2016 Ottawa Redblacks season

Canadian Football League season

2016 Ottawa Redblacks season

General manager| Marcel Desjardins
Head coach| Rick Campbell
Home field| TD Place Stadium
Results
Record| 8–9–1
Division place| 1st, East
Playoff finish| Won Grey Cup
Team MOP| Ernest Jackson
Team MOC| Brad Sinopoli
Team MOR| Jason Lauzon-Séguin
Uniform

* <- 2015
* Redblacks seasons
* 2017 ->

The 2016 Ottawa Redblacks season was the third season for the team in the Canadian Football League. The Redblacks finished in first place in the East Division with an 8–9–1 record. This was the first time in CFL history that a team with a losing record finished first in their division.

The club failed to match their 12–6 record from the previous season; nevertheless, with their week 19 win in Winnipeg against the Blue Bombers the Redblacks repeated as regular season East Division champions, earning a bye to and the right to host the 2016 East Final in the process.[1]

The Redblacks' season featured the first-ever Grey Cup rematch to take place in an earlier round of the playoffs as the 2015 champion Edmonton Eskimos qualified as a crossover team for the East Division playoffs and advanced to the Eastern Final. The Redblacks avenged their 2015 Grey Cup loss with a 35–23 victory over Edmonton to earn the right to play in the 104th Grey Cup. At BMO Field in Toronto, the Redblacks won the first championship for an Ottawa CFL team since the Rough Riders did it in 1976.

## Off-season[edit]

### Open tryout sessions[edit]

On February 2, 2016, the Redblacks announced they would be holding open tryouts across North America during the spring.[2] The dates and locations are listed in the table below:

Location  | Venue  | Date

|
|

Miami, Florida  | Florida International University | February 27, 2016
Atlanta, Georgia  | Lakewood Stadium | February 28, 2016
Austin, Texas  | Bastrop Memorial Stadium  | April 9, 2016
Las Vegas, Nevada  | Bill 'Wildcat' Morris Rebel Park  | April 10, 2016
Ottawa, Ontario  | TD Place Stadium | April 23, 2016
Indianapolis, Indiana  | Decatur Central High School | May 21, 2016

### Free-agency[edit]

Prior to the start of free-agency at 12:00pm ET on February 9, 2016, the RedBlacks extended the contracts of some significant players. They brought back defensive lineman Zack Evans, wide-receiver Chris Williams and linebacker Damaso Munoz.

#### Additions[edit]

* Ottawa made a big splash on the first day of free-agency when they signed highly coveted former-Argos QB Trevor Harris. Harris played very well in 17 games for the Argos in 2015; completing 71% of his passes attempts with 33 touchdowns and 19 interceptions for 4,354 yards.[3] Harris was expected to be the back-up quarterback behind the then 41-year old, 2015 Most Outstanding Player, Henry Burris.[4]
* Veteran national defensive back Ryan Hinds agreed to terms with Ottawa in the middle of February.[5] Hinds spent his first seven CFL seasons between the Tiger-Cats and the Eskimos. However, Hinds decided to retire citing that "his heart wasn't in it and he wasn't going to play anymore".[6]
* Former Oakland Raiders and New York Giants wide receiver Juron Criner signed with the Redblacks on April 14 in time for training camp.[7] Following a successful pre-season Criner made the final roster.[8]

#### Losses[edit]

* Star defensive end Justin Capicciotti signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders on February 10. Capicciotti had been one of Ottawa's best pass-rushers in the previous two seasons, totaling 23 sacks and just shy of 100 tackles.[9]
* Also on February 10, starting running back Jeremiah Johnson signed with the BC Lions. In two seasons with the Redblacks Johnson saw action in 15 games (missing 8 games due to injury in 2015), carrying the ball 135 times for 686 yards (5.0 average) with 11 rushing touchdowns.[10]
* Veteran defensive back Jovon Johnson signed with the Montreal Alouettes.[11] Javon Johnson was an Eastern All-Star in 2015 and was one of the leaders on the defensive side of the ball.
* Offensive tackle Colin Kelly signed a contract with the San Francisco 49ers of the NFL.[12] Kelly played 18 games in 2015 for Ottawa at right tackle.
* Veteran defensive lineman Keith Shologan signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Shologon contributed 7 sacks during the 2015 campaign.[13]
* Defensive lineman Shawn Lemon was released by the Redblacks following the conclusion of the 2015 season so he could pursue NFL opportunities. He ultimately signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in January.[14]

