Blue Bombers look to battle their way into playoffs as CFL regular season wraps up on TSN

After 138 days and 77 games, one week remains in the Canadian Football League regular season.

Week 21 brings a pair of games on both Friday and Saturday. The week kicks off at BMO Field as the East Division’s playoff teams square off between the Toronto Argonauts and the Montreal Alouettes, before the biggest game of the week wraps up Friday Night Football as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers fight for their playoff lives on the road against the BC Lions.

Then, Saturday’s games begin at the same time, with the now not-winless Ottawa Redblacks travelling to take on the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and the Saskatchewan Roughriders hosting the Edmonton Elks.

Alouettes vs. Argonauts

The final week of the regular season begins with an East Division battle between the Alouettes and Argonauts.

Watch the Alouettes take on the Argonauts LIVE at 7:00 p.m. ET / 4:00 p.m. PT across the TSN Network, streaming on TSN.ca and the TSN App.

The Argonauts opened their season by taking on the Alouettes in Week 2, and will close their season by taking on the Alouettes in Week 21.

There are lots of lineup questions on both sides of this East Division clash, as both teams have the No. 1 and No. 2 spots locked up in the division, respectively. For Montreal, they are coming off a game where they rested multiple key starters including quarterback Davis Alexander, running back Stevie Scott III, receivers Tyson Philpot and Tyler Snead, as well as cornerback Lorenzo Burns. As last week’s loss to the Roughriders progressed, multiple other first teamers were held off the field as well.

It remains to be seen if those starters, plus others, will ride the twine once again, in what ultimately can be seen as a tune-up game for Montreal who will have a bye to the East Final.

For Toronto, they have their own questions, mainly at the quarterback position with Chad Kelly. In what was a meaningless game in terms of the standings for the Argos last week against the Redblacks, Kelly suffered a lower-body injury after receiving a hit on a scramble. According to TSN’s Dave Naylor, the QB avoided the worst case scenario, however, and is considered day-to-day with a knee injury.

“The update is we’re going to re-evaluate (Tuesday),” Argonauts head coach Mike Miller said. “At this time, I don’t want to get out in front of the trainers and doctors, I’m going to let them continue to do what they need to do.

“I’ll reassess it and we’ll move forward through the week with it but as that evolves we’ll make sure we go by what the protocol is for the release of injuries. The trainer said he’s receiving treatment and that’s all I can really say at this time.”

It remains to be seen whether Kelly practises this week and ultimately plays in Friday’s contest. How the rest of the Argonauts’ lineup looks also remains up in the air, as the main focus in this game will be about giving depth guys the run and making it out as healthy as possible for the playoffs.

Blue Bombers vs. Lions

The most consequential contest takes place at BC Place as the Lions host the Blue Bombers.

Watch the Blue Bombers battle the Lions LIVE at 10:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. PT across the TSN Network, streaming on TSN.ca and the TSN App.

While most of the games this week technically won’t mean much in terms of the standings, this one does for the Blue Bombers.

Y = Clinched division

X = Clinched playoffs

C = Crossover

A win, and Winnipeg is into the playoffs as they hold the tiebreaker over the Calgary Stampeders, who have no games remaining. A loss, and the Bombers will fail to make the postseason for the first time in over a decade and Calgary will claim the final playoff spot.

Luckily for the Blue Bombers, there’s potential the Lions will be resting a handful, if not more starters. Rookie quarterback Kaidon Salter handled a large portion of last week’s loss against the Stampeders, and potentially could do so again with Nathan Rourke taking a seat. The 23-year-old completed 6-of-14 passes for 113 yards and one interception, while leading the team in rushing yards with 23.

Before last week’s game, BC had won nine of the last 10 and they’re a team that’s firing on all cylinders. Winnipeg can’t take them lightly regardless of who is in the lineup.

Redblacks vs. Tiger-Cats

The Redblacks will look to win back-to-back games to close out the season as they take on the Tiger-Cats.

Watch the Redblacks take on the Tiger-Cats LIVE at 3:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. PT across the TSN Network, streaming on TSN.ca and the TSN App.

Ottawa has avoided the dramatic Week 21 storyline of “will they go winless” after the team got rid of the goose egg in the win column with a 40-39 last-second victory over the Argonauts last week.

Quarterback Bryson Barnes shined in his first career start, as the rookie led the Redblacks to their first win. The 25-year-old completed 27-of-37 passes for 339 yards and two touchdowns, while adding seven carries for 62 yards on the ground. With 30 seconds remaining, Barnes orchestrated a 67-yard drive for the win, which was capped off by a dime of a throw to wideout Ayden Eberhardt in the end zone.

The pivot looked composed, used his legs when he had to, took care of the ball, and will look to replicate the performance in the Hammer.

The pair of teams last battled in Week 18, with Hamilton outpacing Ottawa 34-16. The Tiger-Cats’ own young quarterback, Harrison Frost, put up a great performance in that one. The 27-year-old completed 28-of-35 passes for 342 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Since becoming the starting pivot, Frost has completed 61.9 per cent of his passes for 1,841 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.

Ottawa had one of their better games defending the run last week, and will need to do so once again after back Larry Rountree III rumbled for 128 yards in their Week 18 clash.

Elks vs. Roughriders

A West Division battle caps off the 2026 regular season as the West’s best Elks hit the road to square off with the Roughriders.

Watch the Elks take on the Roughriders LIVE at 3:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. PT across the TSN Network, streaming on TSN.ca and the TSN App.

There’s a similar question heading into this matchup as the first of the week between the Argos and Als, who’s going to play?

The Elks, like the Alouettes, have first place in their respective division locked up and the bye that comes with it. It could, and should, be expected that multiple starters will either not dress or will play limited snaps.

For the Riders, the question is a bit more interesting. The team clinched a playoff spot last week after a come from behind victory against the Alouettes, but their seeding, and which side of the bracket they will go through is still to be determined.

If Saskatchewan manages a win, the West Division will be the route for the defending champions. It would set up a clash at BC Place against the Lions in the West semifinal – a rematch of last year’s West Final – with the winner travelling to Commonwealth Stadium to battle the Elks.

A loss in this one for the Riders would instead lock the Green and White into a crossover spot and set up a date with the Argonauts in the East semi-final.

With a playoff spot secured regardless, it creates an interesting situation for head coach Corey Mace on if and how much his regulars will play.