Another week in the books and another .500 CFL for this guy. Last week, both the Ottawa Redblacks and the surprising, Toronto Argonauts let me down on my quest to remain perfect. We roll into Week 10 with just as many questions as ever. The mid-season report for some of these teams would be confusing to anybody not paying attention to the league. It’s more random for the middle of the pack than I can remember and last week proved that nobody is safe.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers(6-2) v. Edmonton Elks(0-8)
Oh man. I don’t even know where to begin. Since week one, I’ve been really harsh on Edmonton and they’ve absolutely deserved it. We come into week ten and Elks fans are, once again, have some sort of unwarranted hope as they turn to QB Tre Ford. I mentioned previously that Edmonton has a new offensive coordinator and he looks to come out of their bye week with a clean slate for the team. Unfortunately, they run full speed into the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, who just dropped 50 points last week on the BC Lions, who were ranked second in a lot of power rankings heading into the week. Winnipeg is hitting full stride as Zach Collaros continues his impressive season, but more impressively, the defense’s improvement from the beginning of the year is really starting to assert it’s dominance on the rest of the league. Edmonton is looking to end a 22 home game losing streak, the record for any major sporting organization in the world. If I’m an Elks fan, I’m stoked to see Tre Ford, but I’m not holding my breath for to end that unfortunately depressing streak.
Prediction: Tre Ford’s debut is a mixed bag; Winnipeg rolls. Winnipeg 34-16
Saskatchewan Roughriders(4-4) v. Montreal Alouettes(4-3)
Last week, Mason Fine proved me wrong in my preview about his game. The Roughriders had some questionable coaching decisions late that almost cost them the game, but Ottawa chose to make just as many equally dumb decisions that eventually worked in the Roughriders favor. Mason Fine was on fire last week, proving to me that he is capable of being a starting QB in this league. Consistency in the key to prolonged success, so we’ll see if he can continue the success into the next week. The Alouettes continue to prove that they have one of the best defenses in all of the CFL. Despite playing the Ticats last week without their starting QB, Montreal asserted themselves on defense early in the game and solidified themselves as a dangerous team down the road. This week they get another backup QB and Montreal could feast. It’s an interesting matchup among those middle of the road teams that have been inconsistent early in the season, but Montreal is starting to get rhythm which could spell danger for the rest of the league.
Prediction: Mason Fine plays good; Montreal’s defense remain dominant. Montreal 26-15
Calgary Stampeders(3-5) v. BC Lions(6-2)
This matchup is the tail of two different stories. Calgary is coming off the upset of the season, as they ended Toronto’s undefeated run. Meanwhile, the Lions got absolutely decimated by the Blue Bombers on Thursday night football. While the Stamps got some help due to the unfortunate injury to Chad Kelly, the Stamps were impressive for most of the game. They held that high powered offense to just seven points and the young team is riding high. Hopefully, being young and riding that wave, doesn’t get the best of them, because despite the struggles last week, the Lions are absolutely deadly. Dane Evans has to perform better than what he did and since taking over for the injured Vernon Adams, Evans hasn’t been overly impressive. He came into the season being hyped as the best backup in the league and at this point, he barely looks like a capable backup. Dominique Davis got some play last week, and I have a feeling that if Evans struggles this week against the upset-minded Stamps, Davis could take that role and remain in it until Adams comes back.
Prediction: Evans struggles as Calgary rides that wave home. Calgary 27-21
Ottawa Redblacks(3-5) v. Toronto Argonauts(6-1)
Oh, how much can change in professional football in the matter of weeks. The Redblacks were running high on a two game win streak, thanks in large part to Dustin Crum’s heroics, but now they’re hitting the lows of having a rookie QB under center. With two straight losses, and the offenses struggling in both games, the Redblacks have to travel into the hornet’s nest that is Toronto. The Argonauts are pissed coming off the thumping that Calgary put on them, but they aren’t licking their wounds as Chad Kelly returned to practice in full capacity this week and that’s even worse news for the Redblacks. While the Redblacks had a chance last week, questionable coaching decisions led to them ultimately losing: they had their chances as Saskatchewan made a lot of questionable decisions late. The magic that Dustin Crum created when he took the starting job needs a boost and a Chad Kelly-led Argonauts team will do everything it can to not fall victim to upset city two weeks in a row.
Prediction: Crum still can’t find the magic; Toronto returns to form. Toronto 38-22
We’ll have to see what week ten brings to the CFL, but the middle of the league is still muddled and cluttered with inconsistency, there’s a chance this week could start separating the group but injuries and QB play is going to be key moving forward. Eventually, Edmonton will win a game(I think). Check out all our CFL content here.
~Michael Washington
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