Start vs Sit: Collaros comes with upside against Bombers

Brandon C. Williams

CFL.ca

Mark’s Labour Day weekend is here to remind TSN CFL Fantasy football users that there’s still time to catch up in their respective leagues. Nine weeks of action are still on the docket, offering hope to those seeking to get into contention.

Week 12 presents tough calls when considering the likes of Eskimos pivot Mike Reilly ($14,000) and Blue Bombers running back Andrew Harris ($9,553), who each face tough defences in the Stampeders and Roughriders, respectively. On the other side of the coin, Friday’s Alouettes-REDBLACKS game is an opportunity for users to stack on Ottawa’s receiving corps, while Zach Collaros ($5,211) is a sleeper who could wake up in a big way on Sunday.

Who to start? Who to sit?

Montreal (2-8-0) at Ottawa (6-3-0)

Friday | 7:30 p.m. ET

Start: Trevor Harris, QB, REDBLACKS, $8,865 Salary

Harris strafed the Alouettes for a career-high 487 yards on a near-CFL record 44 completions on August 11. Harris threw for only one major, the only reason why his Fantasy production (22.1 Fantasy points) didn’t go through the stratosphere. But there’s little reason to think the Als’ defence will duplicate the five turnovers they generated off the REDBLACKS’ offence three weeks ago. Harris comes into Week 12 averaging a staggering 409.6 yards in his last three games and gets a Montreal team allowing a league-worst 335.3 yards per game in the air along with a league-high 23 passing majors. This translates into a honey pot of potential when considering Diontae Spencer ($8,398), Brad Sinopoli ($7,544) or Greg Ellingson ($6,196) as stack options.

Sit: Ryder Stone, RB, Alouettes, $2,500 Salary

Finding the right bargain on a weekly basis will occasionally result in striking gold. However, Stone won’t constitute the theory. Injuries to Tyrell Sutton ($6,241) and William Stanback ($4,000) leaves Stone as the likely starter for an Alouettes running game that is last in the league with 83.5 yards per game and 15.7 attempts per contest. Stone has only seven carries for 19 yards this season and his 2.7 yards per carry doesn’t play well with Ottawa and its third-ranked run defence. The big winner will be Alouettes pivot Antonio Pipkin ($6,000), whose running ability will result in him getting more carries, especially near the goal line.

Winnipeg (5-5-0) at Saskatchewan (5-4-0)

Sunday | 3:00 p.m. ET

Start: Zach Collaros, QB, Roughriders, $5,211 Salary

The Bombers had been playing solid pass defence until Trevor Harris and Bo Levi Mitchell ($9,513) combined for 813 yards and five touchdowns in Weeks 10 and 11. Statistically, there is little reason to suspect that Collaros — who has only four passing majors and has yet to throw for more than 271 yards — will continue the trend, but Fantasy users should keep in mind Winnipeg does a decent job against the run. The Riders’ running back by committee has a chance to open the passing lanes for Collaros, as the Bombers do allow 5.1 yards per carry and are tied with the Eskimos in rushing touchdowns allowed (14). Jordan Williams-Lambert ($3,843) continues to develop into a WR1 and Naaman Roosevelt ($4,805) is way overdue for a breakout performance. Consider this a risky pick, yet it’s one that has a lot of upside for those rolling the dice on Collaros.

Sit: Matt Nichols, QB, Blue Bombers, $8,185 Salary

The magic from last year hasn’t shown up often for Nichols, who ranks sixth in the league in quarterback rating (67.6) with a pedestrian 10-7 TD:INT margin. Calgary may have shown the blueprint in slowing down Andrew Harris last week and if the Bombers are unable to get their top-ranked ground game in motion, then the offence will be in trouble. Darvin Adams ($6,750) is the only Winnipeg receiver ranked in the Top 20 in yardage and with Weston Dressler ($4,661) likely to miss a third straight game, the thought of playing Nichols against a Roughriders defence that is tied for the league lead with 23 sacks is not an encouraging vision.

Edmonton (6-4-0) at Calgary (8-1-0)

Monday | 3:00 p.m. ET

Start: Bo Levi Mitchell, QB, Stampeders, $9,513 Salary

This has been vintage BLM over the past four games, as he has thrown for 13 majors along with averaging 321 yards per game. With 20 touchdown passes, Mitchell is almost near his 2017 total of 23 and leads the league with 25 passes of better than 30 yards. That spells trouble for the Eskimos, who have allowed a league-high 21 completions of 30-plus yards and are seventh in opponents’ average pass (8.5). Expect a host of deep shots downfield to Kamar Jorden ($9,596) and DaVaris Daniels ($6,250), with Marken Michel holding down sleeper status at $5,698.

Sit: Kenny Stafford, WR, Eskimos, $4,175 Salary

Look for Reilly to devote the bulk of his targets to Derel Walker ($8,537) and D’haquille Williams ($8,158), leaving Stafford on the outside looking in. Stafford had one catch for a loss of one yard in last week’s loss against Hamilton and doesn’t project to fare much better against the Stamps’ lockdown pass defence that has allowed a paltry 6.4 yards per opponents’ pass and a league-low 10 completions of better than 30 yards. After a strong start to the season, Stafford has gone four straight games with less than 10 Fantasy points and there’s little reason to suggest the streak ends on Labour Day.

Toronto (3-6-0) at Hamilton (4-5-0)

Monday | 6:30 p.m. ET

Start: James Wilder Jr., RB, Argonauts, $8,729 Salary

Fantasy users shouldn’t be faulted for not going with Wilder after he managed just 29 yards on nine carries in last week’s loss to the Alouettes, but it’s also hard not to plug him in the lineup against the league’s most suspect run defence. The Tiger-Cats give up 126.6 rushing yards per game and allow opponents to run at a 6.3-yard clip, so while it’s obvious they’ll be focusing on Wilder, expect coach Marc Trestman to utilize Wilder in the passing game just as extensively. Hamilton has the top pass defence in the league, yet it won’t be shocking if pivot McLeod Bethel-Thompson ($6,694) takes a shot downfield with Wilder to loosen things up vertically.

Sit: S.J. Green, WR, Argonauts, $6,449 Salary

Thoughts of Green trending upward after his Week 8 gem against Ottawa have gone astray, as he has a combined four catches for 53 yards in the past two games. A whopping 57.5 percent of Green’s Fantasy points for this season have come in two games and it’s a good bet he’ll see double coverage from the Ticats pass defence. In what will be a game that could define the rest of the season for the Grey Cup champs, starting their best receiving option is not highly suggested.

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