Everything is still on the line in Week 21

The importance of parity to professional sports leagues is paramount.

No matter what or who you cheer for, there is a natural need in sport when everything else disappears for competition. The type of competition that leads to players, coaches and team personnel striving with every waking hour, year round to find a small edge so they might be able to make the playoffs, get that coveted bye week in the playoffs and ultimately set themselves up to be remembered forever as Grey Cup champions.

All of that effort has led us to the 21st and final week of the regular season before hitting the ground running in the annual five-game playoff sprint beginning next Saturday with the respective Eastern and Western Semi-Finals.

In Week 21, we know the Saskatchewan Roughriders will have next weekend off by means of already locking up the West Division’s top seed, but this year the parity and competition described above are at an all-time high.

Part of this, of course, is due to the natural complications of the crossover rule, which can make sorting out seeding and who needs what to get their desired slot in the three-week post-season dance a lesson in patience and triple-checking.

Rest assured, the CFL league office is currently peeling through every rule, tie-breaker and potentiality before confirming what the final four regular season games of 2025 will determine, as that will set the table for a delicious list of storylines that will shape the playoff structure.

In the East, we know Hamilton has the upper hand on Montreal, who needs Ottawa to upset the Tiger-Cats. Plus, the Als need to get a win of their own in Winnipeg. After that, everything is up for grabs as Calgary, BC, and Winnipeg all jostle to find their fit in the playoffs.

The biggest question for these three teams is perhaps one that they’d never admit or even entertain discussing, but one that has to be lingering in the minds of players and the odd coach or two headed into this weekend: Which division would be most beneficial to their Grey Cup goals?

Would Winnipeg like to crossover and work through some combination of Hamilton and Montreal, or Montreal then Hamilton, in order to go back West for a home Grey Cup? Perhaps, but nothing would be sweeter than a Bombers road win in Regina in the Western Final to end their rival’s stellar campaign and book a trip back to the party of the year in Manitoba.

On the other side is the question of which matchup Hamilton or Montreal would prefer, be it in the Eastern Semi-Final or Eastern Final. The interesting note here, of course, is Hamilton’s home victory over Winnipeg earlier this year being completely negated by their 40-3 loss later in the season in an effort that will no doubt be called into question if Hamilton returns to Princess Auto Stadium for the Grey Cup.

Trevor Harris and the Saskatchewan Roughriders are the only ones who know their playoff fate heading into the final week of the regular season (Arthur Ward/CFL.ca)

Meanwhile, the final week scheduling gods have planted Winnipeg and Montreal in each other’s paths, with starters in the lineup across the board, as both franchises have much left to play for assuming Hamilton falls to Ottawa and opens the door for Montreal to take the East regular season title. Could the Alouettes and Bombers do the tricky tango of wanting to win without showing too much because you could see the same opponent seven days later?

With Ottawa, Edmonton and Toronto out of the playoff picture, there is still so much to be decided in Week 21 and in a season of Canadian passion and standout playmaking, I think that’s worth celebrating. It’s rare in a nine-team league, where there will always be top dogs and bottom feeders to have most of the playoff-bound teams headed into their closing arguments with the motivation of knowing there is still so much to play for.

While we all love to debate the games’ X’s and O’s, storylines and finer points, one thing we can agree on just a few weeks after Thanksgiving is how wonderful it will be to see games played with meaning, stakes and motivation in a week that can often feature backups and simple game rep acquisition for those who might get a contract extension next spring.

Let the games begin.

Everything is still on the line in Week 21

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