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The anxiety Als fans must be experiencing watching games is palpable, knowing the team's fortunes rest on Alexander's health.
Published Jul 17, 2026 • Last updated 10 minutes ago • 3 minute read
Alouettes quarterback Davis Alexander used to be a dual threat, with his arm and with his legs. But since his hamstring injury, he appears to run only to escape pressure, Herb Zurkowsky writes.
Alouettes quarterback Davis Alexander used to be a dual threat, with his arm and with his legs. But since his hamstring injury, he appears to run only to escape pressure, Herb Zurkowsky writes. Photo by Tim Snow /Montreal Gazette
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It's no longer enough to watch Davis Alexander run a play. Now, people also have to track the Alouettes quarterback's reaction after each play.
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Against Ottawa in late June, Alexander suffered an ankle injury but continued playing. Last Saturday against Calgary, he departed for the dressing room early in the fourth quarter — only to return — after grabbing his left hamstring. That's the same injury that limited Alexander to seven regular-season games in 2025.
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The anxiety Als fans must be experiencing is palpable, knowing the team's fortunes rest on Alexander's health. The East Division appears to be Montreal's for the taking, but that could all change on one unfortunate QB hit or Alexander run.
Alexander used to be a dual threat, with his arm and with his legs. But since his hamstring injury, he appears to run only to escape pressure; not to necessarily gain yards.
"He's very smart about how he plays and what he decides to do," head coach Jason Maas said. "We addressed (the hamstring) over the winter. There's a reason he has played five straight games. He had a serious injury. These things, after you've had one, they can reoccur and it takes a lot of time to get over them.
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"He does play a very dynamic position for us."
With a 4-1 record, the Als have assumed control of the East Division. They'll attempt to win a third straight game Saturday afternoon, a rematch against the Calgary Stampeders at McMahon Stadium (4 p.m., TSN5, RDS, TSN Radio-690, 99.5 FM).
Here are other thoughts and questions to ponder:
Reinforcements welcome: Receiver Cole Spieker returns prematurely from the six-game injured list to provide Alexander with another aerial threat.
Spieker suffered what appeared to be an innocuous ankle injury in the opening game at Hamilton. With the Als already missing receivers Jerreth Sterns and Alexander Hollins, Spieker's availability is welcome.
Now in his fifth season, the 6-foot-2, 215-pound Spieker caught 54 passes for 609 yards along with four touchdowns in 2025. He had a career-high 823 yards and seven TDs in 2024.
His 15 minutes of fame?: David Perales's CFL debut last Saturday proved propitious. The defensive end had a sack and a critical third-down knockdown in the dying seconds with the Stamps at the Montreal 15 and threatening to tie the score.
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It was nice while it lasted. Perales has been placed on the six-game injured list (adductor). The Als' defence has struggled at times this season. It needs more playmakers.
We remain in Awe: Middle-linebacker Micah Awe's return to the Als this season checked off two boxes. He replaced Darnell Sankey, now with B.C., and he brought a ferocity to the defence.
Awe was penalized for a late hit on Calgary QB Vernon Adams Jr. and this week, following a hearing, was penalized the maximum amount allowed by the CFL — half his game cheque — but avoided a suspension. The league doesn't have salary disclosure, so we don't know the amount of Awe's financial burden.
According to a published report, Awe has been fined or suspended 10 times since the start of his CFL career in 2017. While playing for B.C. last season, he was assessed the maximum fine for high hits to Als QB James Morgan and fullback David Dallaire — in the same game.
Awe has said he simply wants to play the game as intended — fast and physical. He has too much respect for the game to do anything illegal following the whistle. He was guilty of a football play against Adams; his momentum carrying him into the quarterback.
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Let's play two: Given the CFL's quirks, not to mention the odd amount of teams, it's not uncommon for clubs to meet in consecutively weeks.
Not only are the Als and Calgary playing back-to-back games, Montreal will meet B.C. on Sept. 4 and 12 before facing Saskatchewan twice within five days in October. On each occasion, the Als host the opening game. Montreal practised only twice this week, knowing it was meeting the same opponent.
"I like the fact we play them all at home first," Maas said. "To me that's ideal. You don't have to practise as much. The guys have every opportunity to recover. The mental grind isn't the same. I'm all for getting the western opponents out of the way."
Will history repeat?: Animosities can fester when teams play each other twice in a row. Last week's game was chippy. The visitors took 11 penalties for 113 yards, while the Als were assessed 12 infractions for 95 yards. The game took slightly more than three hours to be played.
hzurkowsky@postmedia.com
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