CFL Week 2 Power Rankings
Week 2 of the CFL season is in the books. This past week there weren’t as many exciting games as in Week 1. Surprisingly, the Toronto-Winnipeg game turned out to be one of the most entertaining games of the week. The Argonauts stunned Winnipeg 36-34 thanks to a 117-yard missed field goal return for a touchdown by Chad Owens. Calgary escaped with a victory in Hamilton, the Riders continued their impressive play in B.C. and Montreal earned an ugly victory over the Eskimos.
By the way, did anyone catch CFL.ca’s power rankings this week, ouch!
My main problem with them is that they are based so much on stats. A team should not be measured on stats, but how well they are playing. Sometime these goes hand and hand, but not in the cases of CFL.ca’s power rankings. On CFL Daily Dose, our power rankings are based on how well a team is playing in general.
1) Saskatchewan Roughriders (2-0-0; Last Week: 1; Defeated BC 37-18 in Week 2)
The Green and White showed the league that their defence isn’t a lost cause in Week 2. Though the team posted 54 points in a victory over Montreal in Week 1, their defence allowed 51. The Riders forced four sacks against BC’s inexperienced offensive line, two of these coming from defensive end Brent Hawkins. With Saskatchewan’s offence and defence playing solidly, they will be a tough team to beat.
2) Calgary Stampeders (2-0-0; Last Week: 5; Defeated Hamilton 23-22 in Week 2)
Calgary’s wins haven’t been pretty, but they are 2-0. They have found a way to win and that’s the important thing. While Henry Burris and Joffrey Reynolds have performed well on offence, it has been the play of Calgary’s defence that has been the most surprising. The Stampeders are allowing under 20 points a game and 51 rushing yards. An away game against Toronto and a home meeting with Saskatchewan in the next two weeks will show what Calgary is made of.
3) Winnipeg Blue Bombers (1-1-0; Last Week: 3; Lost 36-34 to Toronto in Week 2)
The Bombers are a fun team to watch. The main reason for this is quarterback Buck Pierce. Pierce has 657 passing yards, five touchdown passes and only one interception. What’s even more impressive is the fact that he is Winnipeg’s leading rusher with 192 yards. Combined with Fred Reid, Terrence Edwards and Terrence Jeffers-Harris, the Bombers are a solid offensive team. The defence did cool down a bit in a Week 2 loss to Toronto.
4) Montreal Alouettes (1-1-0; Last Week: 2; Defeated Edmonton 33-23 in Week 2)
Montreal found a way to win against Edmonton, but they should have lost the game. Had Kelly Campbell and Fred Stamps not dropped touchdown passes for Edmonton the game would have been finished much earlier. The defending Grey Cup champions seem to have lost some swagger from last season. Their defence has some major holes, as they are allowing 481 passing yards, 179 rushing yards and 27 points a game.
5) Toronto Argonauts (1-1-0; Last Week: 8; Defeated Winnipeg 36-34 in Week 2)
Well, the Argonauts have some fight in them after all. Toronto built up a 16-0 lead over the Bombers in Week 2, then kept pace with Winnipeg as they tried to mount a comeback. The Argonauts finally developed a running game, as Cory Boyd had 109 yards in the game. The big thing for Toronto was, they had no turnovers in the game. The Argonauts have a chance to make a statement with a home game against Calgary this week.
6) British Columbia Lions (1-1-0; Last Week: 4; Lost 37-18 to Saskatchewan in Week 2)
No matter how good Jamal Robertson is, no matter how good Casey Printers is, the Lions are going nowhere if there offensive line doesn’t improve. Printers, and Travis Lulay who took over later in the game, had no time to throw all game long in Week 2. BC’s defence didn’t have its best game last week, but the offensive line is a bigger concern for now.
7) Edmonton Eskimos (0-2-0; Last Week: 7; Lost 33-23 to Montreal in Week 2)
You’ve got to like what you saw out of Edmonton in Week 2. The Eskimos’ passing attack was much more solid. Kelly Campbell and Fred Stamps both had well over 100 receiving yards. Unfortunately, they both dropped a sure touchdown pass that could have wrapped up the game. If the Eskimos cut down on the penalties and hold onto the football they could move back up the standings.
8) Hamilton Tiger-Cats (0-2-0; Last Week: 6; Last 23-22 to Calgary in Week 2)
No one expected Hamilton to start this badly, especially with an opening game against Winnipeg and a home game against Calgary in their first two games. The main problem for Hamilton is their running game. DeAndra’ Cobb only has 59 yards and no touchdowns so far, after his solid 2009 campaign. The Tiger-Cats haven’t been scoring enough points, though returner Marcus Thigpen has been doing his best to help.
Biggest Rise: Calgary and Toronto +3
Biggest Drop: Montreal and BC -2
Check CFL Daily Dose each week for our CFL power rankings.
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About the Author
An aspiring journalist who has a freelance contract with the Regina Leader-Post and is a veteran online CFL columnist. Hamelin currently attends the University of Regina and is enrolled in the pre-journalism program. After this year, he will apply for the school of journalism. Hamelin has had work published in his highschool paper, university paper, Regina's paper and a number of online sites. For a look at all of his work, visit http://jonathansjournalismportfolio.webs.com/View Author Profile
Thanks Jonathan. I know that was just for me… ;)
Ha ha, Scott I knew you'd be pleased. Some people would rnak Montreal at number 2, but I think their defence is really terrible.
I would agree. I didn't watch the game, but I heard Edmonton played them pretty well. I just hope the Riders don't take the Eskies too lightly. I give them the benefit of the doubt though.
Edmonton was outstanding in the first half, but I was away from the TV for about 20 minutes and they went from being up 23-11 to being down 33-23. I was stunned because they had been playing so well.
If the Esks play this week, or any week really, like they did in the first half, they won't be beat.