Weekly Predictor: Who will win in Week 8?

Week 7 left no doubt who the class of the CFL is through the first third of the season.

The Calgary Stampeders have walked into Saskatchewan and Winnipeg and dominated in two of the toughest stadiums to play in.

Vernon Adams Jr. has been everything Dave Dickenson has needed for the turnaround of the Stampeders, while the defence has gelled quicker than anyone could have predicted.

Meanwhile, it was definitely a disappointing week for injuries at the quarterback position. It’ll be interesting to see how long the Bombers, REDBLACKS and Alouettes may be without their starting quarterbacks.

As we get ready for Week 8, Winnipeg and BC are trying to keep pace with the Riders and Stamps as the Elks and Argonauts are looking for a spark to get their second third of the season after just one win so far.

Chad Kelly is nearing a return and the Argonauts need every part of the quarterback who was the Most Outstanding Player in 2023.

MONTREAL AT CALGARY
Thursday, July 24
9:00 p.m. ET
TSN/RDS/CBSSN/CFL+

McLeod Bethel-Thompson is back behind centre after Davis Alexander re-aggravated his hamstring injury on his game-winning touchdown last week.

With Alexander having a 4-0 record as a starter this season, Bethel-Thompson is hoping to be a bit more efficient with the ball as the Alouettes have a defence that can help win games.

This is going to be a tough trip to Alberta with the way the Stampeders have been playing and it’s made tougher with the amount of injuries that have piled up with not only Alexander but Tyson Philpot as well.

Meanwhile, Canadian receivers Jalen Philpot and Damien Alford have been impressive to start the season in Calgary to fill the huge hole left by Reggie Begelton.

Then you have the aforementioned Vernon Adams Jr. leading the charge to go along with one of the best defences in the league.

Yeah, there’s too much on the side of the home team to see an upset coming.

PICK: CALGARY

EDMONTON AT SASKATCHEWAN
Friday, July 25
9:00 p.m. ET
TSN/CFL+

Early in the week the Elks are being coy about who will start at quarterback as Tre Ford and Cody Fajardo are in a competitive situation before head coach Mark Kilam makes a call.

It’ll be interesting to see how the week plays out as quarterback isn’t the only position in a competitive situation. The Elks are at the point where they are still trying to piece the best roster together after so much change over the off-season.

What will it look like after their bye week? That’s to be determined.

The Roughriders jumped right back in the win column after an impressive performance in BC.

They return home with some momentum after a let down following their bye week. With Samuel Emilus back in the lineup, the Riders added more depth and Trevor Harris took advantage as he nearly hit the 400-yard plateau in back-to-back games.

Through his three starts Emilus is averaging over 82 yards a game, which is only behind Kenny Lawler in the CFL.

Adding him back to the lineup is a boost and opens up space for second-year receivers like KeeSean Johnson and Dohnte Meyers, who are fifth and sixth, respectively, in total receiving yards.

Against a struggling Elks secondary, this is an excellent matchup for the home side.

PICK: SASKATCHEWAN

WINNIPEG AT TORONTO
Saturday, July 26
7:00 p.m. ET
TSN/CTV/CBSSN/CFL+

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers practice on Tuesday will be an important one to gauge the condition and status of Zach Collaros, who left last week’s game with an injury.

While Chris Streveler struggled in relief, I’m going back to their first game when Streveler had the full week of work as the starter and impressed in the Bombers opening game while Collaros served a one game suspension.

The Bombers defence is battling. They have flashes of brilliance but they also are susceptible to the big play. They’re in the middle of the pack in a lot of defensive categories, while the Argonauts are in the lower third.

Chad Kelly could be back this week and we’ve seen teams with more consistent play at quarterback have positive ripple effects throughout the entire lineup.

Both teams are a -4 in turnover ratio going into the game but seeing the Argonauts nearly bring down the Alouettes and Davis Alexander in Montreal, you see the defending champs still have a team who can compete with the best.

I think it could be tracking to having Chad Kelly return this week, but I still believe the strong run game of the Bombers can be the difference as that is a weakness of the Argos.

PICK: WINNIPEG

HAMILTON AT BC
Sunday, July 27
7:00 p.m. ET
TSN/CFL+

This is my game of the week!

Bo Levi Mitchell and the Tiger-Cats have to make the long trip out West to take on a Lions team that has been hot and cold this season.

Mitchell and Nathan Rourke could be an absolute shootout.

Both teams have taken advantage of winning games against the three teams with one win on the season.

And both teams have won games against the Alouettes, without Alexander as their quarterback.

So…. something is going to give.

While I’m a believer any team can beat anyone at any time, and you can only play the teams in front of you, I also believe that one team jumps into the contender category while the other team will still have more to prove.

However, I’m looking at one stat going into this game.

+8 and -10.

The Tiger-Cats lead the league in positive turnover ratio, while the Lions are last in the league in the same stat.

The Tiger-Cats can take the ball away and have the weapons to make you pay.

PICK: HAMILTON

Weekly Predictor: Who will win in Week 8?

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