Dave Dickenson has a fascinating job on his hands over the next number of weeks. The head coach of the Calgary Stampeders saw his team extend its CFL record unbeaten streak to 15 on Saturday night thanks to a 22-8 win over Montreal. His remarks following that game, though, highlight the interesting and difficult job he and his coaching staff have as they prepare for the Western Final on Nov. 20.

Important questions

In this week’s Berg vs. Ferg feature, I went with Dickenson as the coach who’s done the most impressive job in 2016. As such, I have no doubt he’ll be able to handle the next five weeks in a proper fashion and have his team ready to go. As the Stampeders go down the stretch, I’m curious as to how they answer to important questions.

First off, how do the Stampeders stay motivated and focused? The easy answer is by leaning on their historic chase. With wins in their last two games, the Stamps would but a bow on the best season in CFL history; by finishing 16-1-1, they’d even eclipse the 1989 Edmonton Eskimos who went 16-2. But it’s not necessarily going to be that simple.

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Stamps head coach Dave Dickenson faces a difficult task in the coming month (The Canadian Press)

Take Calgary’s win over Montreal this weekend for example. Despite taking over in the second half, the Stampeders didn’t look anywhere near as sharp as we know they can be overall. Calgary looked out of sorts offensively during the first half and allowed four quarterback sacks; that’s more than four times their average per game prior.

“We didn’t have our best game,” Dickenson said following the win. “We were not as focused. The effort was still high, I just don’t feel like they were locked in to what we wanted to do.”

I find it telling the coach of a 14-1-1 team was bemoaning his group’s focus following a win. To me, that’s Dickenson keeping his team on guard and doing everything in his power to not allow even the slightest bit of complacency to set in. That’s not the easiest thing to do, though.

Even with history on the line, human nature is a formidable opponent. The Stamps have clinched everything they can, and everyone in that locker room knows they don’t truly play a meaningful game again until late November. As much as they want to stay sharp and keep their eye on the prize, it’s a whole lot easier for that gaze to wander slightly. That’s where Dickenson comes in and I think Saturday’s effort will be good ammunition for him.

The second question is one that was already tackled on CFL.ca this week: how does Calgary manage its group down the stretch? It’s very evident Dickenson has a plan for how he wants to use his key players, and once again, it’s hard not to have confidence in him right now with all of what has transpired this season. That said, it’s still a really compelling case study.

For me, things change a little bit knowing the Stamps have a Week 20 bye. Had Calgary been playing right until the end of the regular season, I might be more inclined to talk about resting starters in the final game or two, even with a chase for history on the line. But with that added week off, I believe it becomes more important to have players like Bo Levi Mitchell, Jerome Messam, and Charleston Hughes firing on all cylinders down the stretch.

The questions being tackled by the Stamps and their coaching staff right now are enviable ones. Dickenson and his coaching staff have pushed all the right buttons this season, so I’m fully expecting that trend to continue with a different set of challenges. That’s why I’m confident in saying that if the Stampeders end up losing in the Western Final, it’ll be because they got beat by a better team that day, not because they weren’t coached properly down the stretch.

Welcome back

Rick Campbell made a pretty gutsy decision this week. The head coach of the Ottawa REDBLACKS swapped Trevor Harris for Henry Burris at quarterback, giving the latter his first start since Week 9. It wasn’t necessarily the move I would have made, but give credit to both Campbell and Burris, because it worked.

I really liked watching Burris on Friday night. In Ottawa’s exciting 30-29 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Burris threw for almost 400 yards and a touchdown while counting for another two majors on the ground. He was dialed in and extremely effective from start to finish.

What I really liked was the game plan for Burris. Having not started a game since late August, the REDBLACKS went with a really simple offence that Burris executed to perfection. Almost all of his 27 completions were of the intermediate variety over the middle. Save a few plays, including a huge touchdown strike in the third quarter, there was very little action over the top or down the field. And that was just fine, because Burris was locked right in.

BUY WEEK 18 TICKETS

» Friday, 7:00 p.m. ET: Hamilton at Ottawa
» Friday, 9:00 p.m. ET: Toronto at Calgary
» Saturday, 4:00 p.m. ET: Montreal at Saskatchewan
» Saturday, 7:00 p.m. ET: Edmonton at BC

I liked how quickly Burris read and reacted throughout the game. Hamilton’s pass rush didn’t really play a big part in Friday’s game because Burris was so quick with his reads and progressions the ball was away before pressure could be a factor.

Not only was Burris making the right decisions, though, he was getting the ball away quickly and with a ton of zip. Spreading the ball around to seven different receivers, Burris got the ball into his receivers with speed and power and minimized the chances of knockdowns and 50-50 battles over the middle. It was impressive stuff.

With first place still very much in the balance, Burris is going to need to be just as good when Ottawa takes on the Tiger-Cats again this Friday. With a week for his opponent to prepare, Campbell might have to open up the playbook a little more because Hamilton is going to be ready for the simple, but effective, passing attack we saw this past weekend. After seeing him back in action, I’m fairly certain Burris will be up to the task.

Playing out the string?

We see teams in every sport get hot at the end of the season once they’ve been eliminated from playoff contention. Whether it’s the removal of pressure or expectations or simply being overlooked by their opposition, it happens all the time. Uusally, though, it means very little for the following season.

Well, this year’s example of that in the CFL just happens to be the Saskatchewan Roughriders, but with one difference: I believe the Riders are the rare example of a team that can carry over strong momentum from the end of a season.

Saskatchewan’s decisive 29-11 win over Toronto on Saturday was good for its fifth straight win. Last week we wrote about how things are truly looking up and how this is no fluke. Well, we’ll take it the next step here, because I think this team should be a far more dangerous group to start the 2017 campaign.

First and foremost, you can tell this group is more confident and comfortable playing for its new coach. Chris Jones has been preaching how important it is to stick with the process all season long and, to their credit, the Riders have. We’re starting to see some hallmarks of Jones-coached teams, specifically on the defensive side of the ball.

Through the Lens: All the best photos of Week 17

It goes beyond that, though. While not a given, let’s assume Darian Durant signs a new deal to stay in Regina. If so, I’ve seen largely positive things from Saskatchewan’s quarterback this year. The evolution of Durant’s decision-making has continued this season, and he’s as reliable as ever; he continues to cut down his mistakes while not sacrificing yardage.

There are some new faces that lead me to believe this late season run is a harbinger of things to come, too. Joe McKnight intrigues me at runningback, and not just following his 150-yard performance on Saturday afternoon. The former USC standout has a ton of ability and I think he can thrive if given the opportunity.

Then there are a couple names on the defensive side of the ball. We talked last week about Linden Gaydosh who, if healthy, can be an extremely disruptive force in the middle of a defensive line. But let’s not forget linebacker Henoc Muamba, who made his presence felt against the Argos with three tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.

It’s true, many times a late season run for a non-playoff team ends once the regular season does. For the Riders, though, I think there’s more at work. This is a rebuilding team finishing year one of its long-term plan. With some of what I’ve seen from key players for this team’s future, I think Saskatchewan is on to something and I wouldn’t sleep on the Riders in 2017.