Week 12 of the CFL season was interesting, to say the least. A big trade that saw Trevor Harris going to Montreal, the Blue Bombers clinching the West Division title, and the Redblacks moving on from Marcel Desjardins. It was a crazy week, and the power rankings continue to change. Here’s how we have them shaping up through 12 weeks of Canadian football action.

9. Edmonton Elks (2-7)

It was a bye week for the Edmonton Elks, but that didn’t stop them from making front-page news. Over the week, the team dealt 35-year old quarterback Trevor Harris to the Montreal Alouettes in return for Antonio Simmons. Harris was brought to Edmonton in the offseason of 2019, just months after leading the Ottawa Redblacks to a Grey Cup appearance. To say it hasn’t worked out for them would be an understatement, but now, the man that the fans have named “Corn Dog” will be tasked with finding a way to get some wins this season. That of course is Taylor Cornelius.

8. Ottawa Redblacks (2-9)

It just never gets better in the nation’s capital it seems. Five quarterbacks have now taken snaps this season. Matt Nichols was never healthy enough to play this season, Dominique Davis doesn’t make good enough decisions to be a CFL quarterback, Caleb Evans has been good but hasn’t been given a legit chance to play, Taryn Christion was murdered before he had a chance to throw, and now Devlin Hodges has game time. The offensive line is bad, the receivers are lacking, and the defence can’t hold forever. Mercifully, the season is almost over and the Redblacks can (hopefully) regroup before next season. Now with Marcel Desjardins out as the general manager, it’s going to be interesting to follow the Redblacks in the offseason.

7. BC Lions (4-6)

In the first part of the season, the BC Lions looked like they could challenge for second in the West, but since then, things have completely fallen apart for them. No one expected them to beat the Blue Bombers, but I’m not sure anyone would have expected them to lose the game 45-0. There is so much talent on that roster that this season has to be considered nothing but a failure. Something needs to happen. There’s no way a roster this good should be missing the playoffs.

6. Hamilton Tiger-Cats (5-5)

The Tiger-Cats are still in the hunt for first in the East division, but a win over Ottawa doesn’t sell me that they are back. Yes, they looked alright in the second half of the game, but something is missing from this team right now. The Elks are up next on their schedule, and obviously, it’s a game they need to win. They look like they should be a lock to make the playoffs, but if they want a home game, they need to keep winning.

5. Toronto Argonauts (6-4)

We got absolutely lambasted for not having the Argonauts second last week, but this is exactly why. This football team has issues that have been hidden for most of the season, but they are far from elite. Losing to the Montreal Alouettes who were starting their backup quarterback in a game where they could have virtually put the East division on ice is simply not good enough. With the loss, they are now right back in a battle for first and could possibly even end up in third. They looked toothless and didn’t do themselves and favours. They need to be better the rest of the way.

4. Calgary Stampeders (5-6)

The Stampeders lost to the Roughriders after winning three straight games and basically saving their season, but they have a big problem. Bo Levi Mitchell and his turnovers. This season has been exceptionally bad for Mitchell in that department. We thought that he may have turned things around in their three wins, but it came back to bite them in week 12. It was a game the Stamps could have won, but they let slip away from them. He needs to be better than that if the Stampeders want a chance to hoist another Grey Cup at the end of the season.

3. Saskatchewan Roughriders (6-4)

The Roughriders broke the curse of the Calgary Stampeders. It certainly wasn’t pretty and they very easily could have lost this game, but they won it. Good football teams win those close games. Cody Fajardo has slowed down in the last handful of weeks, but he had a solid game that he should be able to build off of going forward. Don’t write the Riders off just yet.

2. Montreal Alouettes (6-4)

The Montreal Alouettes seem to be peaking at the right time. In the absence of Vernon Adams Jr., Matthew Shiltz has looked like a rockstar. They also made a move to acquire Trevor Harris, but at this rate, he might never see the field in Montreal. Shiltz is making a case to be a starting quarterback in the CFL next season, and the Alouettes are playing great football right now. They are winners of four straight games.

1. Winnipeg Blue Bombers (10-1)

This was the last meaningful game the Blue Bombers will play until the West Final in early December. They have locked up the West Division and have been the best team in the CFL this season. No one is close right now, but that doesn’t mean they are going to coast to a Grey Cup. They need to keep focused on their goal, and they need to hope that they can stay healthy for the final four weeks of the season.

• CFL
• Football