### CFL draft[edit]

The 2016 CFL Draft took place on May 10, 2016. The Redblacks had nine selections in the eight-round draft after acquiring Saskatchewan's sixth and seventh-round picks in exchange for Maurice Price and their own sixth-round pick.[15]

Round  | Pick  | Player  | Position  | School

|
|
|
|

1 | 7 | Jason Lauzon-Seguin | OL | Laval
2 | 16 | Mikael Charland | DB | Concordia
3 | 25 | Mehdi Abdesmad | DL | Boston College
4 | 35 | Kevin Jackson | LB | Sam Houston State
5 | 43 | Randy Beardy | OL | Windsor
6 | 45 | Kyle Fraser-Audit | OL | Guelph
7 | 54 | Arto Khatchikian | LB | Concordia
7 | 60 | Jamal Kett | WR | Western Ontario
8 | 69 | Guillaume Tremblay-Lebel | LB | Laval

### Training camp[edit]

Non-mandatory spring mini-camp was held on April 24–26 at TD Place stadium. The sessions were open for the public to view.[16] Mandatory training camp took place between May 29 and through June 19. First-year CFL players had three practices prior to the official training camp (May 25 through 27). The majority of practices took place at TD Place Stadium, with two at Carleton University and one at Stade Mont-Bleu in Gatineau, Quebec. The team conducted a "mock-game" as part of their training camp on June 5.[17] This was the first training camp season in which the Redblacks had priority at TD Place, as the stadium was under construction in 2014 and hosting the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup last year.[18]

## Preseason[edit]

Week  | Date  | Kickoff  | Opponent  | Results  | TV  | Venue  | Attendance  | Summary

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Score  | Record
A | Mon, June 13  | 7:00 p.m. EDT | vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers | W 18–14  | 1–0  | TSN | TD Place Stadium | 17,947  | Recap
B | Fri, June 17  | 7:30 p.m. EDT  | at Hamilton Tiger-Cats | L 25–42  | 1–1  | Ticats.ca  | Tim Hortons Field |  | Recap

[19]

# Games played with white uniforms.

## Regular season[edit]

### Standings[edit]

East Division

* view
* talk
* edit

Team  | GP | W | L | T | Pts | PF | PA | Div | Stk |
Ottawa Redblacks | 18 | 8 | 9 | 1 | 17 | 486 | 498 | 5–3 | L1 | Details
Hamilton Tiger-Cats | 18 | 7 | 11 | 0 | 14 | 507 | 502 | 5–3 | L2 | Details
Montreal Alouettes | 18 | 7 | 11 | 0 | 14 | 383 | 416 | 3–5 | W3 | Details
Toronto Argonauts | 18 | 5 | 13 | 0 | 10 | 383 | 568 | 3–5 | L7 | Details

### Schedule[edit]

Week  | Date  | Kickoff  | Opponent  | Results  | TV  | Venue  | Attendance  | Summary

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Score  | Record
1 | Sat, June 25  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | at Edmonton Eskimos | W 45–37 (OT) | 1–0  | TSN/RDS | Commonwealth Stadium | 27,846  | Recap
2 | Thurs, June 30  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | at Montreal Alouettes | W 28–13  | 2–0  | TSN/RDS/ESPN2 | Molson Stadium | 21,522  | Recap
3 | Fri, July 8  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | vs. Calgary Stampeders | T 26–26 (2OT) | 2–0–1  | TSN/RDS  | TD Place Stadium | 24,621  | Recap
4 | Wed, July 13  | 7:30 p.m. EDT  | at Toronto Argonauts | W 30–20  | 3–0–1  | TSN/RDS  | BMO Field | 12,373  | Recap
5 | Fri, July 22  | 9:00 p.m. EDT  | at Saskatchewan Roughriders | L 29–30  | 3–1–1  | TSN/RDS2 | Mosaic Stadium | 30,172  | Recap
6 | Sun, July 31  | 7:30 p.m. EDT  | vs. Toronto Argonauts  | L 20–23  | 3–2–1  | TSN/RDS/ESPN2  | TD Place Stadium  | 24,894  | Recap
7 | Sat, Aug 6  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | vs. Edmonton Eskimos  | W 23–20  | 4–2–1  | TSN  | TD Place Stadium  | 24,560  | Recap
8 | Bye
9 | Fri, Aug 19  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | vs. Montreal Alouettes  | L 19–43  | 4–3–1  | TSN/RDS  | TD Place Stadium  | 24,907  | Recap
10 | Thurs, Aug 25  | 7:30 p.m. EDT  | vs. BC Lions | L 23–29  | 4–4–1  | TSN/RDS/ESPN2  | TD Place Stadium  | 24,677  | Recap
11 | Thurs, Sept 1  | 7:30 p.m. EDT  | at Montreal Alouettes  | W 19–14  | 5–4–1  | TSN/RDS  | Molson Stadium  | 19,117  | Recap
12 | Bye
13 | Sat, Sept 17  | 5:00 p.m. EDT  | at Calgary Stampeders  | L 23–48  | 5–5–1  | TSN  | McMahon Stadium | 26,529  | Recap
14 | Fri, Sept 23  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | vs. Toronto Argonauts  | W 29–12  | 6–5–1  | TSN/RDS2  | TD Place Stadium  | 25,088  | Recap
15 | Sat, Oct 1  | 10:00 p.m. EDT  | at BC Lions  | L 33–40  | 6–6–1  | TSN/RDS  | BC Place | 19,703  | Recap
16 | Fri, Oct 7  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders  | L 30–32 (OT) | 6–7–1  | TSN  | TD Place Stadium  | 24,668  | Recap
17 | Fri, Oct 14  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | at Hamilton Tiger-Cats | W 30–29  | 7–7–1  | TSN  | Tim Hortons Field | 23,868  | Recap
18 | Fri, Oct 21  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats  | L 36–39 (2OT) | 7–8–1  | TSN  | TD Place Stadium  | 24,210  | Recap
19 | Sat, Oct 29  | 4:00 p.m. EDT  | at Winnipeg Blue Bombers | W 23–10  | 8–8–1  | TSN/RDS  | Investors Group Field | 26,097  | Recap
20 | Fri, Nov 4  | 7:00 p.m. EDT  | vs. Winnipeg Blue Bombers  | L 20–33  | 8–9–1  | TSN/RDS2  | TD Place Stadium  | 24,432  | Recap

