Jarious Jackson led the Toronto Argonauts to a 29-10 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, snapping a two-game losing streak on Saturday night.
Jackson, making his first start for the Argonauts in place of the injured Ricky Ray completed 17 out of 28 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown. The 35-year-old also rushed for 51 yards and a score on seven carries.
Toronto broke out to an early 21-0 lead after Jackson’s one-yard run put the Argonauts on the board.
On Winnipeg’s next drive, quarterback Buck Pierce threw an interception that Toronto’s Marcus Ball would return 27 yards for a touchdown.
The Argonauts would strike again at the end of the first quarter, as Jackson hit Dontrelle Inman with a 12-yard touchdown pass, capping off a 10-play, 63-yard drive.
Inman finished with four catches and 58 yards, while Maurice Mann led the team in receptions with six.
Winnipeg (3-10) responded with a field goal, and Blue Bomber quarterback Buck Pierce found Terrence Edwards for his lone touchdown marker of the night.
Pierce left the game after colliding with Toronto’s Brandon Isaac on a helmet-to-helmet blow.
Backup Joey Elliott took over for Pierce, and threw 20 completions, for 173 yards and three interceptions with no touchdowns.
Clarence Denmark caught ten passes for 99 yards in the losing effort, and the Blue Bombers struggled to generate any momentum throughout the game.
Argonauts kicker Swayze Waters added a field goal, and Toronto went up 24-10 at halftime.
Chad Kackert rushed for 86 yards on 20 attempts, forming a dynamic rushing duo with Jackson.
Slotback Andre Durie returned to the Argonauts’ lineup after being sidelined for three games with a quadriceps injury. Durie caught three passes for 27 yards, and ran the ball once for 22 yards.
Chad Owens became the first person in history to record three consecutive 3,000 all-purpose yard seasons in a row, but was otherwise a non-factor in the game. Owens recorded two catches for a mere three yards.
Armond Armstead led the Argonauts with seven tackles and a sack.
Toronto was spurred by a stalwart defensive performance in the second half, stifling any chance that Winnipeg had of getting back into the game.
This is Toronto’s second road win of the season, and at 7-5 is one game back of division leader Montreal.