Argos defensive back Raymond always enjoys meeting up with veteran Henry Burris

TORONTO — Keon Raymond is looking forward to another meeting with Ottawa Redblacks quarterback Henry Burris.

It’s been five years since the two were teammates with the Calgary Stampeders and they’re further connected as members of the Stamps’ 2008 Grey Cup-winning squad. On Sunday, they’ll be on opposite sides of the field when the Toronto Argonauts (3-2) visit Ottawa (3-1-1) in an important East Division contest.

“I always look forward to seeing Hank,” said Raymond, how a defensive back with the Argonauts. “He’s a very good quarterback, he’s been doing it for a long time.

“If you see him take his shirt off, he’s fit, he doesn’t look like a 41-year-old man. We definitely must be well prepared because he has seen a lot of things.”

Burris, in his 17th CFL season, returns after missing four games with a finger injury. Ottawa pulled Burris, the league’s outstanding player last season, off the six-game injured list this week after Trevor Harris suffered ankle and knee injuries in last Friday’s 30-29 road loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

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“It’s definitely not fun sitting on the sidelines watching but it’s great seeing our team having success,” Burris told reporters in Ottawa. “I’ve got nothing to prove, I think I’ve been able to accomplish any and everything in this game.

“The only thing I want to accomplish now is winning a championship. If it was Trevor, Brock (Jensen) or Danny (O’Brien) and they’re playing quarterback to lead us to a championship, hey, I get to eat Fruit Loops from the Grey Cup with my family. For me, that’s the only thing I want to achieve . . . I don’t care how we get it done.”

Toronto is coming off a 30-17 home win Monday night over the Montreal Alouettes that created a second-place tie with Hamilton (3-2) in the East Division. Raymond, his first season with the Argos after eight with Calgary, had four tackles to boost his total to 25, one behind linebacker Cory Greenwood for the team lead.

Toronto will also have a new starting quarterback. Logan Kilgore replaces veteran Ricky Ray, who’s out three-to-six weeks with a knee injury suffered against Montreal.

Not surprisingly, Raymond has supreme confidence in Kilgore. Both played collegiately at Middle Tennessee State University.

“I think we have to be a little patient,” Raymond said. “The game is going to be a little bit faster just because this is week six and he has to try and catch up.

“But I think once he gets a few snaps we’ll be fine.”

The decision over Montreal was big for the Argos. Not only was it their first regular-season victory at BMO Field but they became the first East Division squad to win at home as road teams are a stellar 14-5-1 this season.

Ottawa and Toronto have both excelled on the road with 3-1 and 2-0 records, respectively.

Raymond admits he’s surprised with the success of road teams this year but can understand why. Raymond said when players are away from home they tend to spend more time together watching game film and bonding as a unit.

Raymond said that certainly was the case when Toronto remained in Regina following its 30-17 win over Saskatchewan to prepare for a July 7 road game versus B.C. The move paid off as the Argos beat the Lions 25-14.

“Everyone is close-knit watching extra film and doing the extra little things,” Raymond said. “That’s what you do (on the road).”

One of Toronto’s home losses was a 30-20 decision to Ottawa on July 13, making the rematch important with the Argos heading into a bye week.

“We don’t want them to win because then they have the tie-breaker,” Raymond said. “This is a must-win for us even though it’s early in the season.

“It’s not the Grey Cup but we want to make sure we head into the bye focused and understanding what we
need to do and that’s keep winning on the road.”

Dan Ralph, The Canadian Press