The Edmonton Elks head east to face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats to close out Week 16.
Edmonton has won five of its last seven games to get back into the playoff picture.
Hamilton holds a four-point lead in the East Division race.
Here’s three keys to victory for both teams ahead of Saturday’s 7:00 p.m. ET kickoff, which can be watched on TSN and RDS2 in Canada, and on CFL+ in the U.S. and internationally.
RELATED
» Depth Charts: EDM | HAM
» Game Notes: Elks at Tiger-Cats
EDMONTON ELKS
1. PICK ME
The Elks’ secondary has five interceptions over their past two games and will try to build on their recent strong play against a good offence. Defensive backs Tyrell Ford, Kordell Jackson and Kenneth Logan Jr. now aim to tame Ticats’ quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell, who’s been okay but is averaging an uncharacteristic 210.5 passing yards over the last two weeks.
Watch live. Edmonton Elks @ Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Sept. 21, 01:00 CET (1 am, 7 pm Sept. 20 ET)
2. STAY AGGRESSIVE OFFENSIVELY
Toronto’s defence held Edmonton quarterback Cody Fajardo to 229 yards through the air and running back Justin Rankin to 27 on the ground a week ago. One blip shouldn’t deter head coach Mark Kilam from trusting his best weapons, but it’s up to them to perform.
3. OPTIONS AT RECEIVER
Fajardo should be helped along by the options he has to his right and left. Along with the usual Kurleigh Gittens Jr. being a playmaker, Kaion Julien-Grant, OJ Hiliare and Arkell Smith have stepped up.
HAMILTON TIGER-CATS
1. GREG BELL TAKING THE BALL
The Hamilton offence, one that was already known for its elite pass game, is now getting plenty of production out of running back Greg Bell, with 137 and 156 yards on the ground over his last two games. It will be a tough matchup this week, going up against an Elks’ front allowing 91.2 yards per game — the third-best mark in the CFL after 15 weeks.
2. LOOKING FOR KENNY LAWLER
Receiver Kenny Lawler will try to lead the team in receiving yards for a third straight game as Mitchell tries to put up big numbers. The Elks’ secondary got the upper hand on Lawler the last time these two teams met, a 28-24 Ticats win in Week 9, holding him to four catches and 28 yards.
3. EVERY POINT MATTERS
Even when the Elks haven’t won, they’ve done a good job of staying in the game, which could make the leg of Marc Liegghio important. Fortunately for Hamilton, he’s made a league-leading 94.4 per cent of his field goals heading into Week 15.
NEED TO KNOW:
- This is the final meeting of the regular season between Edmonton and Hamilton.
- For the Elks, Canadian safety Royce Metchie and starting middle linebacker Nick Anderson have both been ruled out. Metchie has been moved to the six-game injured list with an Achilles injury.
- For the Ticats, Isaiah Wooden Sr. , who leads the CFL in both average punt return (16.8) and average kick return (31.1), returns to the lineup after a four-game absence.
- Edmonton is 4-3 against East Division teams this year.