The Saskatchewan Roughriders can become the fourth team to clinch a spot in the Canadian Football League playoffs this week, while the Hamilton Tiger-Cats will need a win to keep their postseason hopes alive.
The Montreal Alouettes clinched a playoff spot and the right to host a playoff game with their win in Week 14, while the Edmonton Elks clinched a playoff spot two weeks and last week saw the Toronto Argonauts clinch the second spot in the East Division.
Saskatchewan Roughriders can become fourth team to clinch a playoff spot
Saskatchewan now has the chance to become the fourth team to clinch but will need a win against the BC Lions on Friday and some help from other spots on the schedule to do so.
The Roughriders (8-5) enter the Week 17 festivities in second place in the West Division, a game ahead of the Lions (7-6) and Winnipeg Blue Bombers (7-6), and 2.5 games above the Calgary Stampeders (6-8).
In order for the Roughriders to clinch a playoff spot, they will need to defeat the Lions while also have the Argonauts defeat the Blue Bombers on Friday and the winless Ottawa Redblacks defeat the Stampeders on Saturday.
The Roughriders have won just two of their past five games and are coming off a difficult 19-6 defeat at the hands of the Blue Bombers in the Banjo Bowl.
“We didn’t really get to stay on the field and get into a rhythm,” quarterback Trevor Harris said after the loss. “There were a few plays there where I thought we could have made, but they did a good job defensively.”
The Roughriders have qualified for the postseason in six of the past eight campaigns and are coming off a season in which they defeated the Alouettes 25-17 to win the fifth Grey Cup in franchise history.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats will try to avoid elimination from playoff contention
The Tiger-Cats (4-10) are in a tailspin with four consecutive losses, and have a chance to guarantee a crossover this season if they are unable to defeat the Elks on the road on Saturday.
If the Tiger-Cats lose to the Elks, it opens up the possibility of a crossover pending a few other results this week. A loss for Hamilton and a win for the Stampeders will eliminate the Tiger-Cats, and a loss for Hamilton with wins by the Blue Bombers and Lions will also eliminate the Tiger-Cats.
In either of these scenarios, the fourth-place team in the West Division would cross over to play the Argonauts in Toronto in the opening round of the East Division playoffs.
The Tiger-Cats dropped a 37-25 decision to the Alouettes on Friday in the Hall of Fame game - a game that Ticats head coach Scott Milanovich described as having a “flattering” score.
“They didn’t quit, they kept fighting, they kept playing hard but the score flattered us,” Milanovich said matter-of-factly after the loss. “I thought we got whipped for three quarters.
“We made it something of a game there in the fourth quarter, which I appreciate, but I thought they handled us for most of the game there.”
Hamilton committed six turnovers in the showing.
This will be Hamilton’s first matchup against the Elks (10-4) of the season, and the teams will meet up for a second time in Week 19.
