OK Tire Labour Day Weekend had the expected drama of close games, overtime, comebacks, big plays and loads of drama.

And now this week we have three rematches from Week 14, as well as the Ottawa REDBLACKS, who continue to look for that elusive first victory as they take on the Toronto Argonauts on a short week to kick off the Forty Creek Quadruple Header on Saturday!

Are you ready for a full 12 hours of football!!???

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Get the bacon ready for a Saturday brunch and then make sure you have some coffee on to catch the end of the BC Lions/Montreal Alouettes rematch!

OTTAWA AT TORONTOSATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
1:00 P.M. ET
TSN, RDS, CFL+

This is the week!

I’m doing it.

The Ottawa REDBLACKS win their first game of the season. And here is why.

I think Ryan Dinwiddie will come off the bye week with Jim Popp and really dig deep on roster construction and makeup. If he plays the cards right, he can ensure that jobs are clearly on the line and that the future of some pro careers rests on how they finish the season.

Also, you have to take into consideration that Toronto played on Monday and will get a rest Tuesday, and potentially Wednesday, with one practice and a walkthrough to get ready to play on Saturday.

I always will default to the team coming off the bye week against a team on this quick of a turnaround.

Is it a long shot? Yes!

But I think enough is enough and the REDBLACKS can win the physical battle and catch a few breaks as well.

PICK: OTTAWASASKATCHEWAN AT WINNIPEGSATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
4:00 P.M. ET
TSN, CTV, CRAVE, CFL+

The Saskatchewan Roughriders dominated the line of scrimmage in the Labour Day Classic in Regina, though they did need overtime to decide the game.

The Riders have added a few new faces to the defence in the last few weeks to try to find the right mix and I would say it’s been working out. New faces Derick Roberson, Aubrey Miller Jr., Seyi Oladipo Jr. and James Burgess Jr. have contributed to the starting defence, when none of them were starting just a few weeks ago.

The Bombers looked absolutely ticked off after the game and you have to believe are not going to get pushed around like that again, especially in the Banjo Bowl.

Sweeps of the home-and-home set have been pretty common over recent history. Six of the last nine Labour Day/Banjo Bowls have been sweeps.

Four of those sweeps have been the Bombers, with two being won by the Riders. The Bombers have won nine of the last 12 Banjo Bowls.

There is another gear the Bombers have. We saw it two weeks ago against the Alouettes and I fully expect to see a closer version of that team than the one we saw in Regina, though it was a heck of a battle.

PICK: WINNIPEGCALGARY AT EDMONTONSATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
7:00 P.M. ET
TSN, CFL+

The end of the Battle of Alberta on Labour Day is not good news for the Stampeders as they head into the rematch at Commonwealth Stadium.

I don’t think we’ve seen the Elks play that poorly in a half of football all season and then they flipped the script and looked like the team that is leading the West Division.

Though none of it was perfect, the Elks are the better team overall.

The Stamps were all over Justin Rankin, but even that wasn’t enough because he did pop for a big play touchdown when the Elks needed it most.

I don’t think the Stampeders will be able to repeat that first half performance, or better yet, I don’t think the Elks will repeat that first half performance.

I’m not saying this one will be an Elks blowout. These rivalry games rarely are. But I think it’ll be a sweep for the Elks to stretch their lead in the West Division because of my earlier Bombers pick.

PICK: EDMONTONMONTREAL AT BCSATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
10:00 P.M. ET
TSN, RDS, CFL+

I picked Montreal without a lot of hesitation last week because of the Lions’ short week.

But I do feel the Lions deserve to be considered among the Big Four in the league right now: Edmonton, Montreal, Saskatchewan and BC.

The Lions now have a home game with a late night kickoff, which puts the Alouettes on the field until around 1:00 a.m. ET.

We have seen that go the Lions way a lot over the course of time, but it is by no means a guarantee, especially when the opponent is as good as the Alouettes.

But I can’t wait for the Nathan Rourke/Davis Alexander rivalry to grow and become a focal point of the schedule moving forward. They are the future of the league at the quarterback position and they are the now at that position. Bring it on, and I’ll stay up as late as necessary to watch it.

PICK: BC