Toronto, ON (Best E Casino) -
WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS (3-8) AT HAMILTON TIGER-CATS (2-9)
DATE & TIME: Friday, September 19th, 7:30 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: Suddenly, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are back in playoff contention in the East Division.
The Bombers moved to within two points of second-place Toronto last week by pounding the Argonauts 39-9 at Rogers Center. Veteran receiver Milt Stegall had two catches -- both for touchdowns -- for 108 yards to surpass Allen Pitts as the CFLs all-time leader in receiving yards.
Stegall increased his yardage total to 14,983 to break Pitts' previous mark of 14,891.
Stegall's touchdown catches helped Winnipeg take control of the game by outscoring Toronto 24-3 in the second quarter for a commanding 31-6 halftime lead.
Quarterback Kevin Glenn was 15-of-26 passing for 319 yards with four touchdown passes and two interceptions. Fred Reid also ran for 101 yards on 13 carries.
First-year defensive back Willie Amos was a force on defense with a game-high 10 tackles. Newcomer Zeke Moreno, the CFL's leading tackler acquired last week from Hamilton, fit in nicely with seven tackles.
Moreno will be making his first appearance in Hamilton since being dealt. The former USC star had a solid first season with the Ticats, posting a CFL-high 114 tackles for the club.
Hamilton is coming off a tough 38-33 loss to Edmonton in Marcel Bellefeuille's first game as the club's interim head coach. Eskimos defensive back Jason Goss torched his former team, intercepting Ticats quarterback Casey Printers three times, returning two for touchdowns.
Printers finished 14-of-30 passing for 213 yards with two touchdowns but four interceptions. Printers also ran for a game-high 125 yards on 11 carries but also had a fumble.
Running back Jesse Lumsden suffered a shoulder injury and had only three carries for 19 yards.
Linebacker Cornelius Anthony had three tackles and two sacks for Hamilton while Markeith Knowlton and Geoff Tisdale both had two interceptions. Knowlton also recorded a forced fumble.
The numbers: Hamilton is 1-5 at home and 2-4 against conference competition. Winnipeg is 1-4 on the road but 2-4 within the East.
Keys to the game: Outside of being outscored 20-0 in the fourth quarter of their 34-31 loss to Saskatchewan a couple of weeks back, the Bombers have put together two decent efforts. Offensively, the club has scored 70 points in its last two games.
Over that span, Glenn has completed 36-of-55 passes for 575 yards and six touchdowns against two interceptions. Not bad for a quarterback who was benched earlier this season for being unproductive.
The Bombers have all of the weapons to be a potent offense, but it's up to Glenn to get the unit going with pinpoint passing. He showed that against Toronto, especially when he threaded a nice pass to Stegall over the middle that the Bombers receiver took 92 yards for a touchdown to break Pitts' career record.
But Hamilton showed a lot of spirit and spunk against Edmonton, continually showing it was capable of coming back after the Eskimos surged to a big lead. But turnovers turned out to be the difference for the Ticats, and that's a battle the club has to always finished ahead in if it wants to win games.
Ticats fans have patiently waited for Printers to show the form he had in '04 when he was the CFL's outstanding player. There have been flashes of brilliance, but nothing consistent yet from Printers and that continues to be a source of concern in Steeltown.
Best E Casino Predicted Outcome: Winnipeg 23, Hamilton 20.
TORONTO ARGONAUTS (4-7) AT CALGARY STAMPEDERS (7-4)
DATE & TIME: Saturday, September 20th, 6:30 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: The Toronto Argonauts will have a new quarterback under center when they face the Calgary Stampeders.
Second-year player Cody Pickett will make his first CFL start for Toronto in place of veteran Kerry Joseph. Pickett relieved Joseph early in the fourth quarter of last week's 39-9 home loss to Winnipeg and completed 9-of-13 passes for 100 yards in his first-ever appearance in the CFL.
