Argonauts peaking at right time

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This article was published 16/10/2024 (488 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

With two weeks remaining on the CFL regular season schedule, all six playoff teams have now been confirmed.

Exactly where all six clubs will finish in their respective division, however, is still to be determined for all but two teams as we enter the final stretch. Only the Montreal Alouettes can start making formal plans for November as they’ve already locked up first place in the East Division and will host the East final on Saturday, Nov. 9, while the B.C. Lions will finish third in the West but have to wait to see who they play in the West semifinal a week earlier on Nov. 2.

The rest, well, that still needs some figuring out.

Staying in the East, it’s a battle between the Toronto Argonauts and Ottawa Redblacks for second place and the chance to host the East semifinal. With the Argos defeating the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Redblacks falling to the Alouettes over the weekend, that sets up a critical matchup between Toronto and Ottawa at BMO Field this Saturday, where a home victory by the Argos would seal second in the division.

Even if the Redblacks can break out of their current slump and beat the Argos on the road, that would put them one point ahead in second place with one game remaining for each club. To ensure they finish there, the Redblacks would have to win their final game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats or have Toronto fall to the Edmonton Elks in its regular-season finale; an Argos win and a Redblacks loss would give Toronto second.

Heading over to the West, the Saskatchewan Roughriders continued their winning ways, earning a fourth consecutive victory to put some pressure on the Bombers after their loss to the Argos. Since Winnipeg and Saskatchewan are currently on the bye week, any finality to the standings will have to wait another week.

Fast-forwarding to the final week of the regular season, the Bombers are able to clinch the West with a road win over the Alouettes. As for the Riders, they can clinch first with a Winnipeg loss, followed by a victory over the Stamps in what will be the final regular season game of 2024.

There is still a lot to play out in the final two weeks, making for a great ending to what’s been an exciting 2024 campaign. Before we look too far ahead, let’s take a look back at the league’s biggest stories over the past week in the latest edition of CFL Rundown.

1) The Argos are playing their best football at the right time and that should be of concern for those in the East. Toronto beat the Bombers last week and the game before that downed the Alouettes, who had Cody Fajardo at QB. The Argos have the best run attack, with a three-headed monster highlighted by the resurgence of Ka’Deem Carey, and are among the best at stopping the run, limiting opponents to 78 yards per game. They also lead the league in sacks, with 44 — seven more than the Lions in second and 19 more than the Bombers in ninth — and when you add all that up, that makes for a dangerous team in October and November.

2) No panic here when it comes to the Bombers. Sure, it was disappointing not to lock up the West, especially at home in front of another sold out crowd. It was also concerning the Bombers struggled to put up points on offence after two big weeks and were sacked seven times. Simply put, if Sergio Castillo connects on his attempts from 42 and 48 yards, respectively, we’re not even having this conversation. What’s more, the Bombers defence is still firing on all cylinders, as they allowed just seven points after surrendering a TD on Toronto’s opening drive. The Argos were also coming off a bye, giving head coach Ryan Dinwiddie two weeks to dig into Winnipeg’s schemes — and few can use the extra time as well as Dinwiddie — with Toronto now 8-0 since 2022 when returning from a week off.

3) I believe the Bombers beat the Alouettes in the final week and clinch first place in the West. Winnipeg knows better than anyone the value that comes with winning the division, having won it the last three seasons and making it to the Grey Cup in each of those years. What they won’t want to do is have to play in Regina in the West final, against a Riders team that has been red-hot of late, winners of four in a row. Saskatchewan is surely kicking itself for its seven-game winless slump partway through the year, as it will be tough to play in Winnipeg for the West final, assuming they can get past the Lions first.

4) It will be interesting to see how the Alouettes decide to field their roster in the final two regular season games after having already locked up the East. There are no early clues as of yet, with the Alouettes having just one formal practice on Thursday after playing on Monday. I wouldn’t be surprised if HC Jason Maas takes a similar approach to that of Mike O’Shea a couple of years back and decides to sit out a majority of his starters this week and play most in the final week. That would make sense seeing as the Alouettes are travelling to Vancouver this week and playing at home the next. Also, sitting out the last regular season game would mean those sidelined will have gone a full three weeks between games, which could result in some rust and a potentially slow start when the game really matters.

5) On the Lions, what a mess it’s been since the signing of QB Nathan Rourke. I suggested last week that despite believing Rourke was the future in B.C., he hadn’t done enough to continue earning starts after seven games and if the Lions wanted to salvage their season, they would go back to Vernon Adams Jr. Well, they must read this column, because that’s exactly what they’re doing, as HC Rick Campbell confirmed Adams would start against the Alouettes in the regular season finale, while also keeping open the idea he could be behind centre come playoffs. That last part isn’t as shocking because you can’t make this decision and then change course a game later; Adams has to be the guy the rest of the way. I can’t imagine Campbell bungling this situation much worse. I suppose the good news is his defence is so bad he should be distracted at least a little by that.

6) After the loss to Montreal, Redblacks head coach Bob Dyce took exception to a reporter’s question about backing into the playoffs as if he hasn’t had a front row seat to the disaster currently brewing in the Nation’s capital. The Redblacks have lost four games in a row, by an average of 12 points, and the loss to the Alouettes, even if it was by one score, might have been the worst of all. Not only was Ottawa sloppy, but the Redblacks were also undisciplined, finishing with 12 accepted penalties for 122 yards. When you got a 25-year-old rookie receiver in Nick Mardner taking a 10-yard penalty for throwing the ball at a defender, after converting on a second-and-10 that would have placed the ball on Montreal’s two-yard line in a one-score game, this late in the season, in a game Ottawa needed to win, you know you have serious problems. The good news is QB Dru Brown is back working with the No. 1 offence and should be available against the Argos.

7) The Stamps have clearly made up their minds on QB Jake Maier and it looks like his future in Calgary could be coming to an end. Not only did Matthew Shiltz get the start last week, the Stamps have also announced they’ve signed former NFLer P.J. Walker. Walker spent years in the NFL, first on the practice roster for the Indianapolis Colts before seeing game action with the Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns. He also led the XFL in passing in 2020, before joining the Panthers. Walker is an intriguing piece for his unique skillset, and by the sounds of it, after bringing his family down to see his potentially new football home, will get a serious look from the Stamps.

Jeff.Hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jeffkhamilton