3DownNation power rankings: Rising Ticats doing Mosca proud

Photo courtesy: Bob Butrym

The 3DownNation power rankings have been tallied following Week 14 of the 2021 CFL season.

Unfortunately, overshadowing some fantastic finishes this weekend was the loss of a CFL legend in Angelo Mosca at the age of 84. The tough as nails hall of famer would have enjoyed seeing his beloved Tiger-Cats climb up our board, especially after polishing off a B.C. Lions team for whom hating him once defined an era.

Our power rankings are created by having our contributors rank each team from No. 1 to No. 9 independently, then averaging out the scores. Last week’s rankings are listed in brackets.

Enjoy the rankings and feel free to roast us on Twitter for anything you feel we’ve got wrong.

1. Winnipeg Blue Bombers (1)

The Bombers got pushed to the brink against Montreal, but the CFL’s best team is simply unbeatable in the fourth quarter. They pitched another shutout in the final frame, keeping open the possibility that they won’t surrender a major in the last 15 minutes all season.

2. Hamilton Tiger-Cats (T-3)

It wasn’t always pretty, but the Ticats kicked their feline foes aside and clinched a playoff spot in the process. Jeremiah Masoli is still humming along and it appears a dormant Brandon Banks has awoken, finally scoring his first touchdown of the year.

3. Saskatchewan Roughriders (2)

The Roughriders have now won three straight on the road, but supporters are hardly cheering after they squeaked past the hapless Elks by just two point. Their quarterback may not want to address it, but relying on Duke Williams to win every game with an onside kick recovery is not the best strategy.

4. Calgary Stampeders (5)

A blissful bye week brought the return of Reggie Begelton and the Stampeders have their destiny in their own hands. A win over the B.C. Lions this week and the horsemen will ride again in the playoffs.

5. Toronto Argonauts (T-3)

Alone atop the East Division, the Argos are hardly celebrating. Barely completing a comeback against the Redblacks is cause for concern and McLeod Bethel-Thompson has struggled mightily since his quarterbacking competition was shipped out of town.

6. Montreal Alouettes (6)

Patrick Levels’ assertion that the Alouettes are better than the Bombers proved faulty and Montreal has now lost two in a row to top West Division opponents. The closeness of both games still has some thinking the Als are the pound-for-pound best in the East however, so who are we to judge.

7. B.C. Lions (7)

On the brink of playoff elimination, the Lions are at least showing some fight, taking a second straight game down to the wire. Unfortunately, a comeback was derailed by faulty headsets, prompting an uncharacteristic outcry from quarterback Michael Reilly.

8. Ottawa Redblacks (8)

They started the Duck and still got a dud, but the Redblacks will finally have some positive takeaways after keeping it close with the Boatmen. Chief among them was a record-setting return from DeVonte Dedmon, but the gameday staff get some kudos as well for a quality COVID safety reminder.

9. Edmonton Elks (9)

A few furious drives got the Elks close to an upset victory, but a lack of sympathy from former receiver Duke Williams slammed that door. Instead, Edmonton finishes without a win at home for the first time in franchise history.