Fresh from a comeback win vs the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Week 4, the Edmonton Elks were looking to finally turn a corner in hosting the Calgary Stampeders at home last night in part 2 of the Battle of Alberta for the 2022 CFL season.
The Edmonton Elks showed some signs in the last 3 games in which they did compete in every game thus far since their Week 1 blowout loss 59-15 at the hands of the BC Lions. And the Elks were looking to continue that trend vs their Provincial Rivals.
Prior to the game, Environment Canada did post a weather advisory of a mix of thunderstorms and showers that were covering Edmonton and Greater Edmonton area a few hours prior. Winds and grey skies were hovering over the Edmonton area for a good part of the day. A weather delay for approximately 1 hour and 7 minutes occurred at the 10:23 mark of the 3rd Quarter after various storms and the torrential downpour of rain hit the Edmonton area.
Tre Ford Starts at QB
Tre Ford got his 2nd start of the 2022 season in which Coach Chris Jones placed him as QB 1 on the depth chart. And rightfully so. At the moment, he gives the best chance for Edmonton to win any football games due to the inconsistencies at the QB position. He might not have flashy numbers thus far, but he has a long leash given by Chris Jones in which his development will only get better with more experience.
Tre Ford showed his brilliant athleticism in which he eluded a broken play on a 2nd and 4th play from the Edmonton 20-yard line at 08:13 left in the 1st Quarter. He would scramble out of the pocket to buy time in which he threw a great toss to Kai Locksley for 46 yards.
Then the Worse Thing Happened at the Wrong Time
On the next play after the brilliant toss to Kai Locksley, Tre Ford would call his own number on a QB draw play where he would gain 5 yards. In that play, Tre Ford would get hit in many directions. He would slowly show signs in which he would be nursing his throwing shoulder. It was then things were not looking good as Nick Arbuckle would now come into relief to the absence of Tre Ford.
Not much offense would come to fruition for both teams for that matter in the 1st quarter. A pair of exchanged field goals by both Rene Paredes and Sergio Castillo respectively would end the 1st Quarter at a 3-3 tie.
At 3:54 left in the 2nd Quarter, Bo Levi Mitchell struck Malik Henry for a 35-yard pass which became an 89-yard TD for Calgary. DB Jalen Collins looked out of sync on the coverage in which it looked all too easy for Malik Henry to score.
A safety gave up prior on a punt scheme for Edmonton, along with FG by Rene Paredes, the 2nd Quarter would end with a Calgary 14-3 lead going into halftime.
The Wheels Began to Fall Off for Edmonton
At 13:15 left in the 3rd Quarter, Sergio Castillo came in to attempt a 47-yard FG. The kick was a brutal one in which it would sail wide right, and about 8-yards deep into the end zone. Then disaster struck that would change the game in which it would be all Calgary from here on in. Peyton Logan would return the ball to the house for a total of 112-yard return putting Calgary up 21-3 with the ensuing PAT by Rene Paredes.
The onslaught would continue for Calgary and Edmonton would not find any momentum to pose any real scoring threat for the remainder of the game. Peyton Logan would continue scoring on a 21-yard run at the 6:00 mark of the 3rd Quarter. Bo Levi Mitchell would continue to feast on Edmonton in which he would connect with WR Luther Hakunavanhu for a 25-yard pass from the Edmonton goal line extending the Calgary lead 35-3.
At 11:42 left in the 4th Quarter, now QB Kai Locksley tossed a 5-yard pass to Rafael Leonard. A forced fumble by DB Titus Wall would be recovered by LB Cameron Judge who would return the ball from the Calgary 47-yard line and return it for a 63-yard TD making it 41-3 for Calgary after the PAT by Rene Paredes.
And it would not stop from there. Calgary went for the jugular and showed no mercy.
Edmonton would only add a FG for the remainder of the game in which Sergio Castillo would connect on a 42-yard FG with 5:51 left to play making it 42-6 in favor of Calgary.
Calgary QB Tommy Stevens would come in late in the game which he would add more insult to injury by capping off the game scoring with a QB sneak at the Edmonton 1-yard line. Followed by the Rene Paredes PAT, the game would end in a 49-6 Calgary Stampeders thrashing to the Edmonton Elks.
The Aftermath
Unfortunately, Tre Ford had suffered a collarbone injury he will be out for a minimum of 2 weeks but could be as much as 6 weeks as reported by TSN Farhan Lalji.
The one thing going forward now for Edmonton is the fact that they have to have a QB to begin to take control of the inconsistent offense. Although Kai Locksley has done some good things so far, most of his production has been in a SB role.
QB Taylor Cornelius has been a healthy scratch for the whole season thus far and placed every game on the 1-game injured list. Unfortunately, within the play of QB Nick Arbuckle, improvement is paramount right now at QB. With the Edmonton season being what it is right now, it’s only a matter of time to place Taylor Cornelius in a QB to get some reps if the brutal play continues. After all, the QB situation is very thin of productivity so far for the 2022 Edmonton Elks.
The Edmonton Elks next game will be on the road in which they will take on the Montreal Alouettes on Thursday, July 14th, 2022 at 7:30 pm EST.
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