As DaShaun Amos lay on the ground, face down and motionless, his positional coach said three words to himself.
“Please get up.”
Will Fields was not being selfish. The defensive co-coordinator and defensive backs coach was thinking about the man first, knowing the effort invested by Amos to recover from an ankle injury that cost him the last half of the 2023 season.
“I know how hard he worked to come back, so it kind of touched me in a different way,” Fields told Argonauts.ca. “But I know him, I felt like he was going to be able to get up, but I was very, very nervous.”
The play happened in the final minute of the Labour Day Classic in Hamilton. Bo Levi Mitchell threw a long pass downfield toward Brendan O’Leary-Orange. Amos was in tight coverage and both players dove for the football, with the Argo defender landing on his opponent. The Ticat made the catch, the Argo didn’t get up.
“My shoulder was hurting; I didn’t know what was up,” Amos told Argonauts.ca. “I was just waiting for the training staff to come out and assess it.”
Therapists Josh Shewell and Mark Belmore sprinted to the 5-yard line furthest from the Toronto bench. What raised concern from those watching is that Amos stayed on the ground, while the therapists were joined by a pair of Argo doctors.
Eventually the native of Midlothian, Virginia got up and slowly walked from the southeast corner of Tim Horton’s Field to the locker room, located at the other end of the building.
He was in obvious discomfort. Most observers felt the defensive back was headed to the injured list, potentially for an extended stay.
Three days later the Argos were on the field at Lamport Stadium, preparing for their upcoming game against Ottawa. When Argonauts.ca looked to see how the defensive secondary would be reconstructed with Amos’ injury, an unexpected sight appeared in the field halfback position, a blue defensive jersey featuring the number 8.
Amos admitted he was somewhat surprised he was able to strap on the pads so quickly, but in his mind, missing the game wasn’t an option.
“I knew that it was a short week and with the situation the team is in right now with our record, needing that game in Ottawa, it was one of those things where I would do anything I could to get back on the field, and if I can’t play, I can’t play. At least I’ll know I gave everything I had to get back on the field.”
Fighting pain and with some reduced mobility in the shoulder, Amos suited up in Saturday’s loss in Ottawa. His availability was a relief to Fields, who knows replacing Amos isn’t easy.
“That’s the one position that’s the hardest to fill for us,” the coach admitted. When asked why he replied, “Because of everything he brings. His knowledge, he’s able to make the right call. He’s able to see certain things and maybe change the technique of that call a little bit. He gets everyone in the right position. You can’t really teach that part.”
Amos has played exceptionally well this season. He’s not being targeted a lot and is tied for the league lead with six takeaways: four interceptions and a pair of fumble recoveries.
He’s still not happy.
“There’s a lot of plays I’m leaving out on the field,” he confessed. “I’m doing well, but I’m always going to critique myself to the highest level. I don’t look at just my performance, I look at the guys around me as well. I consider myself a leader, I consider myself a field general being the field half, so until we play a perfect game, I’m always going to find something to critique myself on and try to up my level of play.”
The East Carolina product will have another week of rest and rehab under his belt when the Argos visit the BC Lions on Friday night. It will be a good test for the shoulder, the player, and the secondary, as the Lions seem to be getting hot at the right time, as playoff races are alive in both divisions.