EDMONTON – The Edmonton Elks defeated the Toronto Argonauts 28-20 in CFL Week 11 action at Play Alberta Field at Commonwealth Stadium on Friday night.

Elks quarterback Cody Fajardo completed 25 of 31 passes for 273 yards, while Justin Rankin scored a touchdown and racked up 87 yards receiving and 92 yards rushing in the winning effort. Steven Dunbar Jr. caught a touchdown pass for the Green and Gold, and Edmonton kicker Vincent Blanchard connected on four field goals.

Edmonton trailed 17-16 entering the fourth quarter before outscoring the Argos 12-3 over the final 15 minutes. The game hung in the balance until the Green and Gold stopped Toronto on third-and-10 from the Edmonton 32 with 28 seconds remaining.

After starting the season 1-6, the Elks have now won two straight games, both by one score and both by coming from behind. It’s a turnaround that their veteran QB chalks up to one word: Belief.

“Last week was big for this team and this unit,” said Fajardo, who led the Elks to a dramatic last-minute victory over  the host Montreal Alouettes in Week 10. “We believed and we got it done, and then going into a game like this, another close game, the belief was there. There was no panic on the sidelines. Last week, the offence had the walk-off touchdown and then this week we needed our defence to make a play and they made a play for us, and it was truly just an incredible night.

Discipline was a key factor for the Elks, who took just two penalties for 20 yards while the Argos were flagged eight times for a costly 90 yards.

“I’m proud of the guys,” said Elks coach Mark Kilam. “We’ve been trying to play clean football to give ourselves a chance. We know we’re a scrappy team, that we’re going to fight to the end, but the games are close and the cleaner that we can play, the better chance we have to win.”

The Argos scored on the game’s opening drive, taking a 3-0 lead on a 14-yard field goal from Lirim Hajrullahu, but the Green and Gold responded on their ensuing possession, knotting up the score at 3-3 when Blanchard knocked a 30-yard field goal through the uprights. Blanchard then booted a 30-yard field goal to put the Elks in front 6-3 after 15 minutes.

On the first play of the second quarter, Hajrullahu successfully made a 45-yard field goal attempt, levelling the scoreboard at six points apiece. Toronto retook the lead, 9-6, from a 20-yard field goal by Hajrullahu with just under five minutes remaining.

J-Rank tops off the strong drive with a TD 💪#GoElks pic.twitter.com/qehexV6JhQ

— Edmonton Elks (@GoElks) August 16, 2025

After five field goals between the two teams, Rankin scored the first touchdown of the game, on a tw0-yard rush at 13:44 of the second quarter. John Haggerty’s 69-yard single for the Argos closed out the scoring for the first half, sending the teams into the break with Edmonton ahead 13-10.

Toronto jumped in front 17-13, after Jake Harslow caught a four-yard pass from Nick Arbuckle for a touchdown midway through the third quarter. Blanchard pulled the Elks back within one point, drilling a career-long 51-yard field goal to make the score 17-16.

Royce Metchie came up with a huge defensive play for the home side early in the fourth quarter, sacking Arbuckle and stripping the Argos QB of the ball, which was recovered by Edmonton’s Robbie Smith at the 17-yard line. The Elks then drove the ball 88 yards in 7 plays, culminating with a four-yard pass from Fajardo to Dunbar Jr. for the touchdown. Blanchard sent the ensuing kickoff 75 yards into the Argos’ endzone for a single, extending the Elks advantage to 24-17.

Hajrullah’s fourth field goal of the night, from 29 yards, brought the Argos closer. Blanchard then missed a field goal attempt from 43 yards, but followed up with a successful 22-yard field goal to give Edmonton a 28-20 lead with just 65 seconds left.

Toronto’s last-minute drive to try tying the game came to a halt on an incomplete pass by Arbuckle on third and ten from the Edmonton 32-yard line with 28 seconds remaining.

This was Edmonton’s fourth straight game that was undecided until the final moments. The Elks are now 2-2 over that stretch.

“I don’t know how much more my heart can handle these CFL games that go down to the wire, but you don’t want it any other way” Fajardo said. “You want it with the ball in your hand with the game on the line, that’s what you live for, and so I’m really proud of this unit. I’m proud of stacking wins. That was our goal going into this week, and our challenge was ‘let’s do something we haven’t done this year and that’s stack two wins on top of each other.”

The Elks now travel to the Nation’s Capital to face the Ottawa RedBlacks on Aug. 22. Edmonton’s next home game is Sept. 6, when the Green and Gold host the Calgary Stampeders at Play Alberta Field at Commonwealth Stadium at 5 p.m. Tickets are available now.

THEY SAID

Kilam on how the Elks are now winning close games:

“I think the guys are believing. I think they’re really believing. Guys stick together. Even in that third quarter, we were on our heels the whole third quarter. It came down right near the end of the third quarter, we got the forced fumble, offence came on the field in the fourth quarter, drove down the field and scored, and I think those type of things bring belief with the guys, and we know when it comes down to it that we can make the plays at the end of the game to win.”

Fajardo on where the Elks’ belief is coming from:

“Good question. I’m not quite sure. I’m a new guy here and it’s my first year here, so I’m trying to do whatever I can to help guys believe, and we’ve got the right guys in the locker room, we’ve got a lot of guys that care a lot about each other, and that’s the biggest thing. Early on in the season there were some close games that we still didn’t find a way to win, but everything was a learning curve with us, (with) a new roster, a lot of turnover, new systems, but at this point in the season that’s no longer an excuse, so now we have to find a way to win games like this, these close games. So it isn’t an excuse, and we’re able to win these games.”