Week 18 saw the playoff picture sharpen up in the East Division as the Montreal Alouettes clinched first place and will host the East Final and the Toronto Argonauts will host the East Semi Final. The West on the other hand is going to come down to the last 3 weeks.
- The Elks sit first place in the West Division with 22 points with games remaining: at Hamilton, vs Winnipeg, at Saskatchewan
- BC Lions are in second with 18 points with games remaining: vs Ottawa, at Calgary, vs Winnipeg
- Saskatchewan Roughriders are tied for 3rd with 16 points with games remaining: at Montreal, vs Montreal, vs Edmonton
- Calgary Stampeders are tied for 3rd with 16 points with games remaining: at Winnipeg, vs BC, Bye
- Winnipeg Blue Bombers are 5th with 14 points with games remaining: vs Calgary, at Edmonton, at BC
The Edmonton Elks are in a strong position to secure first place in the West Division by winning two of their final three games. However, the remainder of the divisional standings remains highly competitive as the regular season concludes. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers currently face an uphill battle, likely requiring three consecutive victories to qualify for the playoffs. The Calgary Stampeders have two games remaining and would significantly improve their postseason prospects by securing a win in either contest. Meanwhile, the Saskatchewan Roughriders face a challenging path, as their final three games are scheduled against the first-place Montreal Alouettes and the Edmonton Elks. Finally, the BC Lions maintain control over their ability to host a home playoff game, provided they win at least two of their remaining three matches.
Week 19 of the CFLseason features 4 games:
- Game 1: Edmonton Elks at Hamilton Tiger-Cats: Friday, October 9: The Elks are returning from their bye week to face a Tiger-Cats team seeking revenge for their overtime loss at Commonwealth Stadium two weeks ago.
- Game 2: Ottawa RedBlacks at BC Lions: Friday, October 9: The RedBlacks are still searching for their first win of the season, while the Lions are focused on securing the top spot in the West. An upset victory by the RedBlacks at this stage could significantly impact the West Division playoff race.
- Game 3: Calgary Stampeders at Winnipeg Blue Bombers Saturday, October 10. This is a critical playoff-implication matchup. A victory for the Stampeders would give them a four-point lead over the Bombers and secure the season series tiebreaker. Conversely, a win for Winnipeg would pull them even with Calgary and grant them the tiebreaker advantage in the season series.
- Game 4: Saskatchewan Roughriders at Montreal Alouettes Monday October 12. This Thanksgiving Day matchup serves as a rematch of the 2025 Grey Cup. While the Alouettes have already secured first place in the East Division, the Roughriders are fighting for their playoff lives and must secure wins to stay in contention. This contest marks the first of a back-to-back series between the two teams.
The Lead: The Elks have a historic opportunity to clinch their first West Division title since 2015 by winning two of their final three games. A victory over Hamilton would bring them one step closer to that goal while securing a season-series sweep over the Tiger-Cats for the first time since 2017, as Hamilton looks ahead to rebuilding for next season.
CFL Leaders Takeaways: Elks category leaders through Week 17 in the CFL:
- field goal (50 FGs)
- rushing yards (1825 yds)
- red zone opportunities (61)
- points allowed (25.5/game)
- opponent yds/play (6.45)
- opponent 1st downs (292)
- opponent pass efficiency (87.3)
- pass knockdowns (62)
- turnovers forced (42)
- points off turnovers (143)
- turnover ratio (+18)
- kickoff average (70.3 yds)
- #1 Ranked Defense
- #6 Ranked Special Teams
The Fajardo File: Cody Fajardo is having a career year statistically. He has already set highs for passing attempts, completions, passing yards and TD passes. He needs 1 more win to tie his best of 12 wins in a season.
Fajardo is currently 13th on the Edmonton all-time passing yards list and is closing in on some all-time Edmonton QB seasons as he needs, 155 yds (Ricky Ray 2011), 201 yds (Ricky Ray 2003) and 477 (Ricky Ray 2009).
In the last two games, Fajardo has passed for 40+ attempts. He has done this once previously in his career where he went 68/83 for 658 yds, 3 TDs, 3 Ints, 2W-0L (Jun 28 & Jul 6 2024)…the past two weeks…63/89, 658 yds, 0 TD’s, 2 Ints, 1W-1L.
Fajardo has also NOT had a TD pass the past two games. Only once in his career has he ever went 3 consecutive games with a TD Pass (Aug 21, Sep 5, Sep 11 2021)
The Strategic Matchup:The key to an Elks victory lies in red-zone execution on both sides of the ball; the offense must capitalize by converting red-zone opportunities into touchdowns, while the defense must remain disciplined to keep the Tiger-Cats at bay. Don’t be surprised if you see the Elks return game kick it up a notch as Montrell Washington is settling in as a return threat.
ElksNation Game Notes:
