Last week was all over the place in the CFL. The undefeated Stampeders fell at the hands of the Roughriders, the Argos got past B.C for their second straight come from behind win, The Redblacks absolutely hammered the Blue Bombers and The Alouettes were one dropped long ball away from being right in it with the Eskimos. I went 2-2 last week to bring my record to 22-12 straight up this season. I missed on the Riders and Redblacks winning last week. This week has three divisional matchups and sees Edmonton in Hamilton. Let’s take a look at how I see each game playing out in week 11.

(6-3) Edmonton Eskimos @ (3-5) Hamilton Tiger-Cats Thursday 7:30pm ET

The Esks took down a Montreal team last week who’s defence let them down and, If it wasn’t for a dropped pass that would have been a touchdown, the Als were right in that game. Edmonton is going to need a better performance this week against Hamilton if they want to stay alone in second in the west. The Esks offence is firing on all cylinders with the leagues beat player Mike Reilly at the reins and they have the leagues top two receivers in terms of yards those being Duke Williams (831) and Derel Walker (816). Edmonton should win this game but their defence is going to have to show up. For Hamilton they are tied for second in the east with Toronto, both teams are 3-5 on the season. Toronto plays Montreal this week so Hamilton is going to need a big win if they want to keep a share of the second spot. Hamilton’s defence has been very good this year especially in the red zone. It is going to be up to their offence to take advantage of an average Edmonton D and go toe to toe with Mike Reilly and the Eskimos offence. I just don’t know if Jeremiah Masoli and the Ti-Cats will have it in them this week.

Prediction: Eskimos win 38-31

(3-5) Toronto Argonauts @ (1-8) Montreal Alouettes Friday 7:30pm ET

This is a bit of a trap game for the Argos. The Als have played significantly better offensively in each of the last two games while the Argos have had to have a couple big comeback wins to get on this two game winning streak. Mcleod Bethel-Thompson looks to be the answer so far in Toronto having won his first two starts. But going into a game they should win we will see how he reacts. If the Argos lean on James Wilder Jr. once again this week they should be able to get past Montreal. I’ve been saying all season that the Als defence isn’t as bad as their stats because of how much they are on the field but last week I put that loss squarely on the defences shoulders. Antonio Pipkin and the offence played well enough to win in my opinion and the defence let them down. Pipkin will get his second straight start and if the defence could play a great game against Toronto and Pipkin plays like he did last week this could be an upset. But I just don’t trust the Als D enough to pick them this week.

Prediction: Argonauts win 30-21

(5-4) Winnipeg Blue Bombers @ (7-1) Calgary Stampeders Saturday 3:30pm ET

Winnipeg was crushed by the Ottawa Redblacks last week and will look to bounce back against the Stampeders, especially on offence. The high flying Bombers offence looked extremely pedestrian last week and Matt Nichols (or Mike O’Shea for putting him back in the game) was booed off the field at IGF last week. He will look for a big game but it won’t be easy against the Stamps defence. Andrew Harris needs at least 20 touches to get this offence going. Look for him to touch the ball early and often this week. For Calgary they lost for the first time all season against Saskatchewan last week. The Riders scored on defence and on special teams which put the Stamps behind the eight ball early. Calgary will look to get back on track as a loss and an Edmonton win would put the Eskimos in a tie with the Stamps for wins. I see Calgary getting back on track at home this week led by a big performance from their defence.

Prediction: Stampeders win 34-24

(4-4) Saskatchewan Roughriders @ (3-5) B.C. Lions Saturday 8:00pm ET

The Riders are coming off their biggest win of the season over the rival Calgary Stampeders. It looks as though the Rider offence has found a groove with Zach Collaros but will definitely look to punch the ball into the end zone more this week instead of settling for field goals. Rookie kicker Brett Lauther went six for six on field goals last week and is having himself quite the season hitting at 92.6% this year. Rookie receiver Jordan Williams-Lambert also had a breakout game for the Riders. He put up over 150 yards, it was his first 100+ yard game in the CFL. For B.C. they were well on their way to a second straight win but their offence went cold in the back half of the third and the fourth quarter. The key to a good game on offence for the Lions is establishing the running game. Jeremiah Johnson and Chris Rainey might be the best one-two at running back in the league. If they are going to take down the Riders this week the running game is going to have to lead the way. That is going to be tough as the Riders defence gives up the second least yards against on the ground per game. I think the Riders will get their second win in a row this week.

Prediction: Roughriders win 37-28

This week is a big one for everyone involved. The Eskimos want to hang on to sole possession of second in the west. Hamilton wants to stay in second in the east, with Toronto wanting to do the same. Montreal is looking to get back in the east playoff race. Winnipeg is looking to tie Edmonton for second in the west with a win and an Esks loss and also stay ahead of the Riders in the standings. The Stamps will try to get back on track and maintain a healthy lead for first and as for the the Riders they try to continue to climb the standings while the Lions will try and get back into a playoff spot. Each team has a different story line and that should make for a great week. Thanks for reading!