Its that time of year, where anything can and likely will happen in the standings. The chase is on for first place in the East, and the West isn’t yet settled either. Here are the CFL power rankings for Week 17.
1. Calgary Stampeders
Coming off of a bye week, the Stampeders should be well-rested and fueled for the remainder of the schedule. Some key things to focus on are: can Calgary finally turn this regular season success into something worth watching in the playoffs for Stamps fans? And how durable will all-star Canadian running back Cornish be down the stretch? All that being said, this team has been atop our power rankings all year, and unless something goes seriously wrong for the Stamps, not much will change with their location on the ladder.
2. Toronto Argonauts
The Boatmen have been playing really good football as of late, but as coach Milanovich has said, “this isn’t our best effort.” Three wins in a row isn’t usually celebrated, but the way the double blue have pulled off these wins has certainly put them in the spotlight. Another crucial matchup is ahead, against the Alouettes who have been playing well too. It should be a playoff atmosphere in the dome, which will help as well. Whether the Argos are living up to their potential or finally getting healthy at the right time, it shows they will be force down the stretch.
3. Hamilton Tiger-Cats
For three and a half quarters, the Ticats put the rest of the league on notice: their recent success at Tim Hortons Field is no fluke. This team can stymie good offences, rack up points, and win the field position battle on special teams. Despite their late-game collapse, though, they remain formidable opponents. Players are coming into the limelight in unexpected positions, too: Eric Norwood now leads the East in sacks, and Terrell Sinkfield is suddenly fearsome on kick and punt returns. They might have fallen to Toronto in the last five minutes, but you can feel that this team wouldn’t have dropped those two- and three-point decisions they lost in the first half of the season.
4. Edmonton Eskimos
They’ve been high in the rankings all year, so they don’t have the surprise factor of Toronto and Hamilton, but Edmonton is still one of the elite teams in this league. They’ve lost close games to both Toronto and Hamilton, but otherwise their offence remains a smoothly-running game-winning machine, especially with the reliable and consistent Mike Reilly behind centre. Their only worries are keeping Reilly healthy down the stretch, and the Calgary Stampeders, who they haven’t looked close to beating all year.
5. Montreal Alouettes
The Alouettes continue their climb up the power rankings and they look better as each week passes. Duron Carter is a true all-around receiver who can catch the 50/50 jump balls and also pick up the yards after catch. If the Als’ SJ Green and Brandon London can play to their potential that makes for a lethal receiver group for QB Jonathan Crompton. On the defensive side, linebacker Chip Cox flies around the ball as well as any defender in the league and the Als have two defensive linemen, Gabriel Knapton and John Bowman, with nine sacks each. Montreal is certainly a team on the rise.
6. B.C. Lions
The Lions have proven to be the CFL’s most inconsistent team this season. They are just as capable of knocking off the mighty Stamps, as they did in Week 6, as they are of losing to the Argos at home, like they did in Week 13. Receivers Ernest Jackson and newcomer Lavasier Tuinei combined for 250 yards receiving and a pair of touchdowns in a convincing 41-3 home win over Ottawa on Saturday night. RB Andrew Harris being out for the rest of the season certainly hurts the Lions’ offensive attack, but replacement Keola Antolin has filled in well so far. Don’t look now but the Lions are only two points behind the free-falling Riders in the standings.
7. Saskatchewan Roughriders
Oh Saskatchewan! Once the top team in the league, they now sit at spot number seven, falling each and every week. Tino Sunseri just can’t take control of his team he inherited from an injured Darian Durant in week 11. The defending Grey Cup champions aren’t heading into games the same way they did a year ago, not just because of the absence of Darian Durant and Kory Sheets, but because they seem to be lacking confidence, offence, defence and special teams. The Riders will need to start winning if they want to make it to the playoffs, with BC just two points behind them for the West’s final playoff spot, barring a crossover.
8. Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Another Western team that has fallen miserably since August, now riding a six game losing streak, the longest in the CFL. The league’s rushing touchdown leader, Nic Grisby, demanded a release from Winnipeg and he got his wish just yesterday. The Bombers are back to last year’s style of play: a second-tier team. They don’t have much to fight for with four games left and the playoffs almost unattainable.
9. Ottawa Redblacks
The expansion Redblacks seem pretty comfortable with this last power ranking week after week after week. Old Man Henry (Burris) can’t control the offence, with the exception of his chemistry with young stud (Marcus) Henry. There were signs of hope from running back Jonathan Williams and their aggressive defence before they were dismantled in B.C. last week. With no playoffs, Ottawa will look to build on next season.
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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