CFL Beat: Week 21

The playoff picture is now finally set! We have one “meaningless” week of football – but I do hope all the same that it’s mildly entertaining. Not too much on the news this week, but expect to see a few more notes once the regular season officially concludes and we see the dominoes fall for further coach firings and players opting to test free agency.

In league news this week:

• After another stunning late-season collapse, the Saskatchewan Roughriders have dismissed HC Craig Dickenson, whose contract was set to expire at the end of the regular season. With no playoffs for the second year in a row in similar fashion to last season, there’s no doubt that change will be coming soon. GM Jeremy O’Day, who was also on an expiring deal, just signed an undisclosed contract extension.
• Roughriders QB Trevor Harris was allegedly preparing for a playoff comeback after breaking his leg earlier in the season; had Saskatchewan not choked away their final game of the year and clinched the final playoff slot, there’s a chance we could’ve seen him back on the field against BC. Alas, it’s not to be, and questions abound about whether or not he’ll be back in Regina next year, having suffered such a significant injury this season. That said, he does have another year on his deal, and every single other QB on the roster is a free agent at the end of the season.

Onto the games!

WEEK 20 RECAPS

Calgary 41 vs. BC 16: This was an absolutely massive victory for Calgary; it put them in the driver’s seat for the final playoff spot in the West. Jake Maier had two TD passes for the Stampeders, while backup Tommy Stevens had two rushing scores. BC couldn’t get their offense going; Vernon Adams, Jr., coming off a knee injury from last week, played the first half, but Dane Evans finished the game; Evans had a couple of TDs but also a couple of interceptions. With the Lions’ regular season now over, they’ll get Week 21 to rest up before hosting this very same Stampeders team back at BC Place in two weeks’ time. If Calgary’s discovered the secret to beating the Lions, we could have a seriously intriguing West semifinal on our hands; not every day you see a 6-11 team dictating the pace of play all game long.

PICK: BC

RESULT: BC

Toronto 29 vs. Saskatchewan 26: It’s highly likely that Stamps fans were more excited about this Argos victory than even Toronto fans, because the Roughriders’ defeat handed the final West playoff spot to Calgary. Considering how Saskatchewan has imploded over the final third of the season, they truly had no business being in the postseason whatsoever, and with HC Craig Dickenson and GM Jeremy O’Day both on expiring contracts, I expect to see sweeping changes coming to the roster, coaching staff and football ops alike. Much like the rest of their season, Saskatchewan started strong, but absolutely blew it late in the game; the home side jumped out to an early 17-0 lead before the Argos began to battle back. Toronto backup QB Cameron Dukes came in to relieve Chad Kelly with about four minutes left to play due to an injury scare, and ended up leading his team to the game-winning TD. Toronto was facing a third-and-10 at one point before Dukes found WR Richie Sindani to keep the drive alive, but it was RB Daniel Adeboboye who juked a couple of defenders on the rush next play to plunge into the end zone and score the winning points. Jake Dolegala got picked on Saskatchewan’s final drive of the game, and just like that, their 2023 season is now over; in with a bang, and out with a whimper.

PICK: Toronto

RESULT: Toronto

Edmonton 25 vs. Winnipeg 45: Winnipeg clinched the West division title with this win at home over Edmonton, and also set another cool record – RB Brady Oliveira and WR Nic Demski are now the first pair of Canadians on the same team to have 1000-yard rushing and receiving seasons. Once again, however, the story is all about Winnipeg’s complete team effort, and how their D held Edmonton to just a single point in the third quarter to help put things away for the home side. The Elks scored their first kickoff return TD in eight years with returner Deontez Alexander taking the rock 98 yards to the house in the fourth quarter, but it was never going to be enough; the Bombers’ D came to play and kept the Elks in check when it mattered most. Time for the Green & Gold to turn the page to 2024.

