The east has been back on the rise the past few weeks, and the ladder has been shaken up. It looks good on the CFL now that there is competition in both divisions. As the playoff race continues to heat to a boil, here is the latest installment of our power rankings.
Week 16 CFL Power Rankings
1. Calgary Stampeders
Is anyone tired of this team being at the top of the power rankings? The fact is, they’re the league leaders for a reason. They faltered a little this week against Saskatchewan, but even with Drew Tate at the helm they looked like a team already playing in the post-season. Jon Cornish may be out of the next game or not, but even without him, Calgary looks like league-beaters.
2. Hamilton Tiger-Cats
A few weeks ago, homeless and without their starting QB, Hamilton had a 1-6 record and was mired with the likes of Ottawa at the bottom of the sewer that was the East division. Now they’ve won four straight against Western teams and are unbeaten in their partly-completed new home. They’ve served notice that they need to be taken seriously by every team in the league, especially their playoff rivals in the East.
3. Toronto Argonauts
Since the ugly 13 to 12 loss in Hamilton on Labour day, Toronto has gone 2-1 and looked great in each game they played. That includes their week 12 loss in Calgary, where they came out of the gate on fire, only to fumble away the game late and lose it 40-33. Andre Durie is now on the 6 game IR again and he will be sorely missed. But plenty of options remain for Ricky Ray, including WR Lavon Brazill who has shaken off some early ball security issues and has become a dangerous weapon. The Argos offense also now features a healthy Chad Owens. The Argos appear to be finding their stride at the right time and that should be scary news for the rest of the teams in the East.
4. Edmonton Eskimos
The Eskimos are still in a good position in the tough CFL West, but with a 2-4 record in their last six games, Edmonton would like to turn things around soon. Calgary seems to have a stranglehold on the #1 place in the west, so Edmonton needs to hang on to second spot to be able to host their first playoff game in ten years. With the trio of QB Mike Reilly, RB John White, and star WR Adarius Bowman, the Eskimos are definitely a capable offense and they feature an All-Star cast on the defensive side of the ball as well. So it’s just a matter of getting that consistency back. A few more wins against the Riders wouldn’t hurt either.
5. Saskatchewan Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders have been heading down the rankings very steadily. Why? Because of the absence of Darian Durant, the star and the leader of the team on and off the field. The defence, led by John Chick and Tyron Brackenridge, is still solid but left the door open for Calgary after the Riders’ impressive and improbable 24-point comeback. Sunseri was impressive with 282 yards and a TD pass, stats he didn’t achieve as a starter. Until the Roughriders start dominating games week after week again, they will stay in the middle of the rankings at best.
6. Montreal Alouettes
Montreal had their bye week this week and by our LWOS standards they stick at number 6, where they were last week. Since they started quarterback Jonathan Crompton, they’ve gone 4-1, improved a brutal 1-7 record to a relatively healthy 5-8, battling for top spot in the East. The defence is playing like they were meant to play, hitting hard and creating turnovers. Chip Cox scored his fifth career TD off a fumble last week thanks to Aaron Lavarius. Bear Woods got named the Defensive Player of the Month and continues to be a driving force in the Montreal defence.
7. B.C. Lions
After a very defensive-minded game in Hamilton, B.C. still finds them selves searching for answers for the inconsistent play on the offensive side of the ball. On defense not much has changed; this team is still a lot to handle for most squads. The Lions need to figure out something fast, though, because a 7-7 record usually gets you to the CFL playoffs, but they’re in 4th place now in the West, and time is of the essence.
8. Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Not much can be said about Winnipeg right now, there are very few positives. Die-hard fans might say that the Bombers are close to a playoff spot and could mount a late season charge. The other way of thinking is that after such a deflating loss at the hands of the Redblacks, how much further can the team sink? They are in Edmonton on Thanksgiving and need a win to dig themselves out of this hole.
9. Ottawa Redblacks
The emotion the Redblacks must have felt after the team finally put points on the board one simply can’t describe. It is likely to little to late for Canada’s newest franchise however, you have to build on something right? The Redblacks will be taking on the Lions in Vancouver. Last time these two teams met it was a barn-burner 7-5 final; let’s hope for a much more exciting game this time round.
That’s it for our collaborative power rankings this week. Our CFL panel consists of Matt Bin (@lastwordonCFL), Nicholas Di Giovanni (@lwosnick), Steve Gifkins (@lwossteve), and Lance Keiser (@lwoslance). Thank you for reading! Leave a comment below to contribute to the conversation.
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