Alouettes hand reins to Davis Alexander in opener vs. Argos

For better or worse, the Montreal Alouettes are Davis Alexander's team now.

The offseason trade of veteran Cody Fajardo to Edmonton makes Alexander QB1 in Montreal. His first chance to prove himself as the every-week starter comes Friday night when the Als open the season at home against the defending Grey Cup champions, the Toronto Argonauts.

"I want, honestly, to stay the same," Alexander said. "Through practice, we've looked pretty good. I just want us to be consistent, take care of the ball, connect with our receivers, connect with our guys, sustain long drives and keep our defense off the field."

Alexander made his mark last year when he replaced an injured Fajardo on July 25 against Saskatchewan and rallied Montreal from a 13-point deficit. Alexander then started four more wins, finishing the year with 1,347 passing yards and completing 69.5 percent of his attempts.

Management saw enough from Alexander to give him a three-year contract extension in November and then pulled the trigger on the Fajardo trade. It did create a Plan B in the swap by getting former Edmonton starter McLeod Bethel-Thompson.

While the Als are going in a different direction, Toronto starts its title defense by tabbing Grey Cup MVP Nick Arbuckle for the opening night start. The Boatmen's normal No. 1, Chad Kelly, isn't quite ready to return from a broken leg suffered during the East final last November in Montreal.

"He's getting better but not quite there yet," Toronto coach Ryan Dinwiddie said of Kelly. "We'll see where we are next week but I think it's going to be maybe another week. But you can see the progression."

For now, former Edmonton reserve Jarret Doege and Tucker Horn will back up Arbuckle.

The Argos also cut last year's starting running back, veteran Ka'Deem Carey, in favor of younger options Deonta McMahon and Miyan Williams. Carey ran for 1,060 yards and seven touchdowns last year.

Quarterback Cameron Dukes, who started nine games for the team last year while Kelly was suspended by the CFL, was also one of the team's last cuts.

--Field Level Media