The Calgary Stampeders had every reason to win this game. Their defense forced somewhere in the neighborhood of five or six turnovers. They had the ball in good field position over and over. And they still walked away with a loss, because when your quarterback tells you flat out he "wasn't on my best game today," and a critical third-and-short stops dead in the mud, that's how these things go.
Vernon Adams Jr. didn't hide from it after the game. Calgary had a chance to win it at the end and couldn't finish, and Adams put that squarely on himself.
"I don't feel like I was on my best game, and that hurt us. I feel like I wasn't on my best game today and I let my team down. So I'm gonna watch it and get better from it," Adams said.
Turnovers Piled Up, Points Didn't Follow
The frustrating part for Calgary is the defense did its job — more than its job. Adams pointed out his own team's takeaways kept putting the offense in position to win, and too often it turned into settling for three instead of finishing with seven.
"Our defense, I don't know, they had 5 turnovers or something like that, 5, 6, I don't know, but they had enough for us to win the game. Put us in great field position too many times, getting stopped and field goals, not getting 7, you know what I'm saying?" Adams said.
Adams did say there were stretches, particularly right before halftime, where things started to click. But he kept coming back to the same idea — the defense was handing the offense chances, and the offense wasn't cashing them in enough to steal the game outright.
Defense Comes Together for a Third Straight Week
If there's a real bright spot for Calgary, it's the defense trending up over the last several weeks. Linebacker Marquel Lee called this the third straight game where his unit has been attacking the ball with a clear purpose, and he wasn't shy about saying the whole team — not just one side of the ball — needs to own the finish.
"Not one side of the ball is at fault. Not one phase of the one is at fault. We all gave up some plays at some point in the game. So we gotta shore that up and be better next week," Lee said.
"We going out there with a purpose and a mission to go get the ball at the end of the day. That's what we're hunting. That's what we've been talking about. Especially these last 4 to 5 weeks as we started off a little bit slow in the turnover column," Lee said.
Lee credited the group's focus on assignments and takeaways for the turnaround, but he made clear there's still cleanup work — specifically around substitutions and situational execution late in games.
Dickenson Explains the Fateful Third-Down Call
Head coach Dave Dickenson didn't shy away from the decision that ultimately sealed Calgary's fate — a third-down attempt to pick up a yard that got stuffed, with running back Dedrick Mills getting met in the backfield by a Toronto defender who filled the gap perfectly. Dickenson explained the thinking, and the exhaustion, behind that call.
"I wasn't too sure we had a lot left in us. If it went to overtime, I felt like we were beat up and just basically hanging on. I did think we should be able to get a yard. We tried to go with our bell cow Mills and safety, he filled the gap and made a great play on Mills," Dickenson said.
"You, when the call doesn't work, you do look back and think I could have done something differently, but I did feel like the gas tank was super low at that point. We needed that play. If we get that first down, hopefully we could milk the clock enough. I had a lot of faith in our kicker," Dickenson said.
Dickenson also praised the defensive effort given the circumstances, noting his group was banged up in the secondary and playing through fatigue but never stopped competing.
"We were just hanging on by fumes, to be honest with you. We had injuries in the back end, certainly a lot of fight and they were still working hard. I did feel like the gas tank was pretty low and they were just kept fighting, kept fighting," Dickenson said.
What's Next
Calgary doesn't get much time to sit with this one. Adams already has the next matchup circled, a quick turnaround on a short week against a quality opponent.
"Get some rest. You got 24 hours to get over this. And then we got a game next Thursday against a good team. So get some rest, watch this film, get back to work. And try to get the W," Adams said.
The defense has real momentum building, and that's not nothing. But if Calgary wants to turn these close losses into wins, someone in that huddle needs to find a way to finish — because the takeaways won't keep coming for free.
Watch the Full Videos
Calgary Stampeders: Vernon Adams Jr. | Post-Game | 06.08.26
Calgary Stampeders: Marquel Lee | Post-Game | 06.08.26
Calgary Stampeders: Dave Dickenson | Post-Game | 06.08.26