Jimmy Jeong/CFL.ca
Scoring is up in the league, and CFL fantasy players are here for it.
Three weeks into the season, the league is averaging 53.9 points per game. Should the blistering pace continue, it would mark the most prolific scoring campaign since 2008, when an average of 56.2 points per contest. Keep in mind this scoring deluge is happening at a time when the Blue Bombers are averaging a league-low 18.3 points per game.
What does this mean for this week’s rankings? Plenty of options to work with.
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Quarterback
1.Vernon Adams Jr., BC, $15,000 Salary (21 Projected Fantasy Points): Adams is at the max salary. Averaging 10.9 yards per pass, Adams will continue his assault upon opposing secondaries on Thursday when he faces an Elks defence that’s allowed a league-high seven touchdown passes. The quarterback was listed as questionable for the game on Thursday, however, so keep an eye out for BC’s depth chart.
2.Cody Fajardo, Montreal, $13,500 Salary (19.2 PFP): Air Canada’s East Division hub lies in Montreal, where Fajardo shares the league lead (with Saskatchewan’s Trevor Harris, $13,200) in passing majors. Fajardo and his CFL-best eight completions of better than 30 yards will aim at an Argos defence giving up a league-worst 352.5 passing yards per game.
3.McLeod Bethel-Thompson, Edmonton, $10,000 Salary (9.2 PFP): The Elks throw the ball at a 70 per cent rate and lead the league with 173 offensive plays. That makes Bethel-Thompson a solid (and quite affordable) play when the Elks bid for their first win of the season on Thursday at BC.
4.Jake Maier, Calgary, $12,200 Salary (14.2 PFP): Fresh off an open week, Maier and the Stampeders will look to exploit a Blue Bombers defence that has managed only three sacks. Winnipeg allowed 398 passing yards in the loss to BC and will have to hope Maier doesn’t come close to averaging the 12.1 yards per pass Vernon Adams Jr. racked up against them.
5.Bo Levi Mitchell, Hamilton, $10,000 Salary (12.4 PFP): Mitchell’s 14.7 FP in Week 3 was dragged down by three interceptions and a paltry 6.6 yards per pass. Facing a REDBLACKS defence that’s allowing 10 yards per pass and six completions of better than 30 yards will help him rebound.
Running Backs
1.Brady Oliveira, Winnipeg, $11,800 Salary (11.7 PFP): If there is one Blue Bomber fantasy players can hope upon, it’s Oliveira, who averaged over nine yards per carry in Week 3. Winnipeg’s revival could begin at the expense of a Calgary run defence allowing a league-high 6.7 yards per carry.
2.Walter Fletcher, Montreal, $9,100 Salary (13.7 PFP): Fletcher has emerged as one of the early surprises for fantasy players, averaging 16.9 FP. The Alouettes have effectively made him a dual threat who can hurt defences every time he touches the ball.
3.William Stanback, BC, $11,500 Salary (10.2 PFP): Stanback feels like a sleeping giant, just waiting to display the production that made him an All-Star in Montreal. An Edmonton run defence that allows 114 yards per game might be the wake-up call Stanback has been waiting on.
4.Dedrick Mills, Calgary, $11,300 Salary (11.5 PFP): At 16.6 FP per game, Mills is a steady play who feels a bit underrated this week as he squares off against a Winnipeg defence that has bent but has yet to completely break, which is why he’s ranked here.
5.Ka’Deem Carey, Toronto, $10,400 Salary (14.1 PFP): Most weeks, Carey is a top three back. That is, when he’s not facing an Alouettes defence ranked first in the fewest yards allowed per play.
6.James Butler, Hamilton, $13,000 Salary (13.8 PFP): His fantasy points have dipped from 14.1 to 11.7 to last week’s 5.2. Like teammate Tim White ($10,000), Butler feels forgotten in the Ticats’ offence.
Receivers
1.Alexander Hollins, BC, $13,500 Salary (20.1 PFP): Like you’re expecting someone else atop the rankings.
2.Tyson Philpot, Montreal, $9,600 Salary (17.2 PFP): He’s delivered 25 FP per game and leads the league with 124 yards after catch, making him lethal despite a modest average of 8.7 depth yards.
3.Justin Hardy, Ottawa, $10,600 Salary (17.1 PFP): Fantasy players want the REDBLACKS to play from behind, giving them all the more reason to anchor Hardy, who leads the league with 18.1 yards per catch. He’s also bidding for his third 100-yard receiving game in as many starts.
4.Justin McInnis, BC, $9,000 Salary (14.6 PFP): Nearly half (11) of McInnis’ 28 targets have come from beyond 20 yards. He’s caught six of those, and his average of 17.6 depth yards is second only to You Know Who atop this week’s rankings (18.9).
5.Shemar Bridges, Hamilton, $4,500 Salary (9.8 PFP): The newcomer is legit, averaging 22.75 FP in his last two games. Until Bo Levi Mitchell’s target distribution says otherwise, Bridges is the WR1 in Hamilton.
6.Reggie Begelton, Calgary, $12,200 Salary (13.8 PFP): As mentioned in this week’s edition of Start/Sit, Begelton is due for a breakout. The Bombers have yielded a league-high seven completions of better than 30 yards, and it’s time Jake Maier lets Begelton stretch the defence.
7.Kurleigh Gittens Jr., Edmonton, $9,000 Salary (12.4 PFP): He’s second only to Alexander Hollins with 29 targets and is averaging 16.2 FP per contest. You know McLeod Bethel-Thompson will keep Gittens atop his target list.
8.Kaion Julien-Grant, Montreal, $6,700 Salary (11.8 PFP): The Alouettes’ passion for the deep ball plays perfectly into the strengths of Julien-Grant, who’s tied for the league lead with three catches of 30+ yards while also being one of only three receivers with more than 100 yards after the catch.
9.Kiondre Smith, Hamilton, $9,500 Salary (11.8 PFP): Smith has pulled in receiving majors in each of his three games and has become Bo Levi Mitchell’s go-to near the goal line. He’s also 3-for-3 when targeted beyond 20 yards.
10.Nic Demski, Winnipeg, $10,100 Salary (11.4 PFP): Zach Collaros ($11,900) will find ways to get the ball in the hands of Demski, perhaps the one Bombers receiver worth investing in these days.
11.Dillon Mitchell, Edmonton, $7,000 Salary (11.1 PFP): Coming off a 23 FP performance in the loss at Toronto, Mitchell has quietly become a reliable option. He’s catching passes at an 81% rate and is fourth with 274 receiving yards.
12.Dominique Rhymes, Ottawa, $11,000 Salary (9.7 PFP): He’s been underused thus far, but this feels like the week Rhymes becomes more than an afterthought.
Defences
1.Montreal, $10,900 Salary (8.6 PFP): Eight forced turnovers in three games. Fantasy players know the Als’ defence is capable of adding a major every time one of them has the ball.
2.BC, $10,000 Salary (5.6 PFP): The projection is modest until you consider the Elks have a turnover margin of -4.
3.Winnipeg, $10,500 Salary (5.7 PFP): Somehow, you just get the feeling the Bombers we’ve become accustomed to will show up…
4.Toronto, $8,900 Salary (6.3 PFP): Despite their issues against the pass, the Argos’ pass rush makes them a viable fantasy option.
