QB competition heats up at Elks training camp
To understand how the quarterback battle is unfolding at the Edmonton Elks training camp, one only has to follow the ball.
And consider how centre David Beard had about as many targets to snap the ball to Sunday as the passers had to throw to.
A full half-dozen slinging arms under contract were still in the mix after two more had been released at the end of rookie camp last week.
“Yeah, absolutely. Lots of quarterbacks,” said Beard, who enters his sixth Canadian Football League season as the longest serving player in the Elks dressing room. “That's a good competition and a testament to the competition side of things
(at camp). That's exactly what it is. It will be exciting to see how that all shakes out.
“I know the guys are excited to try and get an opportunity and get behind the helm as the No. 1.”
At the forefront of the competition is Taylor Cornelius — the only returning player who threw a ball in a game last year, going 1-7 as a starter in the absence of former franchise QB Trevor Harris — and Nick Arbuckle, who barely threw in practice let alone got to get into a game after being traded by the Toronto Argonauts to help fill Harris' void.
The thing is, the Elks' new coaching staff didn't indicate who their starter was over the off-season, preferring to let the depth chart be determined through a good old fashioned camp competition. As such, it could be argued the closest thing the Elks have to a face of the franchise right now belongs to new president and CEO Victor Cui through all his efforts to reinvigorate the fan base.
But on Sunday, all the attention was back on the field and the biggest battle taking place in training camp.
“They did a real nice job today,” head coach Chris Jones said of his two veterans, before opening it up to the rest of the QB stable. “I thought all of them did something to make you kind of raise your eyebrows and there's a couple of them that can really, really run, which adds an element to what we're working with.
“I thought (rookie Mike) Beaudry did a really nice job. He up and ran some routes today and caught the ball, so I thought he did a really nice job. Again, it's a good group and we do have a bunch of them, so it's going to be interesting once we do all our analytics and charting, exactly who goes where.”
For Cornelius, anything under the QB1 spot he ended off last year would have to feel like a demotion. Then again, it's not like anything is ever guaranteed in pro sports. Especially with a turnover in coaching staff.
“Sure. I think every year you want to compete and expect competition when there is a new staff,” said the 6-foot-5, 232-pound Oklahoma State product. “Also, if it was the same staff, it would still be a competition for that starting job.
“The experience (of last year) definitely helps me, but Nick, obviously he's played in this league a while now, so he's a veteran around here. And Cardale (Jones) is a rookie technically up here, but obviously he's had a lot of time down south and played a lot of football.”
For what it's worth at this point, Sunday's walk-through drill started with Cornelius taking the first rep ahead of Arbuckle and then Jones, with all three going on to split time pretty much evenly, and the rest of the order following suit.
For Arbuckle, it was the most his arm's been used since arriving in Edmonton following the trade Oct. 26 lat year, before promptly being established as the little used third wheel behind Cornelius and Dakota Prukop.
“You're right, I don't know how many passes I actually got to throw on this field, if any in a real practice scenario during a practice rep,” Arbuckle said. “I think the only day I practised, we were on the soccer field on the other side of the parking lot.
“It was actually really fun to be in this stadium playing football and taking those reps in this offence. It's going to be fun. We have some really good coaching and the players were on top of everything. We threw a lot out at the guys Day 1 and I think that everybody responded really well.”
A native of Los Angeles, Arbuckle said his inner sports fan wasn't torn at all watching Saturday's Game 7 between the Edmonton Oilers and L.A. Kings.
“I was cheering for the Oilers. I wasn't a hockey fan until about a week ago, and our receiver, Danny (Vandervoort) kind of turned me onto hockey, because I never really sat down and watched it too much. But now
I'm an Oilers fan, I watched the game last night, I was on the edge of my seat cheering and stuff,” Arbuckle said, before offering up a prediction. “I know the Battle of Alberta's going to be big for the next round.
“And don't ask me if I'm a Calgary Flames fan or not because I played two seasons there. I mean, I'm going for the Oilers.”