The CFL power rankings have seen a little bit of a shift of late as the Edmonton Eskimos have crashed. They had been the top team in the CFL up until two weeks ago. They were undefeated and appeared to be the best defensive team in the league. That was until they lost back-to-back games, giving up 33 and 54 points in each game. Now they’ve tumbled to third in the CFL standings – based on a tiebreak – but they can get back in the thick of things with two upcoming games against the Calgary Stampeders. This week is a very important week for the Eskimos and the momentum of their season.
1. Calgary Stampeders
Last Week: 1
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +220
The Stampeders (7-1-1) sit atop the West division after a 23-7 win at home over Toronto as Bo Levi Mitchell was 31-of-42 for 384 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. Both touchdowns went to DaVaris Daniels, who caught eight passes for 114 yards. But the defense was the story as Calgary held Toronto 238 yards of offense and forced a pair of turnovers on downs, and the Stampeders have now allowed a combined 24 points in their last two games going into this home game with Edmonton on Monday afternoon.
2. Edmonton Eskimos
Last Week: 2
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +325
Meanwhile, the Eskimos (7-2-0) have dropped to third in the West after a 54-31 beatdown at home at the hands of Saskatchewan. Mike Reilly struggled mightily, going 15-of-26 for 160 yards and a pair of picks before James Franklin replaced him, going 10-of-12 for 111 yards and a score. The Eskimos were down 26-6 by halftime and only a 24-point fourth quarter made it respectable. Now, the Eskimos have allowed 87 points in their last two games as they prepare to head to Calgary.
3. British Columbia Lions
Last Week: 3
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +550
The Lions (5-5-0) are fourth in the West after they fell 31-24 in Ottawa, and they were down 18-0 by halftime. Jonathon Jennings was pulled after going 10-of-17 for 137 yards and an interception, while Travis Lulay was 18-of-23 for 202 yards, two touchdowns and a pick, and he ran for 36 yards as well. The Lions scored 21 points in the fourth quarter, but they came up just short, but they didn’t do themselves any favors with nine penalties, which cost them 112 yards. They’ll have a week off to think about it on their bye.
4. Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Last Week: 4
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +750
The Blue Bombers (7-2-0) are right in the thick of it in the West after their 34-31 overtime win in Montreal, as Matt Nichols went 26-of-38 for 227 yards, three touchdowns and a pick. Andrew Harris ran 13 times for 75 yards for the Blue Bombers, who jumped out to a 10-point lead, lost it, and then came through in overtime for yet another close win to remain second in the West. They did force four turnovers (one on downs), and that would help them as they head to Saskatchewan on Sunday.
5. Toronto Argonauts
Last Week: 5
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +1000
The Argonauts (4-6-0) just couldn’t get anything going in their loss in Calgary as Ricky Ray was 22-of-34 for 220 yards, while the running game picked up just 18 yards on the ground. The defense held their own with a pair of sacks and an interception, but the Argonauts shot themselves in the foot with 10 penalties for 88 yards; five of those penalties came on special teams for 48 yards. Toronto isn’t good enough to make those sorts of mistakes. They’ll be in Hamilton on Monday night to hopefully get back on track.
6. Montreal Alouettes
Last Week: 6
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +1000
The Alouettes (3-6-0) battled hard in their overtime loss at home to Winnipeg, but they came up just short. Darian Durant was 31-of-43 for 316 yards, three touchdowns and a pair of interceptions, while he also ran three times for 32 yards as the Alouettes had 119 yards on the ground. However, they gave up 154 rushing yards and again, four turnovers is no way to win a game at any level. They’re still in the playoff hunt as they prepare to host Ottawa on Thursday in a huge game, but it doesn’t look promising.
7. Ottawa RedBlacks
Last Week: 7
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +1200
The RedBlacks (3-6-1) got a solid and much-needed win at home over British Colombia as Trevor Harris was 30-of-45 for 326 yards, a touchdown and two picks, but allowing 21 points in the fourth quarter isn’t a good sign. Luckily, the Lions couldn’t stop taking penalties and that allowed the RedBlacks to jump into the lead, and move into second in the East. This game on Thursday in Montreal looms large as the second-place team in the East will get into the playoffs and host a game, no matter how bad they end up being.
8. Saskatchewan Roughriders
Last Week: 8
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +1600
The Roughriders (4-4-0) are red-hot after routing Edmonton on the road, with Kevin Glenn going 19-of-31 for 240 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. The Roughriders also ran for 89 yards, and even though they committed 11 penalties for 116 yards, the Eskimos committed 13 penalties for 128 yards, so it evened out. The Roughriders are catching up in the West, and with a win at home on Sunday against Winnipeg, they can move into fourth in the division with the Lions on a bye week.
9. Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Last Week: 9
Grey Cup Championship Odds: +1600
The Tiger-Cats (0-8-0) had one of the worst bye weeks in the history of the league as they were set to hire former Baylor coach Art Briles for their staff, but had to cancel those plans as the backlash was far too much. Briles was front and center in a sexual-assault scandal at Baylor that was horrific, to say the least, and the Tiger-Cats almost made a bigger mistake than anything that has happened this season on the field, and that is saying a lot because they’re a very bad football team. Now, they have to come back this week and host Toronto on Monday in the final game of the weekend. To say it isn’t looking good for the Tiger-Cats is the understatement of the year.
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