Toronto, ON (Best E Casino) -
EDMONTON ESKIMOS (7-5) AT WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS (4-8)
DATE & TIME: Friday, September 26th, 8 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: There's nowhere for the Edmonton Eskimos to go but up.
The Eskimos had their worst effort of the season last week, losing a one-sided 40-4 decision to the Montreal Alouettes at Molson Stadium.
Edmonton had five turnovers and surrendered six sacks in the contest, which Montreal blew open in the second quarter by outscoring the Eskimos 24-3 for a commanding 30-4 halftime advantage.
Ricky Ray was 14-of-17 passing for 156 yards but also lost two fumbles before being replaced by former Alouettes quarterback Jason Maas, who finished 8- of-12 passing for 110 yards. Ron McClendon was the Eskimos' leading rusher with 38 yards on seven carries.
Edmonton's defense also had its problems against Montreal. Quarterback Anthony Calvillo threw for 414 yards and two touchdowns and three of his receivers -- Jamal Richardson (nine catches, 150 yards, one touchdown), Kerry Watkins (eight catches, 109 yards, one touchdown) and Ben Cahoon (nine catches, 106 yards) -- all finished with over 100 yards.
Winnipeg has won two straight games and three of its last five to get back into playoff contention in the East Division.
The Bombers escaped from Hamilton with a 25-23 win last weekend. The Ticats were in a position to force overtime with a late field goal, but the snap was bad and Nick Setta's attempt was wide.
Kevin Glenn finished 28-of-37 passing for 268 yards and two touchdowns. Derick Armstrong and Terrence Edwards were his favorite targets, both finishing with seven catches. Armstrong had 126 yards receiving while Edwards accumulated 100. Both also had touchdown receptions.
The Bombers defense also did a good job of pressuring Hamilton's quarterbacks, finishing the game with five sacks.
The numbers: Edmonton is 2-4 on the road and 3-2 against East Division teams. Winnipeg is 2-4 at home and 1-4 versus Western clubs.
Keys to the game: The Bombers have climbed back into playoff contention with consecutive wins against Toronto and Hamilton, giving fans in Winnipeg some optimism that this club is finally a postseason contender.
Glenn has been decent since reclaiming the starter's spot for the Bombers. Fred Reid has also stepped up nicely following the trade of Charles Roberts to B.C. for Joe Smith. For his part, Smith has been slow to regain the form that last year made him the CFL's leading rusher.
But the Eskimos have been a tough team to figure the last month. The squad looked good in a 37-16 Labor Day win over Calgary, but lost the rematch 38-33, struggled to beat Hamilton 38-33 before laying an egg last week against Montreal.
Edmonton's dismal performance against the Als was one head coach Danny Maciocia termed the worst by the team in his seven seasons in Alberta.
The Bombers might be on somewhat of a roll, but here's figuring Ricky Ray and Co. get back on track.
Best E Casino Predicted Outcome: Edmonton 34, Winnipeg 30.
CALGARY STAMPEDERS (8-4) AT TORONTO ARGONAUTS (4-8)
DATE & TIME: Saturday, September 27th, 7 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: As debuts go, Cody Pickett's first-ever start with the Toronto Argonauts was one to forget.
The former rodeo star certainly had his troubles in last week's 34-4 road loss to the Calgary Stampeders. But neither he nor the Argos have time to feel sorry for themselves as the Stamps return to Toronto to complete the home-and- home series.
Pickett finished 20-of-35 passing for 192 yards and an interception, which was returned for a touchdown. Before the game, Argos head coach Don Matthews said it was imperative that his offense get the ball into the hands of his top two playmakers -- running back Dominique Dorsey and receiver Arland Bruce III.
Well, Dorsey did accumulate over 300 all-purpose yards, but most of that total came on special teams. Dorsey had 59 yards rushing on seven carries and 25 yards receiving on two catches. As for Bruce, the team's receiving leader, he had two catches for 20 yards.
