Chad Kelly throws four TDs — and four interceptions — in Argos' win over Redblacks

Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly (12) prepares to throw the ball during first half CFL football action against the Ottawa Redblacks in Ottawa on Saturday, June 20, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

OTTAWA — Chad Kelly has won plenty of games throughout his career but he couldn’t deny that this one felt pretty special.

The 32-year-old quarterback was instrumental in leading the Toronto Argonauts (1-1) to a 44-24 victory over the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday afternoon.

Kelly, making his second straight start, finished the game 25-for-32 for 424 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions.

He definitely didn’t like the turnovers, but after thinking about this moment for more than a year, he’s more than willing to give himself a little grace.

Kelly missed the entire 2025 season after suffering a fractured tibia and fibula in the 2024 East final, working tirelessly through a gruelling rehabilitation to get to this point.

“The first (win) feels good,” Kelly said. “Definitely builds confidence, right? Doing it for (head coach) Mike Miller, O-line played great, receivers got open when they needed to. I’ve got to clean up a lot of things, but we all stuck together.”

Kelly has thrown for more than 400 yards in his first two starts of the season, and admitted he often wondered during his recovery if he would be able to get back to this level of play.

“I think it’s just feeling comfortable knowing your guys out there, pushing yourself each and every day, even when you’re tired and just trying to get better,” he said.

The game also marked the first CFL victory as a head coach for Miller, who took over from Ryan Dinwiddie after he left the Argos to join the Redblacks last off-season.

Miller was showered in Gatorade after the game. While he enjoyed the moment, it was somewhat bittersweet that it came at the expense of longtime friend Dinwiddie.

“I don’t really love playing my friends,” Miller said. “I like being on a team, but we understand this is the business we’re in.”

Miller spoke of Kelly’s performance with pride knowing what his quarterback went through the past year.

“He gives us a chance every week,” said Miller. “He continues to see the field well, he makes adjustments every week and every day in practice too. There’s usually just playing quarterback some throws you wish he had back and I’m sure he would say that about a couple of those today, but he made some big plays for us.”

Dinwiddie is still looking for his first victory as general manager and head coach of the Redblacks and believes there’s work to be done on all facets of the game.

“Missed tackles on defence, not executing on offence and we didn’t execute that great on special teams either,” said Dinwiddie. “It’s frustrating we’re not playing really good football right now.”

Dinwiddie is very familiar with Kelly and his capabilities. He said his team made life too easy for him at times.

Jake Maier is still looking for his first win under centre as a Redblack. He finished 25-for-40 for 281 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

Maier pointed to falling short on a quarterback sneak, failing to convert on third-and-one, and a few passes he would definitely like back.

“There’s just critical moments in the game that we didn’t meet head-on and didn’t execute,” said Maier. “We got what we deserve when you don’t do that.”

Things didn’t get off to a great start for Maier as he threw an interception on his first pass attempt. Kelly went on to convert it into a touchdown on the Argos' opening drive, and Ottawa trailed from that point on.

The Redblacks showed some promise by picking off Kelly three times in the second half, but couldn’t convert on their opportunities.

Ottawa is now 0-2 and heads to Montreal next week, where they’ll face a talented Alouettes lineup.

“The only thing we can focus on is Montreal these days,” said Dinwiddie. “We can’t be fighting our ass off at the back of the standings and get going. We’ve got to get going now. We’ll look at it and find ways at practice.

"We’ve got to find an answer for these guys and we’ve got to help them out too.”

UP NEXT

Argos: Host the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday.

Redblacks: Ottawa visit the Montreal Alouettes on June 28.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 20, 2026.

Lisa Wallace, The Canadian Press