The biggest game of 2024 is almost here as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Toronto Argonauts prepare to battle for the 111th Gray Cup on Sunday.

Toronto defeated the Montreal Alouettes in the Eastern Final last weekend and the Ottawa REDBLACKS in the Eastern Semi-Final two weeks ago to punch their ticket to the championship game at BC Place. Winnipeg hosted the West Final last Saturday and defeated the Saskatchewan Roughriders to earn their ticket to the West Coast.

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The two men played two meetings in the regular season and the Argos emerged victorious in both cases. Both have been low-scoring defensive affairs, with the Argos going 16-14 in Week 8 and 14-11 in Week 19. What’s Happening This Weekend With Everything stake?

We’ll find out soon enough, but until then, here are five storylines to watch out for in the 111th Gray Cup.

THIS IS NICK ARBUCKLE’S TEAM

Nick Arbuckle heads into Gray Cup week as Toronto Argonauts starter (Thomas Skrlj/CFL.ca)

The biggest story heading into the 111th Gray Cup is Toronto’s quarterback.

With Chad Kelly injured his leg in the East Final, head coach Ryan Dinwiddie turned to Nick Arbuckle to take the reins in Sunday’s championship game.

Arbuckle saw action in 2024, stepping in for Cameron Dukes in three games earlier this year while Kelly was serving his suspension. In the final game of Week 21 against Edmonton, the 31-year-old completed 23 of his 32 pass attempts for 378, two touchdowns and one interception.

This week, Arbuckle will participate in the Gray Cup as the starting quarterback. He told the media Monday night that he hasn’t taken full first-team reps before a competition since the second week of the 2023 season.

How are you Arbuckle handle the pressure of being thrust into the starting role? Will he be able to handle Winnipeg’s strong defense? And can he lead the Argos to their second Gray Cup in three years? All these questions and many more will be answered Sunday evening.

TORONTO’S TOUGH DEFENSE

Folarin Orimolade had six sacks in the regular season (Bailey McLean/CFL.ca)

Zach Collaros called the Argonauts’ top four “incredible” when asked by a reporter to give his initial assessments of Toronto following Winnipeg’s victory over the Riders in the West final.

He also praised the defense on Monday, just after the teams arrived in Vancouver at Signature Aviation at the Vancouver International Airport. He noted that with defensive linemen Jake Ceresna And Folarine Orimolademiddle linebacker Wynton McManis It also presents a difficult task for the veteran center and the rest of Winnipeg’s offense.

“I know we haven’t scored a lot of points against this defense so far this season, so we have our work cut out for us,” Collaros admitted.

The Bombers scored just 14 points in the late July game and were held to just 11 points in October. In those two games, the Argos defense also had 12 total sacks.

Asked about protecting Collaros against Toronto’s defense that had a league-leading 48 sacks in the regular season during the head coaches’ conference Tuesday morning, O’Shea jokingly responded: “We’re probably going to play nine players o-line,” which was followed by laughter from members of the media.

All joking aside, the Bombers offensive line will need to be at their best to keep the Argos pass rush at bay and keep Collaros clean like they did in the West Final, not allowing a single sack to their quarterback.

WINNIPEG DEFENSIVE BACKS

The duo of cornerback Tyrell Ford and halfback Evan Holm was excellent in the Bombers secondary throughout the regular season.

Ford, the Bombers defenseman, finished the year second in interceptions (seven), just behind Rolan Milligan Jr. (eight). When he wasn’t picking up picks, the Canadian was still playing football, totaling 12 knockdowns over the course of the year, including one behind the Benjamin Franklin (13) for first place.

Advanced analytics have also made Ford one of the best defensive backs in the CFL. According to Pro Football Focus, Ford led the league in forced incompletions with 18 and finished the year with the highest coverage grade (92.1).

Holm quietly had a big season in Winnipeg, arguably having his best game against the Riders in the West Final. He scored four knockdowns in this one, including two crucial ones late in the game to deny Saskatchewan any hope of a comeback.

Can this duo continue to be at their best when looking to stop the Argos’ big receivers, including Makai Polk and Damonte Coxie?

CAN JANARION GRANT DO IT AGAIN?

Janarion Grant has been dangerous for the Toronto Argonauts on returns, even when he’s not entering the end zone. Grant had to be accounted for every time the ball was in his hands because of his pure speed and ability to make people miss. The 30-year-old led the CFL in the regular season in punt return yards (989) and punt return average (14.8). He also scored a league-leading four return touchdowns, two more than the next-best returner (James Letcher Jr.).

He broke out for another major comeback last weekend against Montreal, scoring in the second quarter to really turn the tide in the visiting team’s direction. This score brought them closer to two, then Toronto scored three more times in a row (one Damonte Coxie hit and two Lirim Hajrullahu field goal) to keep the momentum going on their path to victory.

Grant now faces a special teams unit that has been excellent in return coverage. Winnipeg allowed just 749 punt return yards, the lowest in the league this season, limiting returns to just 9.6 yards per punt return, and allowed no touchdowns. The Bombers also did not allow a major kickoff return and limited returns to 20.0 yards per return (tied for league-l0v).

This will be a game to watch in Sunday’s match as Grant looks to give Nick Arbuckle and co. good position on the field and the Bombers hope to keep it under control.

OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION?

Throughout the regular season, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers offense didn’t need to do anything extraordinary. They did exactly what they had to do to get the job done and relied on their defense and special teams to help them turn their 0-4, and eventually 2-6, record into an 11- 7 and climb to the top of the rankings. the Western Division.

Through 21 weeks, Winnipeg finished sixth in the CFL in net offense, averaging 358.5 yards per game. They also finished the year with 23.2 points per game, the second fewest among teams.

Last weekend against the Saskatchewan Roughriders was a different story. The Bombers accumulated 482 offensive yards, including 301 thanks to their quarterback in the air. Collaros and Kenny Lawler connected on more than half of those yards (177) while Brady Oliveira there were 119 on the ground. They also scored 38 points, including 35 on offense.

With their sights set on Toronto, a team they struggled to score against in the regular season, will Winnipeg experience another offensive explosion in the biggest game of their year?