CFL Week 10 Recap: Sink or Swim

In 2024, the Boatmen were sailing free and clear to another Grey Cup Championship. Sadly, 2025 has seen the Argonauts do a dead-on imitation of the S.S. Minnow, and the tour is much longer than three hours.

After a loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, this Argos fan was elated that the boys were back at home. Even better, we were facing the Ottawa Redblacks. Hallelujah! The Redblacks were one of two teams making us look good (the Edmonton Elks were the other), and there they were, right in our house, being decimated. After the first quarter, the Argos were up 22-1. Now nothing's over after just one quarter, but with the way the Redblacks had been playing, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Toronto would take this one.

However, at that moment, the 21 point lead was whittled down to just six at halftime. Once the second half progressed, Ottawa and Toronto ended up trading the lead, until the Redblacks had it for good late in the game with a clutch touchdown. And as usual, when the Argonauts have a chance to steal it back, Nick Arbuckle throws an interception, and the game is done. 46-42 was the final score in the Ottawa Redblacks' favor, continuing the Argos' downward spiral.

The loss was the last thing we needed, as Week 10 started with the BC Lions entering Hamilton to face the Tiger-Cats. This was a back and forth battle that saw Hamilton nail a game-tying field goal to end regulation, giving us overtime... finally. CFL overtime is played similar to college rules; there are (at most) two minigames, with the second one needed only if nothing's settled after the first. Coin toss decides possession, and the ball is placed in the opposing 35 yard line, putting the team in field goal range already. Any touchdowns scored have to be followed by a two-point conversion. We would not need one. Hamilton's first pass was caught, followed by a fumble. BC ball, they would get the field goal, and that was that. Lions won, 41-38, in overtime.

Elsewhere, the Edmonton Elks upset the Montréal Alouettes, 23-22, and the Calgary Stampeders won, 28-27, over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers thanks to a last second field goal. As a result of the scores, here's how things look after ten weeks:

The Toronto Argonauts have the worst record in the league. I really want to say that it's Grey Cup hangover, but there's that and then there's whatever the hell I've been seeing. The Argos are playing so badly this year; it is an absolute mess. The Boatmen are four games out of first, three games out of second, and thanks to the crossover, we're two games out of a playoff position--behind three teams. That's not good at all. The BC Lions currently hold that crossover playoff position, but they are currently a half game out of third place in the West thanks to the Bombers' loss. It's a wild look in the CFL standings, but there's still half a season to go. A lot can happen.

Week 11 sees an entire schedule full of East teams heading West. On Thursday, August 14, it's the Ottawa Redblacks heading to Winnipeg to face the Blue Bombers. On Friday, August 15, the Toronto Argonauts will face the Elks in Edmonton. The doubleheader on Saturday, August 16 will start with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in Regina against the Saskatchewan Roughriders in a battle of first place teams, followed by the Montréal Alouettes in Vancouver against the BC Lions.

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