CFL 2014 Ratings/Playoff Positions at 2014 11 08

[notahomer]

As of September 14 ...

Calgary ... Too bad about Bo. But hot headed Drew is right there to take over.

Saskatchewan ... Might continue to slide a bit without Durant.

Edmonton ... With Jones and Reilly, they are in good shape. Don't think they are the most talented team in the league.

B.C. ... Whoooo Hooooo ... Climbing up the lists. 7 and 4 is so much better than 0 and 2. Lulay/Glenn. Of course we miss Lulay. IMO He is by far the main reason we went all the way in 2011. But Kevin Glenn will be shooting for his first title. D pretty good, even if play safe. If we can crank up the run game, look out. Keep it simple, Dan.

Winnipeg ... Slip sliding. Gonna miss Willy, methinks.

Hamilton ... Finally getting rolling? Must have been painful waiting on the new stadium. Austin has built himself a couple of QBs, with help from Toronto of course.

Toronto ... Struggling. But I think Ricky Ray and Scott Milanovich will have them playoff ready.

Montreal ... Who knows? So much change. Is Crompton the guy?

Ottawa ... Better than their record, methinks.

IMO, both these divisions look wide open, or could anyways.

Calgary: Does Tate rebound and be the leader/StartingQB he thought he should have been during the Burris days? Guess we'll see but Calgary had some big injuries this week. That hit on Charleston Hughes was gruesome, IMO (not lecturing the hitter, its result looked nasty).

Edmonton: Think they are better than their home&home with the Stamps.

Riders:? Good Oline but can this offence do anything besides the strong run game? They are running well but Sunseri doesn't seem to do so well throwing. Almost wish we had another game with them, even if it was in Regina.....

BC: another year where you wonder 'what coulda been' and its not over yet. The Defence has been fun to watch and Specials has had its highlights too. Now maybe we get to see some smashmouth (by the Oline) with Harris & Logan running their way to a good gain on 1st down....

Bombers looked strong early but obviously fading for a variety of reasons. The hit on Willy may have ended their chances to stay in the hunt but its the CFL who knows....

Toronto: missed the Jekyll/Hyde game where they went from leading the #1 team in the CFL to choking up a hairball and losing that same game. I am not so sure the so-called easy way to the Grey Cup would be a 4th place West team 'crossing over' to beat two eastern teams in their stadiums. Rays getting his weapons back so the home stretch will be interesting...

Hamilton: I've thought they've looked better than their record but they kept losing. IMO, their best looking QB was Dan L. but Collarous will be leading the way from now on and its seems he's Austin's #1 anyways....

Montreal: Crompton is a CFL starter, IMO. Got the confidence, maybe needs to regulate the emotions. IMO, the weak link in Montreal are the guys wearing the headsets. They've got adjusting to do and we'll see....

Burris and the Redblacks: get to see them once more here in Vancouver. IMO, Burris has his plusses/minuses but in many ways maybe Ottawa would have been better off with Glenn taking snaps. THankfully we've got him instead. What is really amazing, IMO, is how close these guys are to a playoff spot but that shows how the schedules worked so far. Lets see how close they end up once all the games are played?

The big story that will kinda fade a little into the back (but never actually GO AWAY) will be the East/West thing. Expect the western teams to start losing a lot more games and the eastern teams to start winning some more games. WHY? Well a lot of the intradivisional games are played now so its finally the Redblacks turn to play the Als, Argos and Ticats. When its east versus east, at least one team will get a win (unless its a tie of course ).........

[KnowItAll]

cal
ed
bc
ham
mont
sask
wpg
tor
ott

[The_Pauser]

Calgary
Edmonton
BC
Hamilton
Toronto
Winnipeg
Saskatchewan
Montreal
Ottawa

With Durant done, unless Saskatchewan can bring someone in to address their QB hole I think they're done. For us, this is bad news as it likely means we slide into the top 3 in the West and would have to go through Edmonton and Calgary to get to the Grey Cup.

[Hambone]

With Durant done, unless Saskatchewan can bring someone in to address their QB hole I think they're done. For us, this is bad news as it likely means we slide into the top 3 in the West and would have to go through Edmonton and Calgary to get to the Grey Cup.

Tough to think otherwise given their first performance without Durant. The fine denizens over at RF.com have already gone into full panic mode. They've already driven the bus back and forth over Sunseri so much in the past 24 hours that he looks like another gopher who failed to dodge Trans-Canada Highway traffic. Apparently Keith Price whose 3 down resume consists of about 3 days of practice has been annointed their new saviour-apparent to save their season.

[WestCoastJoe]

Tough to think otherwise given their first performance without Durant. The fine denizens over at RF.com have already gone into full panic mode. They've already driven the bus back and forth over Sunseri so much in the past 24 hours that he looks like another gopher who failed to dodge Trans-Canada Highway traffic. Apparently Keith Price whose 3 down resume consists of about 3 days of practice has been annointed their new saviour-apparent to save their season.

That is too funny. LOL Thanks for the chuckle, HB.

The emotional roller coaster of most dedicated sports fans.

