CFL Picks, Week 12: Elks hope to take season series with Blue Bombers

Cody Fajardo and the Edmonton Elks can help themselves in two ways Friday night.

Edmonton (7-3) can remain atop the West Division with a home win versus Winnipeg (5-4). Not only would that move the Elks six points ahead of the Blue Bombers in the standings but also give them the season series and tiebreaker if the two teams finished the regular season campaign tied.

The Elks earned a 23-18 road win over the Blue Bombers on June 25. They finish the regular-season series Oct. 16 in Edmonton.

Both teams are coming off wins heading into Friday’s contest.

Fajardo threw for 301 yards and a TD to lead Edmonton past Toronto 42-12. The Elks were especially effective in the second half, outscoring the Argos 31-3 to cement their first win in three games.

J.J. Ross had two interceptions for Edmonton, returning one 85 yards for the touchdown. He also had four tackles and a forced fumble as the Elks forced six turnovers (two interceptions, two fumble recoveries, twice on downs).

A positive sign for Edmonton was running back Justin Rankin accumulating 108 total yards (47 rushing, 61 receiving) and a TD. He’d been held to under 80 combined yards and just one touchdown over the previous four games.

Meanwhile, Brady Oliveira ran for 74 yards and a TD on 11 carries to lead Winnipeg past Ottawa 33-21 for its first win in three games.

Winnipeg’s defence is ranked first overall against the pass (269.9 yards per game), but that could be in large part because it’s last against the run (128.4 per game). Edmonton’s ground attack has fallen to fourth overall, but the Elks still average 109.1 yards rushing per contest.

Then again, Oliveira has run for 309 yards in his last three games, averaging a stellar seven yards per carry. In Winnipeg’s first matchup with Edmonton, he managed 122 yards from scrimmage.

Winnipeg starter Zach Collaros is 15-8 all-time against Edmonton, while Fajardo is 5-9 against Winnipeg.

Bombers defensive lineman Willie Jefferson is approaching a career milestone, needing just one more pass knock-down to join Eddie Davis (111) and Adrion Smith (105) as the only players to record 100 in their career.

Edmonton hasn’t won the season series since 2018 but is 4-1 at home and 3-2 within the West Division. Winnipeg is 3-0 on the road but 1-3 versus divisional opponents.

Pick: Edmonton

Ottawa Redblacks vs. Montreal Alouettes (Thursday night)

At Montreal, Ottawa (0-9) has the misfortune of not only playing the Alouettes (8-1) on a short week, but the East Division leaders are coming off a bye week. An Alouettes offence that features the CFL’s passing leader (Davis Alexander, 3,140 yards), top two receivers (Canadian Tyson Philpot, 1,154 yards and Tyler Snead, 940 yards) and third-leading rusher (Travis Theis, 700 yards) will present no shortage of challenges for a Redblacks defence that’s allowing a CFL-high 35.1 offensive points per game. Ottawa starter Jake Maier has passed for 300 yards in his last four games but is 1-5-1 versus the Als, while Alexander is 6-0 against Ottawa.

Pick: Montreal

Hamilton Tiger-Cats vs. Toronto Argonauts (Saturday night)

At Toronto, sole possession of second in the East Division and the season series are on the line. The Argos (4-5) play their second game this season at BMO Field following last week’s road loss in Edmonton, in which they had six turnovers and a pick-six. Starter Chad Kelly is third overall in CFL passing (2,937 yards) but has thrown a league-high 14 interceptions.

Canadian Tre Ford is expected to start for Hamilton (4-6) after coming off the bench and rallying the squad past Saskatchewan 26-19 on Saturday. The Ticats won the first meeting with Toronto 24-23 in July and can cement the season series with a victory heading into their annual Labour Day showdown.

Pick: Hamilton

Saskatchewan Roughriders vs. B.C. Lions (Sunday night)

At Vancouver, B.C. (4-5) has won three straight to climb back into contention in the West Division. Nathan Rourke threw for 301 yards and two TDs while rushing for another and Zander Horvath ran for 102 yards and a touchdown in last week’s 30-26 win over Calgary. T.J. Lee had nine tackles and the game-clinching interception.

Saskatchewan (6-3) accumulated just 244 net yards in last week’s road loss to Hamilton. Trevor Harris threw for a season-low 207 yards with two interceptions but had 417 yards passing and three touchdowns in a 31-27 home win over the Lions on June 13. The Riders are 3-1 both on the road and in the West while B.C. is 2-3 and 3-3, respectively.

Pick: Saskatchewan

Last week: 3-1

Overall: 26-16