Hamilton defence faces challenge in stopping Adams Jr. and red-hot Calgary offence

HAMILTON — Linebacker Reggie Stubblefield and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ defence again face another tough quarterback challenge.

Hamilton (3-4) hosts Calgary (3-4) on Saturday afternoon. Not only are the Stampeders coming off a 52-30 win over Winnipeg, but quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. has a CFL-high 20 TD passes with no interceptions.

“I love to see what V.A. is doing, not turning the ball over, being very efficient,” Stubblefield said. “I respect Dave Dickenson (Calgary’s head coach/GM), I respect V.A. and many of the guys who are on the offensive side of the ball.

“But it still goes to worrying about us and focusing on the things we’ve been preaching all year. Just looking forward to the challenge, ready to go compete with those guys and get back on the winning track.”

Last week, Hamilton’s defence faced Montreal starter Davis Alexander, who had six straight 300-yard passing games with no interceptions. The Ticats picked Alexander off once and held him to 187 passing yards and no TDs, but a late Tre Ford interception helped the Alouettes outscore the Ticats 14-0 in the fourth quarter for a 31-18 victory.

“A hot quarterback is a problem,” said Hamilton head coach Scott Milanovich. “I’ve said it every time I’ve played him since he’s been in the league that (Adams) can get streaky and he’s on a season-long tear right now.

“We’ve got to get pressure, got to put him in second and long, all of those things that make quarterbacks uncomfortable.”

Calgary leads the CFL in offensive points (37.0) and offensive TDs scored (31). Hamilton’s defence ranks second in fewest offensive points allowed (25.3) and is tied for second in fewest offensive touchdowns given up (18).

“A very good defence versus a very good offence that’s been playing very efficiently,” Stubblefield said. “I think it’s going to be a game that’s going to be played throughout four quarters and I also believe the most physical, disciplined and consistent team will win.”

Milanovich said Hamilton’s defence can get to Adams through Calgary running back Dedrick Mills, the CFL’s rushing leader with 584 yards (6.1-yard average, three TDs). Last week, the Ticats allowed 167 yards rushing versus Montreal.

“Honestly, as hot as Vernon is, it’s going to start by stopping the run,” Milanovich said. “That goes back to putting him in second-and-long situations where our pass rushers can kind of tee off, pin their ears back and apply some pressure.”

Milanovich feels Hamilton could help itself offensively by also establishing the run. The Ticats are fifth overall in rushing (95.3 yards per game) while Calgary is seventh against the run (106.3) and last in both pass defence (345.3 per game) and net offensive yards allowed (435.1).

“I think it (establishing run) is very important, especially against a hot quarterback and a hot offence,” Milanovich said. “Keep them on the sidelines in the heat, wear them down and not let their pass rushers pin their ears back and come after our quarterback.

“They’ve got a really good defence, a really good front.”

Calgary’s special teams aren’t bad either. Last week, former Ticat Tyreik McAllister became the first CFL player to score rushing, receiving and return touchdowns in the same game.

Hamilton’s Isaiah Wooden Sr. had a 100-yard punt-return TD versus Montreal and accumulated 212 combined yards. Wooden knows McAllister well as the two share the same agent and admits he took notice of McAllister’s scoring exploits last week.

“Man, I’m telling you I’d be lying if I said that it didn’t cross my mind,” Wooden said. “Seeing him do something like that, obviously that’s a big thing that’s very historic, and I know I could do the same thing if granted the opportunity.”

Ford makes a third straight start for Hamilton. He was 15-of-23 passing for 164 yards with a TD and ran three times for 24 yards last week.

But his fourth-quarter interception set up Travis Theis’s eight-yard TD run with 28 seconds remaining.

“Looking back, there were unfortunate turnovers, which was on me,” Ford said. “I wish we could’ve done more; it’s definitely a down for us, but the good thing about when you’re down is you can only go up, so looking to go up against Calgary.”

Although it’s only been roughly two weeks, Milanovich feels Ford is slowly getting acclimated to the offence.

“I’d think he’s feeling more comfortable just verbalizing the plays, what we’re looking for,” Milanovich said. “It’s being suited to him, which it wasn’t in training camp.

“A lot of it is the same, but there are some things that Tre does better. Hopefully he’s feeling more comfortable and will play well.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2026.

This is a corrected story. A previous version stated that Tre Ford was making his second start instead of his third.

Dan Ralph, The Canadian Press