Toronto's biggest nemesis, though, was its inability to protect the football. The Argos committed five turnovers in the contest, while accumulating just 228 total offensive yards.
Defensive back Pete Hunter had a good outing for Toronto with a game-high nine tackles and an interception.
Calgary quarterback Henry Burris was a workman-like 21-of-34 passing for 241 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Nik Lewis had a game-high 10 catches for 92 yards and a touchdown.
Joffrey Reynolds was also very productive, rushing for 112 yards on 12 carries while Burris finished with 55 yards on six carries. Kicker Sandro DeAngelis booted four field goals.
The numbers: Toronto is 2-3 at home and 1-3 against the West Division. Calgary is tied with Saskatchewan for the league's top road record at 4-2 and is 4-1 versus Eastern clubs.
Keys to the game: Matthews remains mum on who his starting quarterback will be, saying both Pickett and veteran Kerry Joseph will get equal reps in practice this week. Joseph, the CFL's outstanding player last year, started Toronto's first 11 games of the season before being supplanted by Pickett.
Regardless of who starts, the Argos must get better production from their offense. Gone are the days when Toronto could score less than 21 points and rely on its defense to make that stand up.
However, the Argos are ranked seventh in the CFL in rushing (87 yards per game) and sixth in passing (272 yards). So it's imperative that the offense not turn the ball over because, quite simply, Toronto isn't good enough to either get caught up in a track meet or come back from a deficit.
What's more, the Stampeders will again present a formidable challenge for the Argos. Offensively, Calgary is ranked second in the CFL in rushing (131 yards per game), total yards (414) and scoring (29.7 points per game). Toronto counters with a defense that's ranked last against the run (163 yards per game), points allowed (28.3 per game) and seventh in yards allowed (419).
Best E Casino Predicted Outcome: Calgary 33, Toronto 20.
HAMILTON TIGER-CATS (2-10) AT BRITISH COLUMBIA LIONS (7-5)
DATE & TIME: Saturday, September 27th, 10 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: On paper, this would appear to be a huge mismatch.
The Lions would appear to be rounding into form, having just swept a home-and- home series with the Saskatchewan Roughriders to move to within two points of top spot in the West Division. Hamilton, on the other hand, has lost five straight games and has the CFL's worst record.
But to be fair, the Ticats have showed a lot of progress from last season when they finished with just three victories.
Three of their last five losses have been by a total of 10 points. And the Ticats deserved a much better fate than they received in last week's game versus Winnipeg.
Hamilton also made headlines this week by signing running back Kenton Keith, who spent last season with the NFL's Indianapolis Colts before being released during training camp.
Prior to making it in Indianapolis, Keith spent four seasons with the CFL's Saskatchewan Roughriders, twice rushing for more than 1,000 yards. He has averaged over six yards a carry in the CFL, and has also scored 21 touchdowns but also fumbled 19 times.
Keith joins a very crowded backfield that already includes Canadian Jesse Lumsden and Americans Terry Caulley and Tre Smith. That trio has also helped make Hamilton the CFL's top rushing club, averaging over 180 yards per game.
But it was rookie quarterback Quinton Porter who put Hamilton into position to force overtime against Winnipeg. His crucial 25-yard run set up Nick Setta's late field goal attempt, which sailed just wide after a bad snap.
Former Lion Casey Printers got the start and was 8-of-19 passing for 110 yards and a touchdown before suffering an ankle injury. Porter came in and finished 11-of-17 passing for 183 yards and a touchdown and added 32 yards rushing on two carries, good enough to earn the start against B.C.
Lumsden, who missed last week's game with a shoulder injury, resumed practicing this week and is listed as day to day.
Prechae Rodriguez was Hamilton's top receiver, registering six catches for 136 yards and a touchdown.
