With Week 8 in the books, all nine CFL teams have played at least six games.
That means each squad has now hit their individual one-third mark and some interesting trends have started to emerge.
There are unsurprising developments, for sure. For instance, Saskatchewan looks in good shape to take a run at a Grey Cup repeat even after their tight loss to Edmonton on Thursday. And 6-1 Montreal, last year’s 112th Grey Cup runner-up, looks like a powerhouse as they stretched their win streak to four games after Sunday’s 31-18 win over Hamilton.
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THE NEW CHALLENGER
Us millennials will likely remember joining in on an arcade game when someone else was playing and getting the “here comes a new challenger” message on screen. Well, in 2026, that new contender disturbing the status quo is the Edmonton Elks. And they look far from a paper tiger.
Edmonton really staked their claim on Thursday, though. Not only did their 36-34 walk-off win move the Elks to 6-1, it also came against the defending champion Roughriders in a fashion very few would have seen coming.
Entering Thursday, Saskatchewan had allowed just four passing touchdowns in their first five games and were holding opposing teams to 266.6 passing yards per game. So, what did Cody Fajardo and the Elks offence do? They torched the league’s number one passing defence for 510 yards and four touchdowns in one of the most stunning displays of the season.
Edmonton is proving they can win in all kinds of different ways. Earlier, George Reed Most Outstanding Player frontrunner Justin Rankin was flattening opposing defences. But he’s been slowed the last two games, which has forced the Elks’ defence (Week 7 vs. BC) and, most recently, aerial attack to emerge as decisive factors.
En route to their 6-1 record, Edmonton has picked up impressive wins against the Alouettes, Blue Bombers, and now the Riders. I can’t wait for this rematch against Saskatchewan to close out Week 9 at Commonwealth Stadium.
THE SLEEPING GIANTS
A quick glance at the standings might not have you feeling overly bullish on the Calgary Stampeders. The Stamps sit 3-4 and fourth in the West Division, which doesn’t scream quiet powerhouse on the verge of hitting stride. A closer look, however, reveals a Calgary team worth keeping an eye on as we move towards the midway mark.
After their impressive 52-30 road win over Winnipeg at Princess Auto Stadium on Friday, the Stampeders are the league’s highest scoring team at 39.7 points per game. Vernon Adams Jr. leads the league with 20 (!) passing touchdowns against no interceptions to start the season. And dating back to last year, Adams Jr. has thrown 23 consecutive touchdowns without being picked off. Both of those marks are new all-time highs.
Furthermore, Dedrick Mills leads the league with 584 rushing yards while Jalen Philpot, Tevin Jones, and Dejon Brissett all have at least four touchdown catches. This offence has only failed to score more than 30 points once this season, and that was back in Week 1.
There are areas to clean up, of course. Calgary is allowing 34.9 points per game, and they know that’s too much going forward. But with a combined losing margin of just 18 points in their four defeats, the Stamps have been close in every game they’ve played. With this offence rolling like it is, playing Calgary feels dangerous every single week right now.
THE KINGS OF THE SKY
I wasn’t sure how the Toronto Argonauts would look under new head coach Mike Miller. Having been guided by Ryan Dinwiddie since 2019, the Argos had taken on the personality of their head coach, at least on offence. A prolific passer in college, Dinwiddie’s squads love to air the ball out. Case in point: Toronto led the league last year with 678 passing attempts and 485 completions.
Fast forward to 2026 under Miller and that hasn’t changed, even with Dinwiddie now with the REDBLACKS. After their 26-12 win over the Lions on Saturday, Toronto leads the league with 263 passing attempts and 184 completions. That has them on pace to finish almost exactly at last year’s numbers.
Whether it’s Chad Kelly, who left Saturday’s game in the first half, or Nick Arbuckle under centre, there’s one thing we know: the Argonauts are going to throw the ball. Makai Polk leads the league with six touchdown catches, Tyler Kahmann has five, and David Ungerer III and Kevin Mital each have four.
Add in Damonte Coxie and you have five receivers with 374 yards or more, which is something no other team can say. In fact, the next closest in that category is three. Much like the Stamps, Toronto at 3-4 has other areas to tighten up. But their aerial attack is impressive and has them holding down the mark as kings of the sky.
