TORONTO — OK Tire Labour Day Weekend delivered on plenty of fronts. These outcomes are scattered by way of this week’s version of the CFL Energy Rankings offered by AMSOIL.
Nathan Rourke confirmed us the sort of play that took the league by storm in 2022 and helped the Lions get again to their profitable methods; the Roughriders and Blue Bombers gave us a dramatic recreation loaded with twists and turns; the Tiger-Cats shocked the Argonauts to maintain issues within the East fascinating and the Elks gave us every kind of questions on simply how good they might be and what they might be able to.
It’s nearly becoming that the Montreal Alouettes sat again on their bye week and watched all of this unfold. Normal supervisor Danny Maciocia’s workforce is the one one within the league that has separated itself from the pack, with its 10-1 report. Whereas the opposite eight groups spent one other week combating their approach up and pulling one another again down within the standings, the Als bought some relaxation and barely later than anticipated, had been rewarded for it.
Test the standings and also you’ll see that the Als have certainly clinched a playoff spot. We’ll have extra data this week on who’s subsequent in line to clinch. The Als will proceed to attempt to pad their league-leading report, with their eyes on locking up the East Division and internet hosting the Jap Ultimate on Sat. Nov. 9.
For the opposite eight groups within the league, the neck-and-neck battling continues.
Let’s get into this week’s rankings.
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1. Montreal Alouettes (10-1)
Final Week: 1
Final Recreation: 21-17 win over Edmonton
Subsequent Recreation: Vs. BC, Fri. Sept. 6
Value noting: The Als emerge from their bye week and step into a possible Gray Cup preview after they host the Lions on Friday evening. Rely on William Stanback to return into this one with loads of motivation. The now Lions’ operating again was sad with how issues ended for him in Montreal, the place he spent 5 seasons and earned a hoop as a part of final yr’s championship squad. We even have the homecoming of freshly re-inked Lion Mathieu Betts to look ahead to, AND, the QB duel of Nathan Rourke and Cody Fajardo. There’s just one recreation on TSN on Friday evening, however we predict there’ll be sufficient in it to fulfill your football-loving souls.
2. Ottawa REDBLACKS (7-3-1)
Final Week: 2
Final Recreation: 38-12 loss to BC
Subsequent recreation: Vs. Toronto, Sat. Sept. 7
Value noting: The REDBLACKS’ six-game undefeated streak got here to an finish in Victoria, due to a primary half exhibiting that had them trailing 31-6 at halftime. It was oddly paying homage to the workforce’s Week 3 loss to the Montreal Alouettes, the place they trailed 30-1 at halftime. They’ll look to place simply their third lack of the season behind them as they shift their focus to an vital recreation on Saturday towards the Argos. The loss in Victoria might have been jarring, however the REDBLACKS head again to TD Place this week, the place they’re 5-0-1. They’ll want that house cooking to construct a little bit of a cushion on the three-point lead they’ve within the standings over the Argos, because the REDBLACKS will proceed to work to lock up their first house playoff date since 2018.
3. Winnipeg Blue Bombers (6-6)
Final Week: 3
Final Recreation: 35-33 win over Saskatchewan
Subsequent recreation: Vs. Saskatchewan, Sat. Sept. 7
Value noting: It took 13 weeks of normal season play and a curler coaster of a trip, however the Bombers are again on even floor and have put their 0-4 begin behind them. Most vital to them, they’ve climbed again into a well-known spot, on the prime of the West Division standings. All eyes can be on Zach Collaros this week, as we wait to see his standing forward of the Labour Day rematch at Princess Auto Stadium. Ought to we see Chris Steveler underneath centre this week, and given a quiet Labour Day recreation by Brady Oliveira‘s requirements, will we see a extra run-focused Bombers within the rematch recreation with the Riders?
4. Edmonton Elks (4-8)
Final Week: 5
Final Recreation: 35-20 win over Calgary
Subsequent recreation: Vs. Calgary, Sat. Sept. 7
Value noting: Don’t let the 4-8 report idiot you. The Elks you’re seeing have gained 4 of their final 5 and are in place to leapfrog rival Calgary for fourth place within the West if they’ll prime them on Saturday of their Labour Day rematch. With McLeod Bethel-Thompson coming off of a profession recreation towards the Stamps, it’s a secure assumption that he’ll be getting the beginning this week. Nonetheless brand-new workforce proprietor Larry Thompson will get to get pleasure from his first house recreation this week and for the primary time in a very long time, there must be very optimistic vibes at Commonwealth Stadium for him and this rejuvenated workforce.
