Weekly Predictor: Elks to keep rolling?

Jamie Nye

CFL.ca

@jamienye

We are halfway there!

All but one team is nine games into the season and there are some interesting trends occurring around the league right now.

Edmonton is on a two game win streak after going winless in their first seven.

Saskatchewan and BC, who are at the top of the West Division, are 0-5-1 combined in their last three games each.

And then there is the Calgary Stampeders who are 4-0 at home, while 0-5 on the road.

Out East, we’re waiting for someone to take on the Montreal Alouettes for the challenge on the top of the division.

Ottawa at Calgary
Thursday, August 15
9:00 p.m. ET

Three weeks ago the Ottawa REDBLACKS defence shut down the Stampeders and Kalil Pimpleton went to the house on the punt return.

Now Pimpleton makes way for veteran DeVonte Dedmon as the return man and can focus on just catching passes from Jeremiah Masoli, with Dru Brown out this week.

Masoli has only played in five games in the last two years so it’ll be understandable if he has to shake off some of the rust. Masoli has been a top quarterback in the league and for the little he played in 2022, there were consistent 300-yard passing games, but that’s a long time ago now.

The Stampeders are at home so that should be good news for a team that has played so extremely inconsistent all year long. I feel like Calgary is in need for another bye week to figure some things out.

There is talent there but they are not getting a consistent enough pass rush, giving teams time to execute on second down. The Stamps have also struggled against the run.

But at home. Things change.

However, Masoli reuniting with Tommy Condell (Ottawa offensive coordinator) means there is a comfort level for Masoli running this offence. And Ottawa’s front seven is as good as it gets.

PICK: OTTAWA

Montreal at Saskatchewan
Friday, August 16
9:00 p.m. ET

As of right now it sounds like Trevor Harris is back for the Riders as we await official word on Cody Fajardo in Montreal. Although, the Alouettes continue to click along without him.

Davis Alexander stunned the Roughriders in the second half four weeks ago when they made the switch to Caleb Evans. I don’t think they’ll be able to surprise the Riders now.

But the injuries to the Alouettes do keep mounting with now Tyson Philpot going down. The defence for Montreal has been so difficult to score on, as the Riders found out in the second half.

What should give the Riders hope is they did run the ball well in the first half and AJ Ouellette might be in the mix this week. They get middle linebacker Jameer Thurman back. And Trevor Harris leads them.

I think the Riders turn the tables at home against a young quarterback in his first game handling an offence in front of the hostile crowd on a Friday night.

PICK: SASKATCHEWAN

Edmonton at Hamilton
Saturday, August 17
7:00 p.m. ET

Taylor Powell time in Hamilton, it appears after head coach Scott Milanovich replaced starter Bo Levi Mitchell.

I’ve liked Powell a lot. I think he does have what it takes to win and the Tiger-Cats might get a charge out of the quarterback change, just like we saw in Edmonton.

The Elks, however, may not have Tre Ford in the lineup after getting injured in their win over BC. The big difference for Edmonton has been not only Ford but Javon Leake gashing defences with his electrifying speed out of the back field.

There is a new found swagger in Edmonton but will they lose that if Ford is out for any period of time? It’s also a road trip on a short week for Edmonton out east.

But Hamilton seems a bit flustered right now, especially when you see the frustration boil over with their coach. And Edmonton has generated nearly 1,000-yards of offence in two weeks. They’ve absolutely come alive.

PICK: EDMONTON

Winnipeg at BC
Sunday, August 18
7:00 p.m. ET

All of a sudden the BC Lions are on a three game losing streak and without quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. for an undetermined amount of time. Though he was on the depth chart last week, which is promising that his knee injury shouldn’t linger too much longer. More good news for Lions fans came in the way of the team bringing back National pivot Nathan Rourke, who’s returning after almost two years in the NFL. It remains to be seen when he’ll be ready to play for the Leos, though.

The Lions weren’t great defensively as the Elks blew it open in the fourth quarter last week.

The best case for them is they’ll have either Adams Jr. or Rourke available to reset the course. It’s worth noting though that they weren’t winning with their starting quarterback in the two weeks previous to that, though they end their three game road trip 0-3 and are back at BC Place where they’re undefeated.

In come the Winnipeg Blue Bombers who shut out the Lions two weeks ago. You don’t think that lingers in the minds of the Orange and Black?

Then the Bombers went on their first bye week of the season.

So I’ve looked back on the history of the Bombers coming out of a bye week. Sorry, BC, this isn’t good news for you.

The Bombers haven’t lost a game coming out of a bye week since 2019!!!! They are 11-0 after a bye week. If I’m the rest of the West Division, I’d be nervous that the Bombers got into their film and have figured some things out after waiting nine weeks to get some rest.

Sure the Bombers have never entered a bye week with a 3-6 record. They’ve been 6-1, 9-1, and 5-2 the last three seasons entering their first bye week. But the Bombers allow the fewest yards and points on defence. If their offence starts to gel, they could flip the script in the second half of the season.

PICK: WINNIPEG

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