Hamilton Tiger-Cats officially eliminated from CFL playoff contention with overtime shootout loss

Photo courtesy: CFL.ca

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats will not get a chance to break their 27-year Grey Cup drought in 2026.

The Ticats were officially eliminated from playoff contention after a 37-35 overtime loss against the Edmonton Elks on Saturday night. They needed a victory to stay alive after the Calgary Stampeders defeated the Ottawa Redblacks earlier in the day.

The Tabbies forced the Elks to settle for a CFL single-game record nine field goals and forced the contest into overtime, trading kicks through two duelling periods. The game advanced to a two-point shootout — just the second in CFL history — and quarterback Harrison Frost couldn’t connect on their first attempt, which set up Cody Fajardo to deliver a game-winning strike to Joshua Cephus on the next play.

Hamilton now drops to 4-11 on the year. With just three games remaining, they can no longer mathematically prevent a Western crossover for the final playoff spot in the East Division.

The Tiger-Cats were the preseason favourites to emerge from the East after finishing first in 2025, but saw their hopes derailed after franchise quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell suffered a season-ending ankle injury. The team has lost eight of their last nine regular-season games, with five of the losses coming by double-digit margins.

Hamilton had made the playoffs in six of the last seven seasons, with the lone miss coming in 2024 when the team finished 7-11. However, the franchise has not won a Grey Cup championship since 1999, which is the longest active drought in the CFL.

The Montreal Alouettes, Edmonton Elks, and Toronto Argonauts have each clinched postseason berths. The Ottawa Redblacks are the only other franchise to be formally eliminated.

The Tiger-Cats (4-11) and Redblacks (0-14) will meet next week in a game that will have no bearing on the CFL standings. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EDT on Friday, October 2.