return to practice on Monday.
It is what we thought it was
Going into the season, Ottawa’s greatest area of concern was the secondary and it remains just that heading into the team’s first encounter with an East Division rival.
The backline wasn’t a total disaster — and cornerback Adrian Frye did have an outstanding night with two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and five tackles as a late fill-in for the injured Alijah McGhee — but former Redblacks quarterback Trevor Harris was allowed to complete 19-of-26 passes for 277 yards and two touchdowns and one pick by corner C.J. Coldon (who also was burned on a big gain in the third quarter).
We say Harris was allowed to complete those passes because the 39-year-old, less-than-mobile veteran didn’t get much pressure from a Redblacks defence that registered zero sacks.
As a result, the Harris-to-Samuel Emilus (eight catches, 133 yards, two touchdowns) combination was a difference-maker.
More areas to improve
The Redblacks had virtually no running game with three rushing yards in the first half and just 30, led by William Stanback’s nine-for-26 performance, for the game.
The Roughriders amassed 93 yards on the ground, helped by backup Thomas Bertrand-Huton’s 57-yard, one-score performance on 14 carries as a sub when AJ Ouellette went down.
What head coach Bob Dyce will find particularly galling is the play of Ottawa’s special teams, which gave up 244 return yards to Maurice Alford and DaMarcus Fields.
Devonte Dedmon and Daniel Adeboboye had exactly half that for Ottawa.
The usually reliable Lewis Ward missed a 45-yard field goal and a point-after attempt, although the latter was on a botched exchange with holder Richie Leone.
It is what we thought it was (Part II)
If given the time and he can stay healthy, Brown should lead the league in passing yardage.
The Redblacks must have as fine a group of receivers as anyone in the league, if not the best.
Canadian rookie Keelan White made a strong impression in his first game with four catches for 41 yards, while Justin Hardy lived up to his status as the team’s reigning MOP with eight grabs for 133 yards and a touchdown.
Bralon Addison also was exceptional with eight receptions for 112 yards, while Eugene Lewis made an impact with five grabs for 57 yards and a first-quarter touchdown that extended his streak of catching a scoring pass to nine games dating back to last season with the Edmonton Elks.
Lewis can tie the CFL record held by Terry Evanshen when the Redblacks host his first team, the Alouettes, next weekend.
It’s unlikely the Redblacks will neglect Kalil Pimpleton like they did on Friday, when the explosive slotback caught just one pass for six yards.
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