[19][20]

# Games played with colour uniforms.
# Games played with white uniforms.

## Post-season[edit]

### Schedule[edit]

Game  | Date  | Kickoff  | Opponent  | Results  | TV  | Venue  | Attendance  | Summary

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Score  | Record
East Semi-Final | Bye
East Final | Sun, Nov 20  | 1:00 p.m. EST  | vs. Edmonton Eskimos | W 35–23  | 1–0  | TSN/RDS/ESPN2  | TD Place Stadium | 24,248  | Recap
104th Grey Cup | Sun, Nov 27  | 6:00 p.m. EST  | vs. Calgary Stampeders | W 39–33 (OT) | 2–0  | TSN/RDS/ESPN2  | BMO Field | 33,421  | Recap

[19]

# Games played with colour uniforms.

Over 40,000 fans attended the Grey Cup parade at Lansdowne Park two days following the game.[21]

## Team[edit]

### Roster[edit]

2016 Ottawa RedBlacks roster

Quarterbacks

* 1 Henry Burris
* 7 Trevor Harris
* 5 Danny O'Brien

Running backs

* 25 Brendan Gillanders FB
* 27 Kienan LaFrance RB
* 81 Patrick Lavoie RB
* 3 Travon Van RB

Receivers

* 86 Juron Criner
* 82 Greg Ellingson
* 8 Jake Harty
* 9 Ernest Jackson
* 83 Scott MacDonell
* 13 Khalil Paden
* 88 Brad Sinopoli
* 4 Jamill Smith

|  | Offensive linemen

* 53 Matthew Albright
* 64 J'Michael Deane
* 68 Tommie Draheim
* 63 Jon Gott
* 58 Jason Lauzon-Séguin
* 66 Nolan MacMillan
* 56 Alex Mateas

Defensive linemen

* 76 Landon Cohen DL
* 92 Zack Evans DL
* 41 Arnaud Gascon-Nadon DE
* 95 Moton Hopkins DL
* 94 Cleyon Laing DL
* 90 Andrew Marshall DL
* 99 Connor Williams DE

|  | Linebackers

* 10 Serderius Bryant
* 52 Tanner Doll
* 45 Damaso Munoz
* 44 Taylor Reed

Defensive backs

* 46 Jean-Philippe Bolduc
* 24 Jerrell Gavins
* 23 Forrest Hightower
* 15 Keelan Johnson
* 14 Abdul Kanneh
* 6 Antoine Pruneau
* 22 Jeff Richards
* 34 Jonathan Rose
* 28 Nicholas Taylor
* 33 Dan West
* 21 Mitchell White CB

