CFL WEEK 14 PREDICTIONS

CFL / Football

Written by Joel Lefevre

The Labour Day long weekend in the CFL had everything we have come to expect, some late drama, some surprising stories and plenty of points scored.

We kick off Week 14 with the BC Lions looking to get back on track with a new face behind centre, the Ottawa Redblacks back in the playoff hunt, and we conclude with what is sure to be a memorable doubleheader on Saturday, starting with the Banjo Bowl and ending with the Elks looking to avenge a narrow loss to their Alberta rivals.

Source (Background Photo): Greg Kolz/Freestyle Photography

Here is a look at every matchup this weekend.

BC Lions at Montreal Alouettes

From a team that looked destined to be a Grey Cup contender throughout the early portion of 2022, the BC Lions are now licking their wounds.

Two weeks ago, they lost backup quarterback Michael O’Connor to a groin issue one week after one of the frontrunners for Most Outstanding Player (MOP), Nathan Rourke, suffered a severe foot injury.

That means Vernon Adams has been thrust into the spotlight out of nowhere as he returns to Montreal, the team that traded him at the end of August for a first-round selection in next year’s draft.

Adams has proven that he is a capable starter in this league, as he was the Als MOP nominee in 2019.

With only the bye week to try and learn a new system, he will depend on a talented group of receivers, led by Dominique Rhymes and Lucky Whitehead, who combined have 1,679 receiving yards, while Rhymes is tied with Winnipeg’s Dalton Schoen for the most TD catches with nine.

On the rare occasions when the BC offence has struggled, Rick Campbell’s defence has done their best to keep them going, sacking Riders QB Cody Fajardo seven times in their last game.

BC is currently second in the league in terms of sacks while they have allowed the fewest yards through the air (2347).

A bye week seemed to come at an inopportune time for Danny Maciocia’s Alouettes, who followed up an overtime win against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers with a last-second victory over the Tiger-Cats before putting together an inconsistent performance last Friday, losing 38-24 to the Ottawa Redblacks after a week off in between their win over Hamilton and their loss to Ottawa.

Trevor Harris once again put up some substantial numbers, going 22 of 29 for 256 yards and a pair of scores, but turnovers killed any momentum he and his team could have garnered as the former Ottawa pivot tossed two picks, while a first-half fumble gave Davon Coleman a scoop-and-score TD.

Three of Montreal’s next four games occur at Molson Stadium as they have a real opportunity to make a move for first, trailing Toronto by two games.

Eugene Lewis has been a receiver to watch out for all season long, currently tied for second in the league with Whitehead for receptions caught (60).

He also has the most receiving targets in the CFL (100), so you can expect Harris to call his number at least a few times on Friday.

Montreal will want to improve on both the offensive and defensive lines, third from the bottom in terms of sacks allowed (32) while also third-last for sacks (24).

• Prediction- BC Lions 24-17 Montreal Alouettes

Expect an emotionally charged game for Adams, but lucky for him, no pun intended, he’s got some quality receivers who can make his job a lot easier, while the BC defence is more than capable of holding down the fort.

Harris has had a solid regular season for the Als, but he can’t seem to go an entire 60 minutes without making at least one or two poor decisions, and those mistakes have proven costly.

Toronto Argonauts at Ottawa Redblacks

A pair of solid outings versus Hamilton has the Argonauts' season back on track as the Boatmen look to stretch their winning streak to three-straight games this weekend.

McLeod Bethel-Thompson has thrown for five touchdowns in his past two games, though he has also tossed three interceptions, and that is an area that head coach Ryan Dinwiddie is looking for his quarterback to improve on, as he has thrown a pick in three consecutive games.

The blazing speed of Brandon Banks was on full display on Monday, as he caught two passes for 80 yards and a major score against his former team, as his Argos now sitting third in the CFL for completions (256).

As efficient as their offence has been at times this season, their secondary has failed to contain their opponents' passing game, with Toronto allowing the second-highest completion percentage in the league (69.5%).

Things are looking up for the Ottawa Redblacks, who have won consecutive games for the first time all season, putting them within one win of second place in the East Division.

Nick Arbuckle has played well in both of those victories, throwing for 313 yards and a touchdown last week, while he has not thrown an interception in his last two games.