Joseph struggled against Winnipeg, completing 17-of-37 passes for 239 yards and three interceptions. On the season Joseph had thrown 11 interceptions compared to just six touchdown passes.
The game against Winnipeg was Don Matthews' first on the sidelines this season after he was hired last week to replace Rich Stubler, who was fired. Leading up to the game Matthews made it clear all of the Argos players were starting off with a clean slate and that he'd not be afraid of changing the roster if he had to.
After watching Joseph play against the Bombers, Matthews decided to give Pickett a try against Calgary.
The Argos also signed linebacker Tim Strickland, a former CFL all-star who played for Matthews in Montreal, but Matthews said Strickland won't suit up against the Stampeders.
Calgary is coming off an impressive performance against Montreal. Quarterback Henry Burris was 24-of-38 passing for 408 yards and five touchdowns. Ken-Yon Rambo and Jeremaine Copeland were his favorite targets with six catches apiece. Rambo had 116 yards and a touchdown while Copeland had 80 yards and a TD.
Running back Joffrey Reynolds had 85 yards on 15 carries and added a nine-yard touchdown catch. Reynolds enters this week second overall in CFL rushing with 893 yards and is averaging 5.9 yards per carry.
The numbers: Calgary is 3-2 at home and 3-1 against East Division teams. Toronto is 2-4 on the road and 1-2 versus the Western conference.
Keys to the game: The decision to start Pickett is indeed a brave one for Matthews. Then again, Matthews became the CFL's winningest head coach by going out on a limb now and then.
The Argos are going to have to do a great job of protecting Pickett because there's little doubt what Calgary's defensive gameplan will be: Pressure the quarterback.
Granted, Pickett showed some poise late in the game against Winnipeg, but the contest was well out of hand by the time he got in. Facing Calgary right from the start will be something all together new for him.
Toronto's defense will also have its hands full with Burris and Calgary's offense. Burris is again among the league's passing leaders but is also a double threat in that he has the mobility to not only escape a pass rush but also make big gains up the field.
Traditionally, Toronto's defense has been among the CFL's best. But this year the unit has been rather ordinary. That, combined with a young, inexperienced quarterback, doesn't really bode well for the Argos.
Best E Casino Predicted Outcome: Calgary 29, Toronto 21.
BRITISH COLUMBIA LIONS (6-5) AT SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS (8-3)
DATE & TIME: Saturday, September 20th, 9:30 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: The West Division is already a crowded place. The B.C. Lions can make it even more so by sweeping this home-and-home series and taking the tie- breaker against the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The Lions beat Saskatchewan 28-23 at B.C. Place last week to tie the season series 1-1. The winner of this game will gain the tie-break, and home-field advantage, should the two teams finish the season tied in the standings.
Quarterback Buck Pierce finished 18-of-33 passing for 336 yards and two touchdowns for B.C. Geroy Simon was his favorite receiver with seven catches for 142 yards and a touchdown while Paris Jackson added six receptions for 126 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, the Lions were able to get a lot of pressure on Riders quarterback Michael Bishop, sacking him six times. Cam Wake boosted his league-leading total to 15 sacks with two while Aaron Hunt also managed two sacks.
Wake finished tied with linebacker Javier Glatt with a team-high six tackles and also had a force fumble.
Bishop was 16-of-29 passing for 298 yards with a touchdown and interception but also had two fumbles. Weston Dressler had five catches for 122 yards while running back Wes Cates added 122 yards rushing on 15 carries and had a touchdown.
Adam Nicholson, a first-round pick of the Lions last year, had four catches for 53 yards and a touchdown against his former team.
The numbers: B.C. is 2-3 on the road this year and 2-4 within its division. Saskatchewan is 4-1 at home but 3-3 against conference competition.
Keys to the game: It's a testament to the pressure the Lions defense was able to put on the Riders offense when Bishop, one of the more mobile quarterbacks in the CFL, is sacked six times.
