Costabile: 4 storylines to watch in Week 3

Kristina Costabile

CFL.ca

@kcostabile1

The opening two weeks of the CFL season have been nothing short of exciting.

Seven of the first eight games of the year have not been decided until the final three minutes, really solidifying what we already knew: don’t ever leave a CFL game early.

Here’s to hoping we see much more of the same in Week 3.

Things kick off in Montreal as the undefeated Als host the undefeated Ottawa REDBLACKS. Friday Night Football sees the BC Lions head to Winnipeg to take on the Blue Bombers while Saturday features the Edmonton Elks travelling to Toronto for a match with the Argonauts. The week ends in Saskatchewan as the Roughriders play host to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for the second half of a home-and-home.

There’s plenty to look forward to this week and to help you get set, here is one storyline to watch in each game.

OH MY, MONTREAL

Ottawa at Montreal | Thursday, June 20 | 7:30 p.m. ET

If you were doubting the Montreal Alouettes heading into the 2024 season, you now have two games that the Als have proved you wrong.

Their offence has looked efficient, with Cody Fajardo relying on their passing game in Week 1 (Tyson Philpot had a pair of touchdowns and 141 yards) and on their ground game in Week 2 (Walter Fletcher had 82 yards and a touchdown on the ground and 61 yards and a major through the air to go along with Fajardo’s 27 rushing yards).

And like I said last week, if you like defence, you should be watching Montreal.

They’re averaging a league-low 16.0 points allowed per game and have given up no passing touchdowns and only three touchdowns in total. They also haven’t given up a single 30+ yard pass, the only team in the CFL to do so, and they’re only allowing 5.16 yards per play, lowest in the league. They’ve forced six turnovers (most in CFL) and lead the league in turnover ratio (+5) and interceptions (three). They can get after the quarterback as well, sitting with five sacks on the season, tied for second-most in the CFL.

Keep an eye on Dru Brown and his offence matching up against that shutdown Als defence and how the REDBLACKS defence works against the balanced attack in Montreal after an impressive showing against the Bombers in their opening game last week.

WEST DIVISION FOES MEET AGAIN

BC at Winnipeg | Friday, June 21 | 8:30 p.m. ET

The last time these two teams met was back in the 2023 Western Final, the second-straight year that the Lions lost to Winnipeg in that game. There’s surely some bad blood from those two contests coursing through the Lions veins as they return to the scene of the crime, Princess Auto Stadium, this weekend.

In 2023, these were the two best teams in the West and each matchup between them was considered a heavyweight tilt. What’s in store this year?

Well, Winnipeg’s 0-2 for the first time since 2016. Their offence hasn’t looked like the one we’re accustomed to seeing over the last few seasons and Zach Collaros and co. will hope to turn things around this weekend at home.

BC, on the other hand, is 1-1 and last week they were able to protect their quarterback much better than they did in Week 1 against Toronto (six sacks allowed) not allowing a single sack on the night. Justin McInnis has burst onto the scene this year, becoming the Lions’ best offensive weapon, hauling in a league-leading 194 yards and two touchdowns through two weeks.

There’s a sense of urgency around Winnipeg this week as they look to avoid going 0-3, while the Lions want to go above .500 early in the season.

RETURN OF THE MAC

Edmonton at Toronto | Saturday, June 22 | 7:00 p.m. ET

When the Edmonton Elks head to Toronto on Saturday, there’s a handful of familiar faces making their return to their old home.

Headlining the group is McLeod Bethel-Thompson, who spent five seasons with the Double Blue, along with kicker Boris Bede, returner/running back Javon Leake, and receiver Kurleigh Gittens Jr. Other former Argonauts now on Edmonton include defensive lineman Sam Acheampong, defensive back Josh Hagerty, offensive lineman Shane Richards,

Bethel-Thompson is fourth in the league in passing yards, 636, and in completion percentage, 72.6%, but has thrown three interceptions, tied for the most with Winnipeg’s Zach Collaros. He’s also fumbled twice, one that was lost, through the first two weeks of the year.

Toronto’s defence, one that knows Bethel-Thompson very well, will look to force turnovers again this week. They had five in Week 1 before heading out on a bye last week.

CAN THEY MAKE IT TWO-IN-A-ROW?

Hamilton at Saskatchewan | Sunday, June 23 | 7:00 p.m. ET

I did pick the Ticats to win this game, but honestly, I’d be okay with either team winning as long as we have an exciting finish like we saw in Hamilton last week.

Sunday’s game could have went either way. Without the Tim White fumble that C.J. Avery snatched up with just over 30 seconds left on the clock (his second-straight, game-clinching interception), the contest could have had quite a different ending.

But that was then and this is now.

The Riders open their home schedule at Mosaic Stadium this weekend against the Tiger-Cats and are looking to make it back-to-back victories against the Black and Gold. They went 4-5 at home last year and will hope to make Mosaic a difficult place to play to start the year.

Can Hamilton bounce-back from letting a 10-point lead slip away in the fourth quarter? Will Saskatchewan need to play comeback kids for the third week in a row? When will AJ Ouellette get back to the AJ Ouellette we were used to seeing in 2023 (he’s only averaging 2.2 yards a carry right now)? Can Bo Levi Mitchell continue to be the vintage Bo we saw through the first two weeks of the year?

Week 3 ends with some cinema that you won’t want to miss.

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