CFL playoff picture anything but clear

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This article was published 06/10/2022 (1120 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Only in the CFL can you have nearly three times as many losses as you do wins with a month remaining in the regular season still have a chance to make the playoffs.

The Edmonton Elks, despite losing another home game — a 25-18 defeat to the Montreal Alouettes (7-7) to fall to 4-11 — still aren’t mathematically eliminated from the post-season. That’s because the Saskatchewan Roughriders (6-9) continue to lose, with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers completing a three-game series sweep with a convincing 31-13 win at IG Field Friday.

The Ottawa Redblacks, who dropped to 3-11 following a 34-19 loss to the B.C. Lions (10-4), are also still technically in the hunt, even if it will take a whole lot of help from others to get there. The Toronto Argonauts all of a sudden find themselves in a race for top spot in the East Division, with a 29-2 loss to the Calgary Stampeders leaving them just two points up on Montreal.

While the playoff picture remains foggy, it will only get clearer and clearer with each passing week down the final stretch of the regular season. Before we look too far ahead, let’s take a look back at the week that was in the three-down loop in the latest edition of CFL Rundown.

1) A day after quarterback Zach Collaros and receiver Nic Demski were named CFL top performers for Week 17, the Bombers teammates were also named two of the league’s top performers for the month of September.

2) Demski is playing the best football of his career, and particularly of late, with seven of his career-high nine touchdowns coming over the last five games. The 28-year-old Winnipeg native has been a nightmare for the Roughriders this year, registering 17 catches for 244 yards and five touchdowns in three games against the club that drafted him sixth overall in 2015.

3) With DB Nick Taylor officially ruled out for the season and the secondary severely banged up, the Bombers swung a trade with Hamilton, acquiring Alden Darby Jr. in exchange for DE Cedric Wilcots II. Darby was a CFL all-star for Winnipeg in 2021.

4) The Roughriders are in rough shape. This is a recording.

5) Colour me surprised that the Redblacks used the lopsided loss to B.C. as the trigger point to fire head coach Paul LaPolice. It’s not the decision — the writing had been on the wall for weeks — but the timing. Given LaPolice was also the offensive co-ordinator, it seemed likely they would wait until the season was over to make the move. LaPolice ends his tenure in the nation’s capital with an overall record of 6-22.

6) Longtime CFL man and all-around likeable guy, Bob Dyce, has been promoted from special-teams co-ordinator to interim head coach. Dyce has been in a similar situation before, taking over for Corey Chamblin in Saskatchewan mid-season after an 0-9 start in 2015. Ottawa has hired Doug Malone as an offensive consultant and Cory McDiarmid to help out with special teams.

7) Shawn Burke said he plans to cast his net wide in what will be his first head coaching hire since taking over as Redblacks GM (former GM Marcel Desjardins hired LaPolice). While I’m sure Dyce will get strong consideration, there are several other candidates that could be available. The two who top my list are Bombers OC Buck Pierce and Stampeders STC Mark Killam.

8) It will be interesting to see where LaPolice ends up. While I’m sure this past week has been a tough pill to swallow, there are few better at running an offence. LaPolice still has a year left on his deal, so he could just decide to put his feet up and keep cashing in cheques. I wonder what the possibility is of reuniting in Winnipeg as the Bombers OC. That would entirely have to do with Pierce leaving for a head coaching job, but with LaPolice’s family having deep connections to the city and province, it definitely wouldn’t be surprising.

9) A lot has been made about the Lions turnaround this season, thanks mostly to the play of now-injured QB Nathan Rourke. Nothing hammers home the point more than the fact the Lions will have their first winning season this year since 2016. Speaking of Rourke, he’s been joining his teammates on the sidelines wearing a walking boot on his right leg and it’s led to some speculation he might be able to return this year. I wouldn’t hold your breath, even if crazier things have happened.

10) I keep changing my mind over whether QB Vernon Adams Jr. is capable enough to make the Lions a dangerous team come playoffs. He was great in his first start against Calgary, was miserable a week later in a rematch against the Stampeders and was a bit Jekyll & Hyde this week with a stellar first-half performance followed by an underwhelming second. Adams should only get better with time, as he continues to learn the playbook and build chemistry with his receivers. Without Rourke, I’m still seeing Calgary as the biggest threat to Winnipeg.

11) The Lions might have suffered the greatest loss as dynamic receiver Lucky Whitehead is expected to miss some time with a right ankle injury. The replay looked brutal and gruesome the way most injuries that involve a big body rolling up on a leg often do. Whitehead actually returned, only to tweak it again, which makes you wonder why he was even back in a game that never seemed in doubt for the Lions. With Bryan Burnham (wrist) also on the shelf for some time, that’s two more significant pieces out of the lineup for B.C.

12) Don’t look now, but the Alouettes are making a push for top spot in the East. Montreal has won three straight games and five of their last six to pull within two points of Toronto. They play the Argonauts in the final two games of the season, meaning Montreal has full control of its playoff destiny.

13) What great timing it is then that the Alouettes have officially activated star RB William Stanback from the six-game injured list. Stanback, who was last season’s East nominee for most outstanding player, broke his ankle in Week 1. He’s a game-changer and instantly makes the Alouettes a better team.

14) With the loss, the Elks extended their losing streak at home to a whopping 15 games. That not only is a CFL record, but also a streak that surpasses any in pro football history. The old record of 14 was shared by three other teams, including the 1987-88 Ottawa Rough Riders, 1988-89 Dallas Cowboys and the 2008-10 St. Louis Rams.

15) Elks receiver Kenny Lawler has undergone shoulder surgery and will miss the remainder of the season. While it’s a major hit to the Elks, it’s an even greater loss for any team that was looking to acquire the dynamic playmaker in a trade. I have no doubt in my mind teams were calling, including the Bombers. I don’t see Lawler going back to Edmonton next season, so it should be an interesting off-season for the talented 28-year-old.

16) You can blame the Bombers for creating false buzz around the CFL trade deadline. What used to come and go with barely a mention has taken on new meaning since Winnipeg traded for Collaros in 2019, a move that led to back-to-back Grey Cups. Alas, this year went down as usual, with little to no activity taking place across the league. That included Stampeders QB Bo Levi Mitchell staying put, after speculation he might be moved by the Oct. 5 deadline.

17) The Argonauts were averaging 33.5 points in their previous four games and managed to score just two this week. That’s because the Stampeders defence is arguably the best in the CFL, and a major reason why teams should be worried about them come playoffs.

18) I’m hearing whispers that RB Andrew Harris is trying to return this season following surgery in August to repair a torn pectoral muscle. It doesn’t surprise me one bit, either, as I’m sure Harris is viewing this year as potentially his last and I imagine would love nothing better than to play his former team in the Grey Cup.

19) This week’s playoff ramifications: Winnipeg can clinch first place in the West with a win over Edmonton AND a B.C. loss to Toronto; Montreal can clinch a home playoff game with a win over Ottawa; Edmonton will be eliminated with a loss to Winnipeg; and Ottawa will be eliminated with a loss to B.C. AND a Saskatchewan loss to Hamilton.

Jeff.Hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton