By Sean Millington,
CFL.ca
Well as Don Henley used to sing, “The heat is on.” For all you young bucks who don’t recognize the reference, Google it.
It’s been said that the CFL football season doesn’t really start until the fall; well the playoff picture doesn’t start to come into focus until the end of September or the beginning of October, which is right where we happen to find ourselves at the moment.
One of the major players in determining the post-season look of the league are the Edmonton Eskimos. These guys appear to be on a collision course with destiny and in this case it doesn’t look pretty. Barring some last minute heroics, the Esks will miss the playoffs for the first time in 34 years and the timing of them being knocked out factors into almost all of the other teams’ post-season aspirations.
The Argos, Bombers and Alouettes can all clinch a playoff berth with a win on their part and a loss by Edmonton. In addition, any combination of Saskatchewan wins and Edmonton losses that equals three also eliminates the Esks from playoff consideration in the West. So this week’s slate of games will have big playoff implications.
In fact, if all of the above scenarios play out in the next two weeks, the playoff picture will be set for the most part. I can’t remember the last time that would have happened so early. Usually the CFL can keep us guessing right down to the last couple of weeks.
Another small surprise is the Calgary Stampeders being the first to clinch a playoff spot. After all, it was only a short two years ago when they finished out of it with a 4-14 record. Kudos to the new ownership group for a job well done.
I’m predicting that the next team to clinch will be the B.C. Lions needing only to win their game against the Ticats. Despite recent signs of life from the Hamilton camp, I think a B.C. win is more or less a forgone conclusion.
One of either Winnipeg or Montreal will be in a position to clinch after their game because whoever wins will only need an Edmonton loss to secure their post-season entry. Mathematically, the Ticats still have a chance, but should they lose or the Bombers win, the playoffs they will be shooting for will be held in 2007.
All the jockeying for position and regular season standings notwithstanding, the only thing that matters is making it in. The post-season is a completely different beast where all the sins of the past are forgiven and the triumphs of the season become irrelevant. I look to the Lions team of 2000 who won the Grey Cup despite posting a losing 8-10 record during the regular season. The following season, the Stampeders became just the second team with a losing record to win it all.
Once the playoffs start a team only needs to win three games to be crowned the champion. Every entry has just as good a chance of doing it as the others, and everyone knows it. Bad teams find renewed inspiration and good teams often succumb to the pressure of trying to meet expectations.
The Grey Cup is Canada’s most watched sporting event for a reason. It is the culmination of 18 regular season and two post-season games. Finally everyone in the country gets to know who the best team in Canadian football is. With the first playoff entry secured, the climb to the top has begun.
Sean Millington played 13 years in the CFL with the Edmonton Eskimos, Winnipeg Blue Bombers, B.C. Lions and Toronto Argonauts and has been a panelist on the CFL on CBC since 2003.
(The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily of the Canadian Football League)