5. BC Lions (6-6)
Final Week: 7
Final Recreation: 38-12 win over Ottawa
Subsequent recreation: At Montreal, Fri. Sept. 6
Value noting: It understandably took him a few video games, however Nathan Rourke appeared like Nathan Rourke this previous week. That’s a vastly optimistic signal for a Lions workforce that desperately wanted a win. The report isn’t the place they’d need it to be, given their 5-1 begin, however the Lions are in about pretty much as good a psychological place as they might be as they head into Montreal for a showdown with the defending champs and the one membership proof against the parity that’s wrapped itself across the different eight groups within the league. We’ll have our popcorn prepared for Friday evening.
6. Toronto Argonauts (6-5)
Final Week: 4
Final Recreation: 31-28 loss to Hamilton
Subsequent recreation: Vs. Ottawa, Sat. Sept. 7
Value noting: Labour Day will really feel like one which bought away for the Argos for a few causes. A win over the Tiger-Cats would have pushed their rivals down into the East’s basement, dampening their playoff hopes. It additionally would have left the Argos only a level behind the second-place REDBLACKS, with an opportunity to maneuver as much as second within the East with a win this week at TD Place. As a substitute, Ottawa has a three-point cushion going into the primary recreation of Saturday’s triple header. They’ll’t catch them this week, but when the Argos can hand the REDBLACKS their first loss at house this yr, it’d be a pleasant comfort prize that may take the sting out of that Labour Day loss.
7. Saskatchewan Roughriders (5-6-1)
Final Week: 6
Final Recreation: 35-33 loss to Winnipeg
Subsequent recreation: At Winnipeg, Sat. Sept. 7
Value noting: The Riders are offering the complete vary of feelings for his or her followers this season. Their 5-1 begin needed to have the followers feeling like they had been watching Gray Cup champs within the making. This latest slide, which now stands at six video games (counting their Week 10 tie with Ottawa) is a journey laced with exquisitely painful paths to defeat. By means of all of that, the Riders have been on the doorstep of victory all through this course of. Their final three losses have been by a mixed six factors and solely their Week 9 loss to Edmonton (an 11-point distinction) has been by double digits. Sitting at third within the West, something continues to be potential for this group, however the wins clearly want to start out coming in, each to remain within the playoff race and to climb again up these rankings.
8. Hamilton Tiger-Cats (3-9)
Final Week: 9
Final recreation: 31-28 win over Toronto
Subsequent recreation: Vs. Ottawa, Sat. Sept. 14
Value noting: The discuss across the Labour Day recreation is all the time that you might have a horrible report however if you happen to gained on Labour Day that was all that mattered. To be honest, we by no means hear gamers or coaches say this, however that is the road the Ticats are straddling proper now. To make a run on the playoffs they’ll have to channel extra of the model of the workforce that followers noticed on vacation Monday. The disciplined workforce (three penalties for 25 yards) that takes care of the ball (zero turnovers) and creates turnovers paired with a ton of firepower on offence is a harmful one, if they’ll constantly keep that approach.
9. Calgary Stampeders (4-7)
Final Week: 8
Final recreation: 35-20 loss to Edmonton
Subsequent recreation: At Edmonton, Sat. Sept. 7
Value noting: That when good house report has taken back-to-back hits now, with Monday’s loss to the Elks coming at a horrible time. Stamps GM and head coach Dave Dickenson referred to as his workforce’s defensive exhibiting embarrassing, after they gave up 586 yards of internet offence to Bethel-Thompson and the Elks. Saturday’s rematch with Edmonton seems like a must-win, as a loss would feed an Elks workforce on the rise and would push the Stamps down into the cellar of the West Division. That mentioned, the distinction between fourth-in-the-West Calgary and first-place Winnipeg is simply 4 factors. Everybody continues to be within the race at this level.