We say it is just a game, but emotionally it is much, much more than that, for fans. For some ... Not so much for me any more. Much more even keeled about the wins and losses these days. Winning a couple of titles under Wally certainly helped. And the organization is all business. Success on the field and at the turnstiles is Job 1, although it is far from clear sailing.

[notahomer]

......Winning a couple of titles under Wally certainly helped. ...

I'd have to agree with you there WCJ.... I've still got pieces of stuck in my teeth from writing off the Lions when I'd invested $$$ to see them play here in 2011 and we got off to that awful start. I still want them to win but the ups/downs don't sting quite as much after a season like that turned out in the end.....

In fact, thats why I'm surprised Riderfans are in such a fluster. First of all, they are in third place still, NO? Winning the Grey Cup is a big thing, winning it AT HOME even bigger. You CAN'T WIN IT EVERY YEAR. I guess Riderfans are ending up perfectly normal sportsfans after all. They used to bleed green regardless of the result, now that they've won a couple Cups in the same decade, all of a sudden they want winning records, playoff wins and Grey Cups.

[Rammer]

With Durant done, unless Saskatchewan can bring someone in to address their QB hole I think they're done. For us, this is bad news as it likely means we slide into the top 3 in the West and would have to go through Edmonton and Calgary to get to the Grey Cup.

Tough to think otherwise given their first performance without Durant. The fine denizens over at RF.com have already gone into full panic mode. They've already driven the bus back and forth over Sunseri so much in the past 24 hours that he looks like another gopher who failed to dodge Trans-Canada Highway traffic. Apparently Keith Price whose 3 down resume consists of about 3 days of practice has been annointed their new saviour-apparent to save their season.

Let's hope the Price isn't Right then.

[WestCoastJoe]

Cal ... Still #1 despite losing to the Alouettes. Management, coaching and player talent all top notch.

Sas ... Without Durant who knows where they will end up? But they have lots of talent and very experienced coaching.

Edm ... Some humble pie losing to Hamilton. Not the most talented team, it seems to me. But they have Jones, Reilly and some excellent players.

B.C. ... Our record puts us here. But I think Hamilton and Toronto rate higher than us. Sharp play? No. Sloppy play --> Thy name is B.C. Lions.

Win ... Based on their win/loss record. But I would think Ham and Tor rate higher.

Ham ... Climbing. I would expect nothing less from a Kent Austin led team.

Tor ... Better than their record. Both Ham and Tor have put up with horrendous situations this year.

Mon ... The East had a good week vs the West. Montreal showing signs of life.

Ott ... So close, so many times. They deserve better.

[notahomer]

The league seems to be flattening out again. Most teams in the East have 4 wins. The West teams seem to be struggling. Its time for that dark horse to put all those early struggles to work and begin tightening up.

In Ottawa, I heard Buono make it clear he doesn't think much (maybe I misheard or misinterpreted, I had a few drinks in me by then ) of teams that are strong most of the year. The teams he's enjoyed leading to wins in the Grey Cup had some rough patches to get through. ALL the STRONG, fast start teams did not do well once the playoffs started.

IOW, I think this concept of the East maybe a viable way to the Grey Cup has changed too. IMO, it may still be an easier trip that via the West but had the playoffs started when all FOUR Eastern teams had only ONE win, okay. Those teams seem to be doing better now. And the West teams do seem within SHOUTING distance of each other again.

I am looking forward to the homestretch......

[WestCoastJoe]

Calgary ... Best team/organization in the league. Lock for the Grey Cup? No way.

Edmonton ... Chris Jones has his team believing.

Saskatchewan ... Talented. Somewhat unpredictable. Very stable organization.

B.C. ... This is based on win/loss record. Hamilton and Toronto might be a better bet.

Hamilton ... Home field nightmare over. Starting to roll a bit.

Toronto ... Gonna be a tough opponent if they make the playoffs.

Winnipeg ... Fast start to the year, and now back to earth.

Montreal ... Signs of life since Don Matthews did some consulting.

Ottawa ... Some discouragement showing.

[DanoT]

Great post WCJ. I would suggest though that the seeming turn around in Montreal is due more to their hiring of Jeff Garcia as a QB coach. Since his retirement from the NFL he has created and runs a successful QB Training business, so with his CFL background he is a great hire by the Als. I'm not saying that Garcia is a QB Whisperer like Marc Trestman but he could be headed in that direction. So far i like what i see from Crompton.

I wish the Lions would have hired Garcia.

[notahomer]

My bet is a Eskimo/Ticat Grey Cup. Calgary has had some injuries, yes the record looks awesome. I think Reilly has the tools a QB needs to lead that team/defence to the big game. and, IMO, the Ticats are the best of the East.

[WestCoastJoe]

Great post WCJ. I would suggest though that the seeming turn around in Montreal is due more to their hiring of Jeff Garcia as a QB coach. Since his retirement from the NFL he has created and runs a successful QB Training business, so with his CFL background he is a great hire by the Als. I'm not saying that Garcia is a QB Whisperer like Marc Trestman but he could be headed in that direction. So far i like what i see from Crompton.

I wish the Lions would have hired Garcia.

