In Week 7 of the 2023 season, Ottawa REDBLACKS defensive back Deandre Lamont earned his first career CFL start on the road against the Calgary Stampeders, but what should have been a night to remember quickly became one to forget.
On the Stamps’ first drive, Jake Maier tossed a deep ball to Clark Barnes, who left Lamont in the dust on a double move for a 54-yard touchdown, before they scored another long touchdown on a play Lamont believed was good coverage midway through the second quarter. His first start lasted only 15 plays, before he was benched in favour of Sherrod Baltimore before halftime.
His mind could have gone anywhere – he could have been upset, angry, or pointed his finger at someone else – but Lamont consciously decided to stay in the game, not concerning himself with any of the extra noise beyond his job on that day.
“I had to stay locked in, I’d never wish an injury on anyone, but you just never know,” Lamont said. “I didn’t want to be too down on myself, everyone has bad games.”
When the REDBLACKS left Cow Town – win in tow – that night, Lamont left the memories of the game on the runway, turning his attention to what was next, and dedicating himself to learning from the experience.
“You’ll have games like that, but you have to bounce back,” he said. “You go back to the drawing board and get to work in practice. Watch film, and you get better from it.”
Lamont’s chance at redemption didn’t take long to present itself, and in Week 16 against the Saskatchewan Roughriders, he broke out. He snagged a pair of interceptions off Riders’ pivot Jake Dolegala, one of which he nearly returned to the house, but tripped on his own feet, something that haunts him to this day.
It sparked a solid end to the season for the rookie, though he still had moments where a receiver got open, or he blew a coverage. With that in mind, he went into the offseason with a plan which would fundamentally change his approach to defence.
“I focused on a lot of press-man stuff, and some off-man coverage,” Lamont said. “But it was mostly press-man, that’s where you make your money. If you can take out a receiver pressing up all game, that’s what the main thing was for me. Whether you’re playing half back or you’re on the outside, you’re pressing a lot.”
With injuries to both Brandin Dandridge and Alijah McGhee in the REDBLACKS’ secondary, Lamont was thrust into a starting role out of training camp as the field-side corner. There was an immediate difference for not only Lamont, but the defence as a whole to start 2024, which has led to their 4-2 record through six games.
Currently, Lamont stands tied for third in the CFL in tackles with 38, and registered his first interception on the campaign with a heroic diving grab on Friday’s win over the Edmonton Elks.
That interception was an incredible reaction, but his work in the film room during the short week proved equally valuable, telling the media he knew what to expect from the Edmonton offence in that situation, and put himself in a good position to make a big play.
Still, the former high school receiver says he’s made better catches in his life.
“There was one play that I made that was better, it was a jump ball over two people,” Lamont said. “Other than that, it was probably the best catch I’ve ever had.”
As time has gone on, Lamont has found out that the CFL is the perfect league for his preferred style of play. He once told NFL Draft Diamonds that he loved playing the 4-2-5 defensive scheme, because it allows you to defend the pass, but also support the run. With effectively six defensive backs on the field in Canada at most times, it’s right up Lamont’s alley.
“It’s a passing league, you only have two downs,” Lamont said. “Even in college, I played a lot of run fits, especially at Illinois State, [the teams we played] had a lot of big guys up front, but I was filling in the run at that point too, so I don’t mind coming into the box.”
The early season success and 4-2 record rank pretty high on Lamont’s list, but nothing short of a Grey Cup could ever top his undefeated season where his team didn’t allow a single point back in peewee football.
“I won’t lie, that was the greatest season of my life,” Lamont said. “This does feel good to be 4-2, though, but it would be lovely to be 5-2 going into the bye week.”
