It’s been a stinky hot week all over the globe this past little while; I, for one, hope the temperature can come back down a little bit – especially before this week’s slate of CFL games. Summer football is fantastic when the temperature is reasonable – and when you throw a little sunset action in there, it can hardly be more picturesque. But all things in moderation – especially the temperature.

In league news this week:

• Hamilton hired former Montreal HC Khari Jones as a “football operations consultant” – a nice get for the coaching staff. Expect to see him primarily work with the offence moving forward; the Ti-Cats did win their first game of the year last week, but if the team continues to struggle, OC Tommy Condell could be on the chopping block, especially with such a capable replacement waiting in the wings.
• The Saskatchewan Roughriders are going through a major COVID outbreak this week, with ten players testing positive as of Wednesday afternoon; with practise cancelled on both Tuesday and Wednesday, this definitely puts Saturday’s re-match against the Argos at risk of being postponed.
• On top of the illness, the Riders will also be without star WR Duke Williams in their next game, as the league suspended him for ripping Argos DB Shaq Richardson’s helmet off his head and throwing it at him; Richardson also received a fine for starting an altercation during warmups in the game and for later punching Williams after the helmet throw. Argos’ HC Ryan Dinwiddie also accused Williams of spitting on Richardson’s face on top of the helmet thing; at any rate, things are getting weird in Riderville.
• The Edmonton Elks signed former Toronto Argo and NFLer DL Kony Ealy on Wednesday; he started four games last season in the Double Blue before being a late cut in this year’s training camp. He’s 30 and has played a lot of football in his career, including 3 good seasons in Carolina, but maybe has a little something left in the tank. Just the kind of gamble Chris Jones is willing to make.

Onto the games!

WEEK 6 RECAPS

Edmonton 32 vs. Montreal 31: The Alouettes were up at the half and looking good… and then, in the second half, just completely imploded. I tend to avoid blaming specific people for crushing losses as much as possible, but in this case, Montreal DB Wes Sutton has to shoulder much of the blame, as he took 3 penalties for pass interference that gave up over 100 yards for Montreal and directly set up three Edmonton touchdowns immediately afterward. The Elks started Taylor Cornelius at QB for this one… their third different starter in six weeks… and after being inactive for the first five games of the season, Cornelius stepped in and managed the game effectively, going  19-31 for 230 yards, a TD and a pick. For Montreal, Trevor Harris continues to be wildly inconsistent; it’s equally puzzling that they’ve continued to ride him as the #1 guy after being so high on Vernon Adams over the last two seasons where he had clearly won the job. Something weird is going on, and I don’t think it’s for the best.

PICK: Montreal

RESULT: Edmonton

Calgary 19 vs. Winnipeg 26: The Bombers move to 6-0… but holy crap, what a game it was. Lots of lead changes, some impressive performances from Calgary’s Ka’Deem Carey (110 rushing yards on 12 carries) and Reggie Begelton (82 yards and a TD on 4 catches), and Winnipeg’s Greg Ellingson leading the Bombers’ offence with 152 receiving yards on 11 grabs. Both teams looked excellent; with Calgary on their final drive looking to steal the game away from Winnipeg at the very last moment, Bo Levi Mitchell found Kamar Jorden on a deep ball in the end zone. It was a perfect pass and a perfect grab… except the ball popped out of Jorden’s hands, and Bombers DB Demerio Houston made an incredible diving grab to snatch victory out of the jaws of defeat for Winnipeg. There’s no question the Bombers are a great football team, but damn if they aren’t also the luckiest.

PICK: Winnipeg

RESULT: Winnipeg

Saskatchewan 24 vs. Toronto 30: Now with pictures, courtesy of my in-laws! It was a fantastic afternoon for a football game in Nova Scotia. Acadia University’s Raymond Field was packed to the gills, and the crowd was treated to both a hell of a party and a hell of a game. The Argos are now back to .500 on the year after a surprising upset of the Riders, which occurred thanks to some excellent Toronto defensive pressure against Cody Fajardo, who was notably hampered by his knee injury. Fajardo threw three picks on the day, but none was as damaging as the final one; Argos LB Wynton McManis came over the middle to pick off the Rider’s QB, taking it back to the house on a giant 49-yard run. With a two-point convert, that sealed the deal for Toronto. Touchdown Atlantic definitely satisfied the Annapolis Valley – according to my family group chat, some folks in town are still nursing hangovers today.

PICK: Saskatchewan

RESULT: Toronto

Ottawa 23 vs. Hamilton 25: The REDBLACKS had an up-and-down ride in this game, with a strong first quarter followed by a terrible second quarter. Ottawa battled back in the second half to take a 23-18 lead in the fourth quarter with just over seven minutes to go; on Hamilton’s second-last possession, the defence held strong and forced an interception on Dane Evans, but the ensuing Ottawa drive went nowhere. With just over a minute left to go, Dane Evans engineered a drive that gave the Tabbies their game winning TD, finding Tim White in the end zone for the major. Ottawa had only a few seconds left to try and kick an absolutely massive 54-yard field goal… and while Lewis Ward’s kick was dead centre and accurate, it fell just short of the goalposts, clinching the win for the home side.

