Montreal Alouettes receiver Tyson Philpot on historic pace this season

Tyson Philpot is on a historic clip.

At the midway point of the 2026 regular season, the Montreal Alouettes receiver leads the CFL in targets (98), receptions (74) and yards (1,154). Philpot, 26, of Delta, B.C., is on pace to become the most prolific receiver ever in a single season.

Philpot is projected to register 148 catches for 2,308 yards. That would not only shatter the records for most catches (116 by Ottawa’s Brad Sinopoli) and receiving yards (1,662 by Calgary’s Terry Evanshen) in a season by a Canadian but surpass Allen Pitts’s league mark for yards (2,036 with Stampeders in 1994).

Derrell (Mookie) Mitchell holds the CFL record for most catches in a season with 160, recorded with Toronto in 1998.

Philpot made CFL history last month when he became the fastest Canadian to reach 1,000 receiving yards in a season, doing so in eight games. That also tied the all-time record for the fewest games to 1,000 yards (Hal Patterson in 1956, Terry Greer in 1983).

Philpot is looking to become just the fourth receiver in CFL history to reach 2,000 yards in a season. The others are Pitts, Greer (2,003 in 1983) and Mitchell (2,000 in 1998).

Currently, CFL games are averaging 59.1 points per game, which is up 12 per cent from last year’s final number (52.9). According to the CFL, other notable seasonal statistics include:

_ Offensive points are up 15 per cent to 56.6 per game.

_ The touchdown drive rate of 21.9 per cent is up from last year (17.8 per cent) with six clubs currently over 20 per cent. Also, eight of the league’s nine teams have four or more wins at the halfway mark.

_ Net offence is at 768 yards per game, the highest total since 2008. That figure was 717 yards in 2025.

_ The number of offensive drives starting on an opponent’s side of the field has increased 22 per cent.

_ An average of 6.3 touchdowns are being scored per game this year, up from 5.3 in ’25.

_ Twenty-nine games (69 per cent) have been decided in the final three minutes, compared to 41 (51 per cent) all of last season.

_ There’ve been 28 comeback victories this season. There were 48 all of last season.

_ And games are averaging 148.2 plays whereas last year’s figure was 144.7. Games over the last three weeks have averaged 144.

Montreal’s Davis Alexander leads the CFL in passing yards (3,140) but has work to do to challenge Doug Flutie’s single-season mark of 6,619 yards registered in 1991 with the B.C. Lions. But Alexander is on pace to reach 6,280 (second-most all-time) and his 19-1 record as a CFL starter is the best all-time for a player over his first 20 starts.

Alexander is one of five quarterbacks on pace to reach 5,000 passing yards this season with Edmonton’s Cody Fajardo (3,109), Toronto’s Chad Kelly (2,937), Saskatchewan’s Trevor Harris (2,862) and Ottawa’s Jake Maier (2,680). If all do, that will be a CFL first.

Winnipeg’s Brady Oliveira stands second in CFL rushing with 732 yards, just 24 yards behind Calgary’s Dedrick Mills, who has played one more game thus far. If Oliveira, the league’s top player and Canadian in 2024, cracks the 1,000-yard mark, it would be for the fifth time and tie him with Andrew Harris for the most by a Canadian.

But it would also be Oliveira’s fifth straight 1,000-yard campaign, which would be a record for a Canadian player.

Justin Rankin’s fast start to the season had many talking about the Edmonton running back possibly becoming the first player in CFL history to achieve 1,000 yards rushing and receiving in the same year. Rankin is projected for a career-best 1,256 rushing yards but 862 receiving yards at his current pace.

Saskatchewan quarterback Tommy Stevens has scored a CFL-leading 11 rushing TDs this season. He’s on pace for 22 touchdowns, which would be one short of Milt Stegall’s single-season league record but would break Mike Pringle’s mark for most rushing TDs (19).

Not all of the season’s accomplishments have been positive, though. The Ottawa Redblacks (0-9) are the 13th team in CFL history to start a campaign with nine straight losses and have dropped 15 consecutive contests dating back to last year.

The modern CFL record for consecutive losses is 16 set by the Hamilton Wildcats (1948-49) before they merged with the Hamilton Tigers in 1950 to form the Tiger-Cats.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 18, 2026.