Jaelon Acklin was instrumental in Montreal last week as the Ottawa receiver caught seven passes for 159 yards, and he currently leads the league with 963 yards receiving.

Their secondary has allowed the second-fewest completions, though the Redblacks' defence has also conceded the third-most yards among CFL clubs on the ground (1161).

• Prediction- Toronto Argonauts 33-37 Ottawa Redblacks

This Ontario battle features two quarterbacks brimming with confidence and putting up some big numbers, while several offensive threats have stepped up for them as well.

We are giving the edge to Ottawa because Arbuckle seems to be just a little smarter to not force a play when it isn’t there which Bethel-Thompson doesn’t always do.

Saskatchewan Roughriders at Winnipeg Blue Bombers

The Labour Day Classic between the Riders and Bombers was as good as gold in a game which came right down to the wire, though unfortunately, for the green faithful, they came up just a little short.

In the opening quarter, Saskatchewan looked like they would run away with the Labour Day game, leading 11-0, but failing to maintain that early momentum.

Frankie Hickson had another solid outing on the ground with 15 carries for 85 yards, while Cody Fajardo did well to spread the ball around, connecting with six different receivers, going 23 of 32 for 292 yards, one interception, while also rushing for a touchdown.

Craig Dickenson will be calling on his defensive front to get more pressure along the line of the scrimmage, as the league leaders, regarding sacks this year (35), only had one on Sunday against Winnipeg.

The Riders coach will have one less headache to worry about on defence as the club announced they have released Garrett Marino after the threw another controversial hit in their loss last weekend.

It sounds cliché to say a game is never over, but the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have repeatedly proven that this season, as they are undefeated in 2022 when facing a first-quarter deficit.

Every week we seem to mention a new hero on this team, and the latest is one who spent the majority of 2021 in the doghouse as Mark Liegghio nailed a 55-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to put his team in front for good.

The defensive line, who have not always been able to pressure opposing QBs effectively had three sacks in the Labour Day game.

They are tied for third in the league for interceptions (13) and the timing of those picks has been crucial, with many of them coming when the opposition is in scoring territory, just as the Riders were before Nick Hallet intercepted Fajardo to preserve a narrow 20-18 victory.

Zach Collaros did not have his best offensive output of the season last week, throwing for 214 yards and two touchdowns, though he and his unit have consistently kept the chains moving, as the Bombers have the best second-down conversion percentage in the CFL (53.9%).

• Prediction- Saskatchewan Roughriders 23-27 Winnipeg Blue Bombers

The Bombers seem to have perfected the art of winning close games, while they have only lost one of their last eight Banjo Bowl encounters.

Mike O’Shea always seems to find a way to catch his opponents off guard with a relatively unknown stepping up to make a big play or two, and we expect they’ll find a way to win what promises to be another tight affair.

Calgary Stampeders at Edmonton Elks

It was a humbling first half for Dave Dickenson and his Stampeders on Labour Day Monday as they were trailing their provincial rivals 8-7.

Jake Maier picked up his game in the third quarter as his team put up 15 points, with the new Stamps pivot going 18 of 26 for 238 yards, two touchdowns and an interception throughout the game.

Ka’Deem Carey has not always busted off big gains, but the second-leading rusher in the CFL has consistently taken his team out of second and long situations, though Calgary has not been great when it comes to converting, with a second down conversion rate of just over 45%.

The Stamps possess the second-best net offence in the league, averaging the second-most yards per play offensively (6.84 yards), though they have allowed their share of first downs defensively as well (247), with only Montreal conceding more.

While the final score went against them yet again, Monday was a positive step in the right direction for Chris Jones and his Elks team.

Without their best receiver in Kenny Lawler, Taylor Cornelius hit seven different receivers, going 22 of 33 for 257 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions.

While they were efficient at times on offence on Monday, the Elks have not been able to carry a lot of momentum throughout four quarters, with the worst net offence in the league (293.5 average), averaging 5.4 yards per play.

They rank fourth in terms of the average time of possession, but they have not been able to make enough of those drives count, scoring the fewest points in the league (234).

• Prediction- Calgary Stampeders 30-24 Edmonton Elks

Their first-half performance was encouraging; however, Edmonton needs to start punching the ball into the end zone more often, and we expect Elks fans will have to wait a little longer to earn an elusive home victory.