Special teams

* 43 Ray Early K
* 39 Zackary Medeiros K

|  | Injured List

* 31 John Boyett LB
* 36 Mikaël Charland DB
* 43 Olivier Goulet-Veilleux LB
* 16 Brock Jensen QB
* 48 Jeremiah Kose LB
* 49 Ettore Lattanzio DL
* 37 Mossis Madu RB
* 50 Kevin Malcolm LB
* 30 Chris Milo K
* 97 Mike Moore DL
* 17 Ronnie Pfeffer P
* 29 William Powell RB
* 55 SirVincent Rogers OL
* 47 Nigel Romick DL
* 59 Jake Silas OL
* 91 Aston Whiteside DL
* 80 Chris Williams WR

6-Game Injured List

* currently vacant

Disabled

* 38 Tristan Jackson DB

Practice squad

* 65 Randy Beardy OL
* 96 Marcus Bernard DL
* 19 Imoan Claibourne DB
* 57 Quinterrius Eatmon DL
* 93 Miles Grooms DL
* 84 John Harris WR
* 98 Paul Hazel DL
* 35 Kevin Jackson LB
* 87 Joshua Stangby WR
* 42 Herve Tonye-Tonye LB

* * *

Italics indicate International player
Roster updated 2016-11-28
Depth Chart • Transactions
46 Active, 17 Injured, 0 Six-Game Injured,
10 Practice

→ More rosters

### Coaching staff[edit]

2016 Ottawa Redblacks staff

| Front office

* Owner – Jeff Hunt
* President and CEO – Bernie Ashe
* General Manager – Marcel Desjardins
* Assistant General Manager – Brock Sunderland
* Director of player personnel – Jeremy Snyder
* Pro Scout – Jean-Marc Edme
* Football Operations Assistant – Pier-Yves Lavergne
* Coordinator, Football Administration – Joey Swarbrick
* Video Coordinator – Colin Farquharson
* Assistant Video Coordinator – Braun Gheller

Head coaches

* Head coach – Rick Campbell

Offensive coaches

* Offensive coordinator – Jaime Elizondo
* Offensive line – Bryan Chiu
* Receivers – Travis Moore
* Running Backs – Beau Walker
* Offensive assistant – Patrick Bourgon

|  |  |

Defensive coaches

* Defensive coordinator – Mark Nelson
* Defensive line – Leroy Blugh
* Defensive backs – Ike Charlton
* Linebackers – Derek Oswalt

Special teams coaches

* Special teams coordinator – Bob Dyce

→ Coaching Staff
→ More CFL staffs

## References[edit]

1. ^ "Redblacks beat Bombers to clinch East". TSN.ca. The Canadian Press. October 29, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
2. ^ "Open Tryouts 2016 - Ottawa REDBLACKS". Ottawa REDBLACKS. Archived from the original on 2016-02-06. Retrieved 2016-02-06.
3. ^ "REDBLACKS land quarterback Trevor Harris". Ottawa REDBLACKS. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
4. ^ "Ottawa RedBlacks' new quarterback Trevor Harris learns from legends". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
5. ^ Dunk, Justin (2016-02-18). "Canadian defensive back Ryan Hinds agrees to terms with Redblacks". 3DownNation. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
6. ^ "Would-be Redblacks decide to opt out before camp". Ottawa Citizen. 2016-05-30. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
7. ^ Hansen, Greg. "Ex-UA standout receiver Criner signs with CFL's Redblacks". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
8. ^ "Ottawa Redblacks drop pre-season finale against Hamilton Tiger-Cats". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
9. ^ "Saskatchewan Roughriders welcome DE Justin Capicciotti". Regina Leader-Post. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
10. ^ "Johnson, Allen vying to fill void in Lions' backfield". TSN. 2016-05-31. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
11. ^ "Ottawa RedBlacks lose Jovon Johnson to Montreal Alouettes, but the question is why". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
12. ^ Fucillo, David (2016-01-25). "49ers give CFL OL Colin Kelly $65,000 in guaranteed money". Niners Nation. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
13. ^ "Bombers add Medlock, Shologan". CFL.ca. 2016-02-09. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
14. ^ "Riders sign defensive end Shawn Lemon". CFL.ca. 2016-01-14. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
15. ^ CFL.ca Staff (11 January 2016). "Roughriders acquire Maurice Price from REDBLACKS". CFL.ca.
16. ^ "REDBLACKS Mini-Camp Set for April 24–26". Ottawa REDBLACKS. Retrieved 2016-04-08.
17. ^ "Ottawa Redblacks unveil training camp schedule". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
18. ^ "Redblacks reveal training camp schedule". Ottawa Citizen. 2016-05-20. Retrieved 2016-05-21.
19. ^ a b c 2016 Schedule
20. ^ "Where to watch: 2016 Broadcast information". Archived from the original on 2017-05-11. Retrieved 2017-08-23.
21. ^ "Ottawa rallies as 40,000-plus take in Grey Cup parade". CFL.ca. 2016-11-29. Retrieved 2016-11-30.

