An important East Division matchup between the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Montreal Alouettes closes out Week 8 on Sunday night.
Hamilton enters play in second place with a 3-3 record, four points behind first place Montreal.
The Alouettes earned a 38-32 win over Calgary last week and are looking to extend their division lead with a victory.
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» Depth Charts: HAM | MTL
» Game Notes: Tiger-Cats at Alouettes
HAMILTON TIGER-CATS
1. IS TRE FORD THE ANSWER?
Quarterback Tre Ford took advantage of his opportunity under centre in Week 7, throwing for 218 yards and rushing for an additional 109 to lead the Ticats to a win over the rival Toronto Argonauts. He’ll get another chance to prove the pocket should be his going forward. To find more success, he’ll need to use his arm and legs again against an Als’ defence allowing 395.7 yards of net offence.
2. PHYSICAL UP FRONT
When the Ticats defensive front gets their hands on Alouettes’ running back Travis Theis, they have to find a way to keep him from adding extra yards after contact. As a unit, they’re allowing a very respectable 89.5 rushing yards against per game, but Theis is playing with confidence and the defence has to match the energy.
Watch live. Hamilton Tiger-Cats @ Montreal Alouettes, July 27, 01:00 CET (1 am, 7 pm July 26 ET)
3. AS MANY OPTIONS AS POSSIBLE
When Ford drops back, he’ll need all of his receivers to be fighting to get open. While Kenny Lawler and Kiondré Smith are the clear leaders of the receiving corps, head coach Scott Milanovich needs Kurleigh Gittens Jr. and Keric Wheatfall to perform like they did last week when they combined for 109 yards.
MONTREAL ALOUETTES
1. QB CONTAIN
Ford is going to attempt to run and it’s up to the Alouettes defence to be ready to stop him. The play of defensive linemen Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund and Kylan Guidry will be critical in keeping Ford in the pocket and forcing the ball into the air.
2. RECEIVERS NOT NAMED TYLER SNEAD AND TYSON PHILPOT
Montreal relies more on their top receivers than any other team, as Tyson Philpot and Tyler Snead sit first and second in targets with 64 and 58, respectively. With the Ticats’ secondary putting much of their focus on shutting down those two, someone else may be required to step up. Alexander Hollins should be the next look in quarterback Davis Alexander’s reads.
3. PATIENCE
Hamilton ranks second in fewest big plays allowed, defined as completions of more than 30 yards and runs of more than 20, so the Als’ offence may need to string lengthy drives together to score. Fortunately for head coach Jason Maas, Alexander is more than capable. Alexander has thrown a Canadian Football League record 336 pass attempts without throwing an interception and consistently finds way to move his team down the field.
NEED TO KNOW:
- Montreal has a chance to secure the season series after a season-opening win in Hamilton. The two teams will meet once more down the stretch when the Ticats host the Als in Week 16.
- Davis Alexander has thrown for over 300 yards in every game this season.
- Alouettes linebacker Tyrice Beverette will be suiting up for his 100th CFL game.
- Tre Ford is 0-2 against Montreal through his career. In his last start against the Als in 2025, he threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns.
- Kenny Lawler will look to add to his streak of 77 consecutive games with a catch — the longest among active CFL players.