The Saskatchewan Roughriders and Hamilton Tiger-Cats have been the CFL’s most disappointing teams, playing well below expectations all season.
But on Friday night, that won’t matter one bit.
Despite being a combined nine games under .500, the two-time reigning East champion Tiger-Cats (4-10) entertain the Grey Cup host Roughriders (6-9) in a game that will go a long way toward determining who gets the sixth and final playoff spot in the nine-team league.
Losers of four in a row, the Roughriders returned from a bye week Monday. Before they practised, Roughriders coach Craig Dickenson showed his players the standings.
“I thought that would do what it needed to and I think it did,” he said. “I showed them the East and the West. I told them we have three games left and we’re at six (wins). Where we end up depends a lot on this weekend. I think you guys realize the importance of this game. Maybe it’s not a must-win but I think it’s as close to a must-win as you can get. Hamilton’s telling their guys the same thing so it should be an outstanding Friday night.”
The fourth-place team in either division – in this case, Saskatchewan – crosses over to the other division for the playoffs if it finishes with a better record than the third-place team.
If the Roughriders win Friday, they’ll need just one victory in their final two games or one Hamilton loss in the final three Ticats games to head to the East playoffs to compete against, very likely, the Toronto Argonauts and Montreal Alouettes (the Ottawa Redblacks remain mathematically alive). But if the Ticats emerge victorious, destiny is in their hands – as winning out would send them to the playoffs.
“The guys that we have here, we feel like we can win,” Ticats receiver Tim White said. “Regardless of our record and certain outcomes, I think everybody still believes we can truly win. I think that’s the most important thing. As long as we keep that mentality, I think we’ll still be in it.”
Only the West has crossed over in the playoffs since the rule was instituted in 1997. None of the 12 crossover teams managed to advance to the Grey Cup.
This year, the Roughriders would figure to have a fighting chance in the weak East if they can get their act together.
A dream scenario, in many ways for the CFL, would see the Roughriders face the league-leading Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the Grey Cup in Regina.
“We’re just trying to make the playoffs any way possible,” Roughriders quarterback Cody Fajardo said. “Now the only way is the crossover path. No one’s ever made it to the Grey Cup as a crossover team. If we are the crossover team, that would be our goal. It would be a pretty unique situation for us … With Hamilton coming up, this is a win or go home mentality.”
The Ticats are 0-7 on the road, but 4-3 at Tim Hortons Field, including an impressive win over the Blue Bombers earlier this month.
They are in Calgary for a toughie against the Stampeders next week before wrapping up with a home-and-home against the league-worst Redblacks.
The Roughriders have another bye week next week before concluding with a home-and-home against Calgary.
“All we can do is take care of us and keep on winning,” Ticats quarterback Dane Evans said. “We’ve just got to win these next four and see what happens after that.”
What we liked in Week 17
• Impressive displays by the Calgary and Winnipeg defences in wins over Toronto and Saskatchewan, respectively. It’s the kind of football that will work in November weather in the West.
• B.C. Lions quarterback Vernon Adams Jr.’s bounce-back performance against Ottawa.
What we didn’t like in Week 17
• The Edmonton Elks setting a CFL record with a 15th loss in a row at home. Crowds are way down in Edmonton – for good reason.
• Another pitiful Redblacks performance, which turned out to be the last straw for head coach Paul LaPolice, who was fired the next day.
Week 18 picks
Saskatchewan Roughriders at Hamilton Tiger-Cats (-2), Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT
Fajardo is 3-0 in his career against Hamilton. Evans is 0-2 versus Saskatchewan. PICK: Hamilton
B.C. Lions at Toronto Argonauts (-1.5), Saturday, 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT
As if the Argos didn’t have enough problems attracting fans, this game starts at the exact same time as the Blue Jays’ playoff game down the street. PICK: B.C.
Edmonton Elks at Winnipeg Blue Bombers (-13.5), Saturday, 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT
The good news for the Elks is they are not playing at home. The bad news is they are playing the Blue Bombers. PICK: Winnipeg
Ottawa Redblacks at Montreal Alouettes (-6.5), Monday, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
Interim head coach Bob Dyce makes his debut in the top job for Ottawa. Als star running back William Stanback is set to return after fracturing his ankle in the season opener. PICK: Montreal
2022 record: 34-31
Odds from FanDuel as of Thursday afternoon.
Power rankings
1. Winnipeg Blue Bombers (13-2, Last week: 1): Back on track after a win over Saskatchewan, Blue Bombers are cruising to first in the West.
2. Calgary Stampeders (10-5, Last week: 3): Impressive in defensively dominant win over East-leading Toronto last week.
3. Toronto Argonauts (8-6, Last week: 2): Looked awful on offence in Calgary. Need a bounce-back against B.C.
4. B.C. Lions (10-4, Last week: 4): Adams Jr. played well against a bad Ottawa team last week. Needs to keep it up against Toronto.
5. Montreal Alouettes (7-7, Last week: 5): First place in the East looking very possible for a team finding itself after a slow start.
6. Saskatchewan Roughriders (6-9, Last week: 7): A win in Hamilton would all but secure a playoff spot in the East for the Roughriders. Would build plenty of confidence, too.
7. Hamilton Tiger-Cats (4-10, Last week: 7): Got good news on bye week with Saskatchewan’s loss to Winnipeg. Now, the Ticats need to win at home versus the Riders.
8. Ottawa Redblacks (3-11, Last week: 8): Many felt LaPolice should have been fired weeks ago. Dyce did good work with the special teams, so let’s see what he can do as head coach.
9. Edmonton Elks (4-11, Last week: 9): Coach Chris Jones said he didn’t want to talk about the home losing streak after last week’s loss to Montreal. But he won’t stop being asked about it until the team actually wins a game at Commonwealth Stadium.