That's the best way to neutralize Bishop, who when pressured is prone to making bad decisions with the football. When stressed, he will rely too heavily on his strong right arm and try to force passes into coverage, giving the defense opportunities to record turnovers.
The trouble any offense has when contending with the Lions defense is trying to control the front line. The foursome of Wake, Hunt, Brent Johnson and Tyrone Williams makes it difficult to choose exactly who to double-team, thus leaving the other three one-on-one.
Many Riders players contended the noise level at B.C. Place made it difficult for them to hear signals and gave the Lions a decided advantage. Well, that's going to change in Saskatchewan's favor as the rabid fans at Mosaic Stadium will be something B.C. will now have to contend with.
Slotback Jason Clermont underwent MRIs done on his injured neck and shoulder and thankfully for the Lions, both came back negative. He will make the trip to Regina but it's not clear how much, if any, he will play. Still, that's good news for B.C.
Best E Casino Predicted Outcome: Saskatchewan 26, B.C. 25.
EDMONTON ESKIMOS (7-4) AT MONTREAL ALOUETTES (7-4)n
DATE & TIME: Sunday, September 21st, 1 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: Ricky Ray wasn't his typical self last week for the Edmonton Eskimos.
He did finish 23-of-35 passing for 355 yards and a touchdown in 38-33 win over Hamilton, but Ray also threw four interceptions. What's more, the Eskimos needed a stellar performance from defensive back Jason Goss to beat the lowly Ticats.
Goss finished with three interceptions against his former team, returning two for touchdowns.
Kelly Campbell once again delivered a monster performance for Edmonton, registering five catches for 154 yards and a touchdown. Canadian Calvin McCarty also came up big for the Eskimos. With A.J. Harris out with a sprained knee ligament, McCarty will be the club's starting running back the next couple of weeks.
McCarty had 72 yards rushing on nine carries and scored the winning touchdown against Hamilton. McCarty also had eight catches for 88 yards.
Montreal is coming off a 40-31 loss to Calgary last week, a game in which the Alouettes were definitely outplayed.
Anthony Calvillo was 22-of-40 passing for 309 yards with two touchdowns but was also intercepted three times. Mike Imoh, playing in place of the injured Avon Cobourne, ran for 94 yards on 15 carries and had a touchdown.
Brian Bratton had seven catches for a team-high 93 yards while Kerry Watkins added 93 yards on six receptions.
The problem was on defense as Calgary's Henry Burris was 24-of-38 passing for 408 yards and five touchdowns. Montreal managed to sack Burris just once in the contest.
To show just how dominant Calgary was, Montreal had to score 20 fourth-quarter points to make it close.
The numbers: Montreal is 4-1 at home but just 1-4 against the West Division. Edmonton is 2-3 on the road but 3-1 against Eastern clubs.
Keys to the game: There's no denying Ray's place among CFL quarterbacks. He's the league's leading passer and the man who makes the Eskimos' offense tick. That's why it's so odd to see him struggle with interceptions like he did last week against Hamilton.
McCarty's performance last week should take the sting out of Harris' absence but for the run game to have any meaning against Montreal, the offense will have to refrain from turnovers. The Eskimos had five versus the Ticats.
Redemption should be first and foremost on Montreal's mind. The Alouettes definitely laid an egg last week against Calgary and should be looking to make up for that. Being at home should help, despite the Als' struggles against the West Division so far this season.
A big boost for Montreal is the anticipated return of Cobourne. Prior to missing the last two games, Cobourne was leading the CFL in rushing and threatening to become the first player in league history to amass 1,000 yards receiving and rushing in the same season. If Cobourne comes back, he'll give the unit a definite shot in the arm.
For Montreal to prove that it's a contender, it's going to have to show it can beat teams from the West Division. And there's no time like the present for that to happen.
Best E Casino Predicted Outcome: Montreal 30, Edmonton 27.
Last week's record: 2-2; Season record: 20-24.