PICK: Winnipeg

RESULT: Winnipeg

BYE: Ottawa (4-13), Hamilton (8-9), Montreal (10-7)

WEEK 21 PREVIEWS

Winnipeg (13-4) vs. Calgary (6-11), Friday, October 27th, 9:00 PM EDT (TSN, CFL+): What a thrill for the Stampeders to make the playoffs after such a poor season; last week’s win over the Lions was one of the best games they’ve played all year – they’re getting hot at just the right time. I expect both teams to be resting some key players ahead of this matchup, but at the moment, all signs point to Winnipeg’s overall depth being much greater than Calgary’s. The Stamps still have a huge hurdle ahead of them if they somehow want to make the West Final, let alone the Grey Cup, in a very good BC team that looked surprisingly off last week. The Bombers have clinched that crucial first-round bye thanks to last week’s big win over Edmonton, so the main question for the Bombers now becomes the ever-controversial one of “how much rest is too much rest?”

PICK: Winnipeg

Hamilton (8-9) vs. Montreal (10-7), Saturday, October 28th, 4:00 PM EDT (TSN, CFL+): It’s a preview of the East Semi-Final next week; these two teams will be back at next weekend in exactly the same place. Resting starters is probably very likely here, but I hope that competitive edge gives coaches something to watch for in their game-planning for the playoffs. Montreal really righted the ship in the last month and a half of the season (two wins over Ottawa certainly helped with that); but as always, their Achilles heel as a team is their highly porous O-line. Hamilton’s main problem is Bo Levi Mitchell and his noodle arm. No doubt that injuries hampered him yet again this year, and while giving him some limited minutes as a ramp-up to returning to game action for the playoffs may appear a prudent course of action if viewed in a bubble, I simply don’t think he has it in enough to be The Guy in the playoffs anymore.

PICK: Montreal

Toronto (15-2) vs. Ottawa (4-13), Saturday, October 28th, 7:00 PM EDT (TSN, CFL+): What a strange game for both these teams, for entirely opposite reason. The REDBLACKS had a bye in Week 20, where they were already eliminated from the playoff race; with so little to play for, against an opponent with so little to play for due to entirely opposite reasons, I question just how entertaining this game will actually be. I expect we’ll see a lot of REDBLACKS auditioning for jobs next year, so expect to see some odd lineup choices. Toronto will probably just treat this almost like another bye week. Even with their starters probably out, I still think they’ll come out on top over this truly lowly and pathetic Ottawa team. Change will be coming to the nation’s capital. I sincerely hope so. Four years of no playoffs in a league where two-thirds of the teams make the postseason is the quickest way to permanently taint a product.

PICK: Toronto

BYE: BC (12-6), Edmonton (4-14), Saskatchewan (6-12)

STANDINGS AND STATS

East Division Standings

West Division Standings

x – clinched playoff spot
y – clinched division
e – eliminated from playoff contention

Passing Yards 

1. Adams, Jr., BC – 4769
2. Collaros, WPG – 4252
3. Kelly, TOR – 4123

Passing TDs

1. Collaros, WPG – 33
2. Adams, Jr., BC – 31
3. Kelly, TOR – 23

Rushing Yards

1. Oliveira, WPG – 1498
2. Brown, EDM – 1141
3. Butler, HAM – 1116

Receiving Yards

1. White, HAM – 1269
2. Hatcher, BC – 1226
3. Schoen, WPG – 1222

Defensive Tackles

1. Awe, CGY – 124
2. Pickett, TOR – 115
3. Morgan, EDM – 107

Sacks

1. Betts, BC – 18
2. Carter, OTT – 12
3. Ceresna, EDM – 12

Interceptions

1. Houston, WPG – 7
2. Dandridge, OTT – 5
3. Katsantonis, HAM – 5

Field Goals

1. Whyte, BC – 50
2. Paredes, CGY – 50
3. Castillo, WPG – 41

PICK POOL

Congratulations to BC Dick, who has officially clinched the 2023 Pick’em championship! That said – we still have one week left to play. Time to play for second place.

Remember to submit your picks here! https://www.pooltracker.com/join.asp?poolid=205786

Enjoy the games, everyone.