Andrus won't say but hints that backup QB may start against B.C.
Coming off a shutout loss in which his offence was "embarrassed," Toronto Argonauts head coach Bart Andrus says he's unsure if Kerry Joseph will be his starting quarterback this week.
"It's something that coming out of the (last) game I wasn't sure yet and I'm still not," Andrus said yesterday in Mississauga after the first practice since Friday's 25-0 loss in Montreal.
Joseph started Friday, as he has all six games for the 2-4 Argos, but was ineffective and heavily hit throughout the night. He was taken out after hitting his head on the turf and replaced by backup Cody Pickett early in the fourth quarter.
Pickett, who played briefly in the NFL and saw limited duty with Toronto last season, finished 7-for-11 for 83 yards and left a favourable impression on Andrus despite some mistakes.
"It makes you feel good that you have somebody that's there that can perform, a guy that can execute the offence," Andrus said of Pickett coming in off the bench. "He doesn't get a lot of reps in practice so that's assuring."
While Andrus stopped well short of naming Pickett his starter for Friday night's home game against the B.C. Lions, the coach made it clear that he thinks his offence is in need of a shakeup.
"Right now, we're not playing real well on offence, we're not scoring enough points," Andrus said. "And we're going to look at everything very closely and we're going to take steps to ensure that we give ourselves the best possible opportunity to score points and win the game."
Andrus would not say when he would make his final decision on a starting quarterback but said it will be based on this week's practice and how Joseph feels from last week's heavy hit.
Joseph, who won the CFL most outstanding player in 2007 when he led the Saskatchewan Roughriders to the Grey Cup championship, has struggled through the first third of the season.
Joseph's pass completion percentage is the worst in the CFL (56 per cent) among regular starters and his 10 interceptions are the most. The Argos have also scored the fewest points of any team.
With a revolving door of receivers due to injury and the soap opera that saw Arland Bruce shipped to Hamilton after a falling out with Andrus, Joseph has had trouble getting into a rhythm with his personnel. He's also spent a lot of time on his back as the Argos offensive line has yielded a league-high 26 sacks through six games.
But, as Joseph acknowledged yesterday, "everything falls back on us as quarterbacks," meaning the high-profile position means you take much of the credit in the good times and blame in the bad.
Still, the 35-year-old Joseph, who spent the early part of last season, his first with the Argos, looking over his shoulder at Michael Bishop, wasn't about to speculate on the spectre of another quarterback controversy.
"That doesn't worry me. That's something for you guys to write about," Joseph told reporters crowded around his locker-room stall. "As a player, I come out here and prepare."
Joseph, who like Andrus called Friday's loss to Montreal "embarrassing," said he came to practice yesterday expecting to be the starter this week and will do so until told otherwise.
"That's the way I come to work," Joseph said. "I've got a game plan and reads and things like that that I've got to be prepared mentally for as a quarterback and I can't worry about all the other stuff."
Pickett, the 29-year-old former San Francisco 49er, said he was "preparing just like I have the previous six weeks" and has heard nothing about the possibility of starting Friday.
Now in his second full season in the CFL, Pickett said he "felt comfortable" going out on the field Friday in Montreal and will be ready whenever he gets the call.
"I try to prepare the best I can every week and hopefully, if I get an opportunity I'll do well," he said.
NOTES: Players wore pads at practice yesterday in an effort to raise the intensity of the practice. Though told by coaches it wasn't punishment for Friday's loss, it made for a tough day in the heat and humidity. ... Receiver P.K. Sam, a recent cut by the Buffalo Bills, practised for the first time in equipment yesterday as he works back from a leg injury but Andrus said he's not sure if he'll be ready for Friday.
Coming off a shutout loss in which his offence was "embarrassed," Toronto Argonauts head coach Bart Andrus says he's unsure if Kerry Joseph will be his starting quarterback this week.
"It's something that coming out of the (last) game I wasn't sure yet and I'm still not," Andrus said yesterday in Mississauga after the first practice since Friday's 25-0 loss in Montreal.
Joseph started Friday, as he has all six games for the 2-4 Argos, but was ineffective and heavily hit throughout the night. He was taken out after hitting his head on the turf and replaced by backup Cody Pickett early in the fourth quarter.
Pickett, who played briefly in the NFL and saw limited duty with Toronto last season, finished 7-for-11 for 83 yards and left a favourable impression on Andrus despite some mistakes.
"It makes you feel good that you have somebody that's there that can perform, a guy that can execute the offence," Andrus said of Pickett coming in off the bench. "He doesn't get a lot of reps in practice so that's assuring."
While Andrus stopped well short of naming Pickett his starter for Friday night's home game against the B.C. Lions, the coach made it clear that he thinks his offence is in need of a shakeup.
"Right now, we're not playing real well on offence, we're not scoring enough points," Andrus said. "And we're going to look at everything very closely and we're going to take steps to ensure that we give ourselves the best possible opportunity to score points and win the game."
Andrus would not say when he would make his final decision on a starting quarterback but said it will be based on this week's practice and how Joseph feels from last week's heavy hit.
Joseph, who won the CFL most outstanding player in 2007 when he led the Saskatchewan Roughriders to the Grey Cup championship, has struggled through the first third of the season.
Joseph's pass completion percentage is the worst in the CFL (56 per cent) among regular starters and his 10 interceptions are the most. The Argos have also scored the fewest points of any team.
With a revolving door of receivers due to injury and the soap opera that saw Arland Bruce shipped to Hamilton after a falling out with Andrus, Joseph has had trouble getting into a rhythm with his personnel. He's also spent a lot of time on his back as the Argos offensive line has yielded a league-high 26 sacks through six games.
But, as Joseph acknowledged yesterday, "everything falls back on us as quarterbacks," meaning the high-profile position means you take much of the credit in the good times and blame in the bad.
Still, the 35-year-old Joseph, who spent the early part of last season, his first with the Argos, looking over his shoulder at Michael Bishop, wasn't about to speculate on the spectre of another quarterback controversy.
"That doesn't worry me. That's something for you guys to write about," Joseph told reporters crowded around his locker-room stall. "As a player, I come out here and prepare."
Joseph, who like Andrus called Friday's loss to Montreal "embarrassing," said he came to practice yesterday expecting to be the starter this week and will do so until told otherwise.
"That's the way I come to work," Joseph said. "I've got a game plan and reads and things like that that I've got to be prepared mentally for as a quarterback and I can't worry about all the other stuff."
Pickett, the 29-year-old former San Francisco 49er, said he was "preparing just like I have the previous six weeks" and has heard nothing about the possibility of starting Friday.
Now in his second full season in the CFL, Pickett said he "felt comfortable" going out on the field Friday in Montreal and will be ready whenever he gets the call.
"I try to prepare the best I can every week and hopefully, if I get an opportunity I'll do well," he said.
NOTES: Players wore pads at practice yesterday in an effort to raise the intensity of the practice. Though told by coaches it wasn't punishment for Friday's loss, it made for a tough day in the heat and humidity. ... Receiver P.K. Sam, a recent cut by the Buffalo Bills, practised for the first time in equipment yesterday as he works back from a leg injury but Andrus said he's not sure if he'll be ready for Friday.