PICK: Hamilton

RESULT: Hamilton

BYE: BC (3-1)

WEEK 7 PREVIEWS

Montreal (1-4) vs. Ottawa (0-5), Thursday, July 21st, 7:00 PM EDT (TSN, ESPN+): As virtually everyone expected, the Als’ discipline problems did not vanish overnight once Danny Maciocia stepped in to coach. If they want to turn their season around, discipline MUST be priority #1. Ottawa is going to start Caleb Evans again at QB, but Nick Arbuckle will dress as the backup for this one. It’s a testament to just how weak the East is right now that the REDBLACKS still have yet to win a game and are only two games back of first in the East. If they lose again, there need to be more changes made – the last two seasons have been absolutely painful. As an organization, you don’t get a third before fans start to revolt en masse. If there was ever a game to right the ship, this one is it – the Als are missing several key defensive players, and Trevor Harris remains inconsistent, having thrown multiple interceptions in each of his last two games.

PICK: Ottawa

Hamilton (1-4) vs. BC (3-1), Thursday, July 21st, 10:00 PM EDT (TSN, ESPN+): While it’s true that Nathan Rourke has thrown more interceptions in his last few games, he did have to face the vaunted Winnipeg Blue Bombers a couple weeks ago, and that’s enough to give any experienced quarterback pause. The Lions are just fun. Coming off the bye, the hope is that there’s no rust – against a team like Hamilton, who’ve had a rocky start to the year despite a gritty win last week against the REDBLACKS, there’s reason to believe the Leos can keep the party going. Even with the late start, I really want to watch as much of the Nathan Rourke show as I can this year. Watching him play is the kind of football that gets bums in seats where it matters most.

PICK: BC

Winnipeg (6-0) vs. Edmonton (2-4), Friday, July 22nd, 9:00 PM EDT (TSN, ESPN2): If Calgary and BC couldn’t stop the Bombers, I have similar doubts about this Edmonton squad. Their comeback win last week was impressive in many regards, but perspective is key here – Montreal is no Winnipeg. Nobody is, for that matter – but things appear to slowly be taking shape in the Alberta capital. Taylor Cornelius is poised to start again for the Elks, and while he’s not starting calibre per se, Edmonton was fortunate to see him take steps and show improvement from a rocky 2021 season. Rumours swirl that Vernon Adams, Jr. might end up getting traded to Edmonton at some point later this year – but that’ll have to wait. In the meantime, the Bombers need to feast. Logic dictates they will.

PICK: Winnipeg

Toronto (2-2) vs. Saskatchewan (4-2), Saturday, July 23rd, 7:00 PM EDT (TSN, ESPNews): If the Roughriders can’t practise today, I would expect to see this game postponed. With ten players currently unavailable due to COVID as of Wednesday, I’d be shocked if the number didn’t go higher. If it does get postponed, that’s a real frustration not just for the Riders, but for the Argos as well, who’ll be facing a really busy latter part of their schedule after having already had two bye weeks to start their season. Adding a third would make it awfully difficult to keep the positive momentum going from last week’s gutsy win against these same Riders.

PICK: Saskatchewan

BYE: Calgary (4-1)

STANDINGS AND STATS

East Division Standings

Team	Games	Wins	Losses	Ties	Points For	Points Against
Toronto	4	2	2	0	75	110
Hamilton	5	1	4	0	105	141
Montreal	5	1	4	0	134	136
Ottawa	5	0	5	0	96	125

West Division Standings

Team	Games	Wins	Losses	Ties	Points For	Points Against
Winnipeg	6	6	0	0	156	104
Calgary	5	4	1	0	161	112
Saskatchewan	6	4	2	0	162	129
BC	4	3	1	0	159	92
Edmonton	6	2	4	0	121	220

Passing Yards 

1. Collaros, WPG – 1536
2. Fajardo, SSK – 1488
3. Evans, HAM – 1423

Passing TDs

1. Rourke, BC – 12
2. Collaros, WPG – 9
3. Fajardo, SSK – 8

Rushing Yards

1. Morrow, SSK – 412
2. Carey, CGY – 379
3. Harris, TOR – 269

Receiving Yards

1. Ellingson, WPG – 518
2. Henry, CGY – 441
3. Lewis, MTL – 437

Sacks

1. Robertson, SSK – 7
2. Mauldin, OTT – 5
3. Lanier, SSK – 4

Interceptions

1. Marshall, SSK – 3
2. Taylor, WPG – 3
3. Moncrief, SSK – 3

Field Goals

1. Lauther, SSK – 18
2. Paredes, CGY – 16
3. Castillo, EDM – 15

PICK POOL

GODDAMNIT I FORGOT TO HIT SUBMIT AGAIN FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK OH WELL MY SEASON IS FUCKING OVER ANYWAY WHO EVEN GIVES A SHIT

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Rank	Total Points	Weekly Score	Win Percentage
Litre_Cola	19	2-2	82.61%
SonOfSpam	18	2-2	78.26%
Game Time Decision	17	2-2	73.91%
WCS	16	1-3	69.57%
BC Dick	15	1-3	65.22%
Ballsofsteelandfury	15	3-1	65.22%
Gumbygirl	14	2-2	60.87%
The Maestro	10	0-4	43.48%

Enjoy the games, everyone.