Buck Pierce started B.C.'s win over Saskatchewan last week, completing 19- of-35 passes for 197 yards and a touchdown before being forced out of the game with a head injury. Jarious Jackson came in and was 2-of-5 passing for 30 yards but also rushed for 36 yards on four carries.
Pierce's injury isn't regarded as serious and he will start against Hamilton. Charles Roberts ran for 63 yards on 13 carries while Stefan Logan was the club's receiving leader with eight catches for 85 yards.
B.C.'s defense was also solid, forcing eight turnovers and registering five sacks. Linebacker Javier Glatt had eight tackles and an interception while safety Barron Miles had two interceptions. Defensive end Cameron Wake also recorded his CFL-high 16th sack, the same amount he registered last year when he was named the league's top rookie and defensive player.
The numbers: B.C. is 4-2 at home and 4-1 against the East Division. Hamilton is a league-worst 1-4 on the road and 0-5 versus Western clubs.
Keys to the game: The Lions should continue to roll in this contest. But again, it wouldn't be surprising to see the pesky Ticats not go down without a fight.
Simply put, the Lions have better personnel at most every position. And even if Keith does play, running against B.C. is no mean feat considering the defense is ranked third against the run.
The last time these two teams met, the Lions prevailed 35-12 on September 6. Enough said.
Best E Casino Predicted Outcome: B.C. 33, Hamilton 20.
SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS (8-4) AT MONTREAL ALOUETTES (8-4)
DATE & TIME: Sunday, September 28th, 1 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: Not long ago, this might have been hyped as a potential Grey Cup matchup.
But the Roughriders limp in having lost two straight games to the B.C. Lions and the services of dependable running back Wes Cates. Cates is the CFL's rushing leader with 1,055 yards, but won't play due to a leg injury.
The loss of Cates is a big one for Saskatchewan. His dependable production in the run game meant opposing defenses couldn't concentrate fully on coming after the quarterback and shutting down what's been a disappointing Riders passing attack.
His injury leaves the Riders' offense without its biggest threat.
Michael Bishop got the start at quarterback in Sunday's 27-21 home loss to B.C., but was lifted after completing 4-of-6 passes for 105 yards. But one of his incompletions was an interception, resulting in Darian Durant coming into the game.
Durant finished 9-of-21 passing for 146 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He also added 21 yards rushing.
Bishop will get the start in this game, but the expectation is he's again on a very short leash.
The Alouettes were very impressive in their last outing, a dominant 40-4 decision over Edmonton.
Quarterback Anthony Calvillo was a stellar 31-of-38 passing for 414 yards and two touchdowns. Jamal Richardson had nine catches for 150 yards and a touchdown while Kerry Watkins finished with eight receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown. Veteran Ben Cahoon had nine catches for 106 yards.
Montreal's defense also recorded six sacks and forced five Edmonton turnovers. Defensive end Jermaine McElveen had two tackles, three sacks and two forced fumbles for the Alouettes.
The numbers: Montreal is 5-1 at home and 2-4 against West Division teams. Saskatchewan is 4-2 on the road and 5-0 versus Eastern clubs.
Keys to the game: There's no denying Montreal being the best team in the East. But to be taken seriously as a Grey Cup contender, the Als have to show they can match up with the best in the West.
Missing Cates is huge for the Roughriders, given the abundance of injuries the club has endured on offense. His presence kept opposing defenses honest. Now, the Als can look forward to being able to bring wave after wave of pressure against the Saskatchewan quarterbacks.
The Riders have also skipped a beat of late. The team opened the season by winning its first six games, but is just 2-4 since. Cates' injury means Saskatchewan will rely even more on its rugged defense, which is the league's stingiest.
Montreal could be boosted by the return of running back Avon Cobourne, who has missed the last four games. Then again, the Als went 3-1 without the talented and versatile Cobourne.
Best E Casino Predicted Outcome: Montreal 21, Saskatchewan 14.
Last week's record: 3-1; Season record: 23-25.