Thanks, Dano.

Garcia has some creds, for sure.

[WestCoastJoe]

Pinty's Power Rankings: Eastern uprising

Posted: September 30, 2014 09:00 AM

CFL.ca Staff

1 Calgary Stampeders
Week 13 Ranking: 1
It wasn't pretty, but the league's top-ranked team scrapped out a win against a talented BC defence. Jon Cornish had another big day on the ground and is moving closer to the rushing lead, while the Stampeders added some distance ahead of the rest of the competition.


2 Edmonton Eskimos
Week 13 Ranking: 3
What a way to bounce back for the Eskimos, who responded to losing three of four with a 24-0 win against division rival Saskatchewan. John White's return sparked a pair of 100-plus yard rushing efforts, while Edmonton's defence was unbeatable as the Eskimos slide into second place.


3 Saskatchewan Roughriders
Week 13 Ranking: 2
The Roughriders were bounced to third after another rough outing for Tino Sunseri and the offence, shutout 24-0 by the hated Eskimos. A key test back home against the Stampeders is on tap, where the Riders will have to show improvement if they hope to avoid slipping further.


4 Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Week 13 Ranking: 6
Another East vs. West win for the East Division, as the Ticats continue to roll ever since moving into their new stadium on Labour Day. This weekend's win was far from purrfect, but it was their first road win of the season and it's given them sole possession of first in the East.


5 BC Lions
Week 13 Ranking: 4
The Lions showed fight on the road against the top-ranked Stampeders, but in the end couldn't overcome the dominant downhill running attack of Jon Cornish. More will be needed from Kevin Glenn and now Stefan Logan, as the Lions approach the stretch run minus running back Andrew Harris.


6 Montreal Alouettes
Week 13 Ranking: 8
A defensive touchdown gave the Alouettes the lead in the first half, and they never looked back on the way to a close win over the hungry Ottawa REDBLACKS. Jonathan Crompton looked quite human, but did just enough to move to 4-1 as a starting CFL quarterback.


7 Toronto Argonauts
Week 13 Ranking: 7
A second September bye week means the Boatmen will be well-rested, heading into a stretch of five of six remaining games at the Rogers Centre. Coming off a dominant win over BC and a strong offensive showing against Calgary, the Argos seem poised for a big late-season run.


8 Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Week 13 Ranking: 5
The Bombers moved the ball during a 16-11 loss to the Ticats last weekend, but couldn't close the deal, especially late in the game with an opportunity to come away with the win. They've lost four straight and six of seven, and look to get back in the win column against the REDBLACKS.


9 Ottawa REDBLACKS
Week 13 Ranking: 9
Another hard-fought game for the REDBLACKS, but they couldn't complete the comeback despite some late-game magic. The defence continues to hold them in games, while the offence is showing signs of improvement after a tough loss against the Montreal Alouettes.

On this ranking we are right in the middle of the pack. Middling record. Not great. Not bad.

[WestCoastJoe]

GP W L T PTS F A HOME AWAY DIV STREAK
Calgary  14  12  2  0  24  392  263  6 - 1 - 0  6 - 1 - 0  5 - 1 - 0  W2 
Edmo 14  9  5  0  18  373  285  5 - 2 - 0  4 - 3 - 0  3 - 3 - 0  L1 
Saskatch  14  9  5  0  18  320  320  5 - 2 - 0  4 - 3 - 0  4 - 3 - 0  L2 
BColombi 14  7  7  0  14  292  269  3 - 4 - 0  4 - 3 - 0  3 - 4 - 0  L3 
Winnipeg  14  6  8  0  12  324  366  3 - 4 - 0  3 - 4 - 0  1 - 5 - 0  L5 
 
East Division
  
GP W L T PTS F A HOME AWAY DIV STREAK
Hamilton  13  6  7  0  12  281  289  5 - 2 - 0  1 - 5 - 0  2 - 1 - 0  W4 
Toronto  13  5  8  0  10  341  357  3 - 2 - 0  2 - 6 - 0  1 - 2 - 0  W2 
Montreal  13  5  8  0  10  245  313  4 - 3 - 0  1 - 5 - 0  3 - 1 - 0  W2 
Ottawa  13  2  11  0  4  222  328  2 - 5 - 0  0 - 6 - 0  1 - 3 - 0  W1 

Calgary ... The flagship of the league, formerly our status a few years back. 2007 --> Hufnagel was right here for the asking. Calgary asked. We basked ... In our glory.

Edmonton ... Jones has some rough spots, but no questioning his willingness to go for it. Players love that.

Regina ... Slip sliding but good for third, although I might rate TO and Ham higher.

BC ... The won loss record and our defence says so. Missing Andrew. Been missing Travis, the master of escape, and the master of mayhem behind the LOS. Missing an O. Gimme an O. Gimme Gimme Gimme

Hamilton ... Water finds its level. Hello BC. And coaching expertise finds its wins.

Toronto ... See directly above re Ham.

Winnipeg ... Back to earth.

Montreal ... Out of the doldrums.

Ottawa ... Thankfully an easy upcoming game for ... Both teams? Against vulnerable opponents.