* v
* t
* e

Ottawa Redblacks

* Founded in 2010
* Based in Ottawa, Ontario

Franchise|

* Franchise
* Players
* Seasons
* Redblacks records
* Ottawa records
* Head coaches
* Starting quarterbacks
* First-round draft picks
* Mascot

Stadiums|

* TD Place Stadium

Lore|

* 2013 Expansion Draft
* Labour Day Classic
* Ottawa Rough Riders
* Ottawa Renegades

Key personnel|

* Owner: Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group
* General manager: Shawn Burke
* Head coach: Bob Dyce

Important figures|

* Jeff Hunt

Retired numbers|

* 11
* 12
* 26
* 40
* 60
* 62
* 70
* 71
* 72
* 77

Grey Cup
Championships (1)|

* 2016

Eastern Division
Championships (3)|

* 2015
* 2016
* 2018

Current league
affiliations|

* League: Canadian Football League
* Division: East

* v
* t
* e

Ottawa Redblacks seasons

* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024

* Bold indicates Grey Cup victory.

* v
* t
* e

Ottawa Redblacks 104th Grey Cup champions

* 1 Henry Burris (MVP)
* 3 Travon Van
* 4 Jamill Smith
* 5 Danny O'Brien
* 6 Antoine Pruneau
* 7 Trevor Harris
* 8 Jake Harty
* 9 Ernest Jackson
* 10 Serderius Bryant
* 13 Khalil Paden
* 14 Abdul Kanneh
* 15 Keelan Johnson
* 16 Brock Jensen
* 17 Ronnie Pfeffer
* 19 Imoan Claiborne
* 21 Mitchell White
* 22 Jeff Richards
* 23 Forrest Hightower
* 24 Jerrell Gavins
* 25 Brendan Gillanders
* 27 Kienan LaFrance
* 28 Nick Taylor
* 29 William Powell
* 30 Christopher Milo
* 31 John Boyett
* 33 Dan West
* 34 Jonathan Rose
* 35 Kevin Jackson
* 36 Mikaël Charland
* 37 Mossis Madu
* 38 Tristan Jackson
* 39 Zackary Medeiros
* 41 Arnaud Gascon-Nadon
* 42 Herve Tonye-Tonye
* 43 Ray Early
* 43 Olivier Goulet-Veilleux
* 44 Taylor Reed
* 45 Damaso Munoz
* 46 Jean-Philippe Bolduc
* 47 Nigel Romick
* 48 Jeremiah Kose
* 49 Ettore Lattanzio
* 50 Kevin Malcolm
* 52 Tanner Doll
* 53 Matthew Albright
* 55 SirVincent Rogers
* 56 Alex Mateas
* 57 Quinterrius Eatmon
* 58 Jason Lauzon-Séguin
* 59 Jake Silas
* 63 Jon Gott
* 64 J'Michael Deane
* 65 Randy Beardy
* 66 Nolan MacMillan
* 68 Tommie Draheim
* 76 Landon Cohen
* 80 Chris Williams
* 81 Patrick Lavoie
* 82 Greg Ellingson
* 83 Scott MacDonell
* 84 John Harris
* 86 Juron Criner
* 87 Joshua Stangby
* 88 Brad Sinopoli (MVC)
* 90 Andrew Marshall
* 91 Aston Whiteside
* 92 Zack Evans
* 93 Miles Grooms
* 94 Cleyon Laing
* 95 Moton Hopkins
* 96 Marcus Bernard
* 97 Mike Moore
* 98 Paul Hazel
* 99 Connor Williams

* Head coach: Rick Campbell

* Assistant coaches: Jaime Elizondo
* Bryan Chiu
* Travis Moore
* Beau Walker
* Patrick Bourgon
* Mark Nelson
* Leroy Blugh
* Ike Charlton
* Derek Oswalt
* Bob Dyce

* General manager: Marcel Desjardins

* v
* t
* e

2016 CFL season by team

Western|

* BC
* Calgary
* Edmonton
* Saskatchewan
* Winnipeg

Eastern|

* Hamilton
* Montreal
* Ottawa
* Toronto

See also|

* 2016 CFL Draft
* 104th Grey Cup

*[GP]: Games Played
*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[T]: Ties
*[Pts]: Points
*[PF]: Points For
*[PA]: Points Against (Total points allowed)
*[Div]: Win–Loss record within their division
*[Stk]: Current Winning or Losing Streak
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template