Through six weeks of the 2026 season, three teams have emerged as early frontrunners.<\/p>\n
Two shouldn\u2019t surprise you. The Saskatchewan Roughriders and Montreal Alouettes, both sitting 4-1 after wins on the weekend, met in the 112th Grey Cup in November and entered this year as favourites once again.<\/p>\n
Then there\u2019s the Edmonton Elks who are the returning kids on the block. They now sit 4-1 after a one-sided win on Thursday and are in good shape to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2019.<\/p>\n
This week\u2019s MMQB is focusing on one element that\u2019s helped define each team\u2019s strong start to the season.<\/p>\n
RELATED EDMONTON ELKS<\/p>\n JUSTIN RANKIN | RUNNING BACK<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n There\u2019s just no other way to go.<\/p>\n Third year tailback Justin Rankin is having a summer for the ages. After going off for another 107 rushing yards and two majors in Thursday\u2019s 40-17 win over Ottawa, Rankin leads the league with 513 yards and six touchdowns. When you factor in Rankin\u2019s receiving touchdown that night, he\u2019s up to a combined seven in five outings. And speaking of totals, Rankin sits at an absurd 810 total offensive yards, which includes 297 in the receiving game.<\/p>\n And as we pointed out over the weekend<\/a>, Rankin is on pace to shatter one of the league\u2019s most impressive individual records. Rankin\u2019s current clip projects to 2,916 yards from scrimmage, which would blow past the all-time record of 2,414 set by Mike Pringle in 1998. We\u2019re also talking about a rushing pace of 1,847 yards for Rankin, which would be the fourth highest total in league history.<\/p>\n The Elks have gotten solid contributions across the board aiding their great start. Receiver Austin Mack has been a great fit in his first year in green and gold, while quarterback Cody Fajardo<\/a> has been as reliable as ever. On defence, Kordell Jackson, Joel Dublanko, and Noah Taylor have been among the driving forces.<\/p>\n But Rankin has been the rocket fuel behind Edmonton\u2019s resurgence. We knew he was capable of it when he burst on the scene in August 2024 and finished the season with a 7.8 yards-per-carry average. Now in his third CFL campaign, though, Rankin has put the league on the highest alert.<\/p>\n MONTREAL ALOUETTES<\/p>\n THAT OFFENCE<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n All the Alouettes do is score points, it seems.<\/p>\n After holding off a late push from Calgary in their 37-30 win Saturday night, Montreal has scored at least 29 points in all five of their games. The only contest the Als failed to score 30+ in was their Week 3 overtime loss to Edmonton. Overall, Montreal has racked up 170 total points, which is good for an average of 34 per game.<\/p>\n The first place to looks is quarterback Davis Alexander. An early George Reed Most Outstanding Player candidate, Alexander sits second overall with 1,779 passing yards to go along with eight touchdown passes and no interceptions. And it\u2019s his consistency that stands out above all else; Alexander has thrown for at least 301 yards in each of his five starts.<\/p>\n Alexander\u2019s weapons have been impressive, too. Tyson Philpot<\/a> is the league\u2019s leading receiver with 719 yards and four touchdowns. Tyler Snead<\/a> sits fourth overall at 470 yards, while Alexander Hollins<\/a> and Jerreth Sterns<\/a> have been solid contributors. Don\u2019t sleep on Montreal\u2019s ground attack, either. Led by the recent emergence of Travis Theis, the Als are averaging 98.6 rushing yards per game.<\/p>\n Finally, a quick shoutout for the offensive line. Led by the always stellar Nick Callender at left tackle, Montreal leads the league having allowed just four sacks in five games. That line is opening up holes in the run game and keeping Alexander on his feet and it\u2019s impressive to watch.<\/p>\n SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS<\/p>\n THE GREEN MACHINE<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n One of Saskatchewan\u2019s calling cards since Corey Mace has taken over as head coach has been their punishing work on defence. It was one of their defining traits as the league\u2019s wire-to-wire best team in 2025, and that certainly hasn\u2019t changed a year later.<\/p>\n The defending Grey Cup champions are once again getting the job done from sideline to sideline. For instance, with three more sacks in their dominant 38-7 win over Hamilton on Sunday, the Roughriders lead the league with 11 sacks. Newcomer James Vaughters has powered that charge with four sacks off the edge among seven players with at least one.<\/p>\n The always stellar Jameer Thurman<\/a> is having another standout campaign. He leads the Riders, and sits third overall, with 32 defensive tackles to go along with one sack. Other individual standouts include strongside linebacker Antoine Brooks Jr. (29 tackles, one forced fumble) and weakside linebacker Josh Woods<\/a> (27 tackles, two interceptions).<\/p>\n We shouldn\u2019t be surprised to see Saskatchewan doing what they\u2019re doing on defence, which includes allowing just four passing touchdowns in five games. But that doesn\u2019t make it any less impressive. The Riders have all the pieces in place for a second straight title, and their work on defence is a massive part of that equation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Through six weeks of the 2026 season, three teams have emerged as early frontrunners. 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\u00bb Overreaction Monday: 5 hot takes from Week 6<\/a>
\u00bb\u00a0Roughriders take care of Tiger-Cats in dominant home win<\/a>
\u00bb\u00a0Balanced Alouettes attack fuels win over Stamps<\/a>
\u00bb\u00a0Blue Bombers hold on to defeat Argonauts at home<\/a>
\u00bb\u00a0Rankin, Elks defence lead Edmonton past Ottawa on Thursday<\/a>
\u00bb\u00a0Subscribe to the CFL\u2019s newsletter for exclusive offers and league updates<\/a><\/p>\n