It was an upset special type of Semi-Final Sunday as both road teams rolled to victory and a berth in the Division Finals. That’s shaken things up across the league and sent some of our voters into a tail spin.
Edmonton and Winnipeg had serious questions surrounding their contender status going into last week, but now both find themselves in the top four of the league and our power rankings.
The power rankings are done by having 3Down contributors rank each team from No. 1 to No. 9. The team with the fewest “points” gets the top ranking with each subsequent club receiving rankings two through nine. The previous week’s rankings are listed in brackets.
- Hamilton Tiger-Cats (1)
No game, no change. The Tiger-Cats are still the class of the league and they are getting healthier by the day thanks to their well-earned bye. They look to capitalize on the rest in front of a sold-out Tim Hortons’ Field.
2. Winnipeg Blue Bombers (4)
Beat the reigning champs in commanding fashion and you get to move up our board. The Bombers fully unveiled the two-headed monster of Zach Collaros throwing and Chris Streveler running against Calgary. That’s a scary duo, even with Streveler continuing to battle a fractured foot.
3. Saskatchewan Roughriders (2)
They may have had a bye week but Cody Fajardo is still limited in practice and battling a significant oblique injury. That doesn’t bode well for the Riders chances, but its nothing a raucous home crowd can’t help fix.
4. Edmonton Eskimos (6)
Trevor Harris was the model of efficiency with an incredible 92.3% completion percentage and over 400 yards through the air, and still Edmonton barely squeaked past Montreal. Winning in Hamilton will be a challenge and takes on extra significance with head coach Jason Maas’ job still very much on the line.
5. Calgary Stampeders (3)
The juggernaut finally fell short. It always seemed like this was the year where the Stampeders were finally human, but coming apart at the seams in the fourth quarter of a home playoff game surprised even their biggest critics.
6. Montreal Alouettes (5)
The magical run for the resurgent Alouettes ended with two bad interception, as cardiac Vernon Adams Jr. finally played in a game he couldn’t will to victory. Attention now turns to re-signing their catalyst head coach and figuring out both GM and ownership.
7. B.C. Lions (7)
Devone Claybrooks took the fall for the disappointing season and Ed Hervey has a clean house to do with as he pleases. It will be a full reset in Vancouver next season.
8. Toronto Argonauts (8)
More questions than answers remain in the Six this offseason. They’ll be looking down the QEW and wondering what could have been this weekend.
9. Ottawa Redblacks (9)
Remember when Ottawa was a yearly Grey Cup contender? Think back on those happy memories if you’re a Redblacks’ fan because this will be a painful rebuild.
