Depth Chart<\/a><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/4da92c94-1a0f-4b48-8ff8-44f673e03684_2026)
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Ottawa Redblacks Depth Chart<\/p>\n
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Injury Reports<\/p>\n
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Players to watch: Edmonton Elks<\/p>\n
RB \u2013 Justin Rankin<\/p>\n
He is one of the most impressive running backs in the CFL and has been turning heads during the last two seasons. He\u2019s a hard body to halt, whether he is involved in the running game or in the passing attack. He will be in the conversation for the Most Outstanding Player award this season.<\/p>\n
LB \u2013 Joel Dublanko<\/p>\n
When he was drafted in 2024, Edmonton drafted a player for this moment. With his 3rd season approaching, wearing the Green and Gold, he made big strides last season. He is a stud on the Edmonton defence, and he has not hit his stride. The sky is the limit in 2026 for Joel Dublanko.<\/p>\n
WR \u2013 Austin Mack<\/p>\n
He has all the tools to be a premier wide receiver in the CFL. His rookie season in Montreal proved that in 2023 with 78 receptions, 1154 receiving yards, and 4 touchdowns. He has experienced injury troubles in 2024, with only 4 games played. In 2025, he played 12 games with 674 yards and 2 touchdowns.<\/p>\n
DL \u2013 Malik Carney<\/p>\n
He is simply a game-changer if you are the fortunate one to have him on your team. Malik Carney has been one of the best defensive linemen in the CFL, with time spent in both Hamilton and Saskatchewan. Now in Edmonton, he will be a key piece for the Elks\u2019 defence.<\/p>\n
Players to watch: Ottawa Redblacks<\/p>\n
LB \u2013 Nyles Morgan<\/p>\n
He is no stranger to Edmonton fans as he played his first five seasons with the Elks. He is a linebacker who can change the tone of the game. He rarely misses an assignment. He is one of the best tacking machines in the CFL.<\/p>\n
LB \u2013 A.J. Allen<\/p>\n
He has been a consistent player on the Saskatchewan defence since being drafted by the Roughriders in 2021. He made big strides and has gotten better every year. It was the icing on the cake for AJ Allan, who was part of the Roughriders Grey Cup-winning team last season. With Morgan and Allan involved in the linebacking core this season in Ottawa, teams will have a difficult time running the ball.<\/p>\n
WR \u2013 Eugene Lewis<\/p>\n
It was a struggle for the Ottawa offence last season as the offensive line allowed the most pressures in 2025. If they can rebound from that in 2026, Eugene Lewis can be an integral part of the Ottawa offence. He has already proven in his days with Montreal and later in Edmonton that he can be a difference maker.<\/p>\n
WR\/Returner \u2013 Kalil Pimpleton<\/p>\n
Kalil Pimpleton is simply an exciting player to watch in the CFL. He can break the game open as a wide receiver, along with his talents as a punt and kickoff returner. He will be a thorn to Edmonton if they cannot contain him on explosive plays. He currently has lifetime stats with 1,437 receiving yards with 4 touchdowns, 847 punt return yards with 2 touchdowns, and 972 kickoff return yards entering his 3rd season in the CFL.<\/p>\n
Keys to an Edmonton victory:<\/p>\n
Win the special team\u2019s battle.<\/p>\n
They had done a pretty good job last season, whether they were on the receiving end of a possession or their coverage. It was something that was overlooked last season, with how good the Elks were beginning a scrimmage.<\/p>\n
Run the ball.<\/p>\n
It will be tough as the Redblacks upgraded their defence on paper. With that said, Justin Rankin is one of the best all-around running backs in the CFL. The Elks should not abandon the running game and be forced to play a one-dimensional offence.<\/p>\n
Defence needs to stand tall.<\/p>\n
It’s no secret that Ottawa has had horrible seasons, just like Edmonton has experienced during the same time span. Ottawa has had a lot of issues in protecting its backfield. The Edmonton defence needs to apply consistent pressure to set the tone in this game.<\/p>\n
Prediction<\/p>\n
Final Score<\/p>\n
It has been a burden with Edmonton for a long time when opening up a new football season. It has become irrelevant whether they began opening at home or on the road. Somehow, some way, this football team need to start on the right track.<\/p>\n
Edmonton Elks: 28<\/p>\n
Ottawa Redblacks: 23<\/p>\n
Edmonton walks into the Nation\u2019s Capital, and walks out with a win to open their CFL season for the first time since the 2019 season, when they defeated Montreal 32-25 in week 1.<\/p>\n
It will not be a pretty game, where costly errors will be exposed. However, the Elks will grind out a hard-fought game and will not get discouraged by their mistakes. They will be mentally tough and create a rhythm in all three phases of the game, and control the clock down the stretch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Anytime a new football season comes to fruition, it\u2019s a beautiful day on the football calendar. This is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":718351,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[437],"tags":[49,48,521,522,520,82],"class_list":["post-718350","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cfl","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canadian-football-league","tag-canadianfootballleague","tag-cfl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718350","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=718350"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718350\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/718351"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=718350"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=718350"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=718350"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}