Patrick Doyle/CFL.ca
Week 5 gave us the pleasure of watching all nine teams in action, with Ottawa taking the field twice in a span of five days. Doubling up on REDBLACKS was at the same time wise and risky, especially since salaries for the likes of Trevor Harris ($16,445) were 1.5 times their normal salary. To play an Ottawa player meant eating up much of your cap, yet was it worth it?
In the case of receiver Greg Ellingson, the answer was a strong yes, as the league’s leading receiver ($10,333) delivered a total of 32.8 Fantasy points in a win over Montreal and a loss at Toronto — although he needed a late major from Harris on Monday night to make his three-catch, 99-yard outing more respectable for Fantasy owners. As for Harris, he finished with a combined 38.4 FP on the strength of four touchdown passes and a 376-yard performance against the Alouettes.
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Those who chose William Powell were left longing. Powell ($8,182) finished with a mere 20.4 FP as he also failed to score in either of the two games. Fantasy owners who rolled the dice on Mossis Madu, who was the highest-salaried back at $11,066, got all of 1.3 points as he was inactive at Montreal and played sparingly at Toronto.
The three-game, 11-day run did help show that the REDBLACKS are committed to Powell as the lead back, although it stands to reason they will find ways to keep Madu involved in the offence.
Lions pivot Travis Lulay ($5,829) was gold in last Friday’s rally to defeat the Blue Bombers in a Game of the Year candidate. Lulay threw two interceptions, yet he amassed 27.6 FP as he threw for 404 yards and two touchdowns and added a rushing major to boot. The status of starter Jonathon Jennings ($10,141) is still in the air for the Week 6 game at Edmonton, yet don’t be too shocked if Lulay gets his second start of the season.
He’ll be facing Mike Reilly ($13,518), who put up 26 points in the Eskimos’ comeback over Hamilton. Reilly has yet to throw an interception and has completed 72.1 per cent of his passes (Lulay, for the record, has completed 72.2 per cent).
Stamps quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell ($11,687) was held to a season-low 16.9 FP as Calgary focused on getting running back Jerome Messam back on track with a heavy workload against Hamilton. While Mitchell did throw two touchdowns, it was Messam ($6,965) who put up 19.4 Fantasy Points by rushing for 135 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries. The week also saw the long-awaited breakout of BC’s do-all Chris Rainey ($6,648), who put up a combined 19.6 FP with 359 combined yards, a touchdown and a conversion play.
BC teammate Jeremiah Johnson ($8,155) has been the mark of consistency, scoring at least one major and putting up double-digit Fantasy Points in each game this season. The Lions finally got a performance from top receiver Emmanuel Arceneaux ($7,273), who caught a pair of touchdowns despite finishing with just 50 receiving yards.
Friday night’s win yielded big results for Travis Lulay and Emmanuel Arceneaux (The Canadian Press)
Yards weren’t an issue for Edmonton’s Brandon Zylstra ($5,403), who staked his claim to be the Eskimos’ featured receiver while Adarius Bowman is on the six-game injured list. Zylstra missed part of the game against the Ticats with an injury, yet came back in the third quarter to finish his night with eight catches for 112 yards, his second 100-yard game of the young season.
Bargain of the week candidate Bryant Mitchell, playing for the first time in 2017, pulled in five passes for 76 yards and a major. He’s the replacement for Bowman in the slot, making him and his $2,500 salary an ideal target.
REDBLACKS receiver Diontae Spencer ($8,541) was a disappointment as he caught only five passes for 46 yards and no scores in his two games.
Two players who hit career milestones offered a mixed bag of results. Montreal slot Nik Lewis ($4,141) became the fourth player in league history to cross the 1,000 career receptions mark, doing so with eight catches for 64 yards and a score on 10 targets. Saskatchewan pivot Kevin Glenn ($9,249) joined the exclusive 50,000 passing yards fraternity, yet finished without a touchdown pass in the loss to Calgary.
