When they were last seen in Double Blue, they were each contributing a massive interception return in the fourth quarter of the 2024 Grey Cup game. DaShaun Amos brought back a Zach Collaros pass 45-yards to the Winnipeg 16-yard line to set up a Lirim Hajrullahu field goal that would give the Argos a two-score lead.
Nine plays after Amos’ moment in the spotlight, Robert Priester shined it on himself, clinching the championship with a 61-yard pick six, cementing the Argonauts 19th Grey Cup title.
After that game the pair went their separate ways, Priester signed with the Ottawa RedBlacks, Amos with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. After one season away from the 6ix they’ve been reunited in Toronto; Amos as the field halfback with Priester as the boundary half.
“It always makes things a lot better when you have familiar faces,” Amos told Argonauts.ca. “You’ve got guys, you know their play style. You’ve got guys you can trust; you’ve been through adversity with. You know they’re going to give you everything they’ve got. Just being able to look across the field and see guys like Pick (Adarius Pickett), a guy like T-Time (Tarvarus McFadden), a guy like Priest (Priester), it allows you to play fast and makes it easier to communicate.”
It’s not exactly the same though. Ralph Holley, Benjie Franklin, and Isaac Darkangelo are the only other remaining defensive starters from the ’24 Cup game, and there’s also a new defensive coordinator and a new defensive backs coach this season.
The new DBs coach is Jovon Johnson, who in 2011 became the first defensive back to be named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player. Both Priester and Amos have already taken a lot from their new teacher.
“It’s good that he recently came out of the game,” said Priester. “He can relate when it comes to coming out of your breaks, he can look at the exact steps; you’re coming out in two steps, you have low shoulder, you’ve got your eyes on the hip. He’s homing in on those things that can lead to success, the small details rather than just scheme and drawing up Xs and Os. He gets down to the nitty gritty.”
Amos agrees that Johnson has helped the minutiae of his game.
“He’s been able to give us little tools and tips, little clues that he was able to use in his game that translate to allowing us to make plays. Everything he coaches us on is to get us the ball, to work together to make plays. We’re in agreement that somebody on this defence should be the Defensive Player of the Year.”
It’s a strong statement, but a confident one. The defence is already playing lightning fast, and that’s not just the defensive backs; the defensive line has been relentless, the linebackers look first rate.
Though the groups are not identical, it’s easy to draw a comparison to the 2024 bunch, where everyone on the field expected to make big plays for his teammates, and often did. Amos realizes that no matter how good this group can be, it will have to perform with its own identity.
“Every year is different,” said Amos. “Even if it’s the same locker room, having a different staff, having a different leader on the team with Mike Miller, everything is new and you have to take it like that. The past is the past.”
The pair has now seen what life is like on the other side of the East Division fence. When asked what makes the culture in Toronto different than their other stops, Priester chimed in with a one-word answer.
“Love,” he said, before expanding. “It’s a brotherhood. It’s something where we all look to the left and the right and we don’t play for ourselves. It’s something special. I look at Amos and I don’t want to let him down. I look at T-Time, Pickett, and they look at me with the same stare. I don’t want to let that person down because the same passion they go out there with, we go out there with. It’s togetherness and a brotherhood that can’t be broken, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for them.”
When the pair stood side-by-side to speak with Argonauts.ca, there was an abundance of the number one in the area, as Amos is now wearing #1, Priester #11, changing from that Grey Cup game when they wore #8 and #19 respectively.
It’s a number that the pair hopes describe the Argos place in the standings when the final game of the season ends on November 15 in Calgary.
ARGO NOTES: Thursday’s practice was the coldest yet, with a non-stop wind adding to the chill. The team started practice indoors at the adjacent Gryphon Field House. After some 45 minutes indoors, everything shifted outside for another two hours…A trio of CFL officials joined the Argos on the field for some drills for the second time in three days. At the end of practice, they met with the team at midfield to explain in detail the new timing procedures and a couple of other tweaks to the rules…Dave Ungerer III continues to be a reliable option for the offence. Twice on Thursday, the seven-year veteran scored two touchdowns on long throws, both of which were tightly covered by the defender. On each occasion Ungerer somehow came up with the ball and sprinted toward the goal line, drawing oohs and aahs from players on both the offensive and defensive sidelines…Kevin Mital wasn’t about to be upstaged by his teammate. On a deep ball that hung up in a strong wind, Mital stopped and used his large frame to box out the defender, coming back to the football making the catch some 40-yards downfield…It wasn’t all offence all day though. Anthony Wilson is a DB who has made plays every day of camp. The West Virginia product had a nice diving knockdown that drew an enthusiastic reaction from his teammates. He was used on the first unit when it called for a nickelback…During the final scrimmage session there was more of an emphasis on the running game, with all of the backs getting reps…The constant wind has been a pain for the kickers and returners but has been a good test for all involved. Six players were returning punts during one session: Janarion Grant, Peyton Logan, Sam Hicks, Dimitri Stanley, Sevonne Rhea, and Dymere Miller…The Double Blue scrimmage will be held on Sunday at Alumni Stadium in Guelph. Players will be on the field for warmups just before 3:00, with the action taking place 3:45-4:45. Admission is free.