Jason Halstead/CFL.ca
TORONTO — There was plenty of debate when CFL.ca revealed its post-free agency power rankings this month, led by the Calgary Stampeders at the top and their rival Edmonton Eskimos close behind.
The discussion didn’t stop there, even if the next rendition of the Nissan Titan Power Rankings won’t come until May.
On Wednesday, in the 98th episode of The Waggle presented by Sport Clips, Davis Sanchez and James Cybulski continued the debate, providing their own power rankings along with their supporting rationale.
Compare their rankings below:
For Sanchez and Cybulski, there was some consensus among picks. Only some though.
While Sanchez put the Stampeders at the top, much like CFL.ca, Cybulski went off the board with Calgary at fourth behind Edmonton, Saskatchewan and Toronto.
The Stamps have lost back-to-back Grey Cups, but have gone 28-6-2 in the regular season in the process, earning a reputation as the league’s most dominant team.
Some people suggest the loss of key stars like Charleston Hughes and Jerome Messam will affect the team, along with the crushing blow of back-to-back upsets in the Grey Cup. Sanchez sees things differently.
“The Calgary Stampeders were the best team in the league last year,” said Sanchez. “We know what happened on Grey Cup Sunday, the Toronto Argonauts ultimately won that game, but there’s no doubt the Stampeders were the best team on the field that day. They were the best team in the league that year and the things they’ve done to get younger, to get faster and to keep building their roster.
“I’ve lost three or four Grey Cups in my career and it’s heartbreaking,” he added. “To lose when you’re such a huge favourite, that’s tough to get over. But we thought that last year — how are they possibly going to be able to come in day in and day out and still play with that energy, when all you’re looking at is the final game? For that reason, we didn’t believe in them last year. But they did it.”
“There’s been an overhaul on that team. A lot of the older guys are gone, there are different leaders on this team and they are the most talented team in this league with one of the most talented quarterbacks in this league. I’ve got the Stamps still on top in the West and the Canadian Football League.”
You can hear the entire debate in this week’s episode of The Waggle:
Episode 98: Way-too-early power rankings + Duane Forde’s combine preview
The Waggle shares its own version of CFL Power Rankings…and they couldn’t be any different. Plus TSN Analyst Duane Forde weighs in on the off-season and looks ahead to the combine and draft.
Another point of contention was the defending Grey Cup Champions themselves. The Argos won the East last season despite finishing .500, parlaying a 5-2 run into a Grey Cup upset over the Stamps. On the other hand, an aging Ricky Ray, the loss of offensive coordinator Marcus Brady (NFL) and the pending loss of defensive coordinator Corey Chamblin are reasons to be skeptical.
But while Sanchez isn’t buying the Argos’ late-season success, Cybulski says the champs are still the champs — until proven otherwise.
“They’ve still got the best coach in the CFL, Ricky Ray is back, and their quarterback depth is even better with James Franklin,” said Cybulski. “You’ve got a full season with James Wilder. They closed out 2017 going 7-2 including the playoffs. They’ve kept a lot of their core guys intact.
“I’ll go back to the Rick Flair analogy — to be the man, you’ve got to beat the man. Woo! And the Toronto Argonauts are still the team.”
Outside of DeVier Posey, the Argos have kept most of their offence together, a group looking to improve in year two under Marc Trestman. On the defensive side of things, Mitchell White has departed but Ronnie Yell and T.J. Heath have joined the Argos’ secondary along with Taylor Reed at linebacker.
“The Grey Cup Champions, I didn’t think they were talented last year,” argued Sanchez. “The best team last year didn’t win the Grey Cup, and they might not have been in the top five teams in the league. But they won the Grey Cup, they’re the Grey Cup Champions and it is what it is.
“That’s why these lists are subjective,” he added. “You have them at one and I had them at six. In order to be the man, you’ve got to beat the man, and I agree, there’s not a better coach in the league than Marc Trestman. You’ve got to give respect to a Hall of Fame quarterback in Ricky Ray.
“I don’t put Ricky in the upper echelon of my quarterbacks and it’s because he can’t do the things he used to do. He still put up huge numbers, I’m probably going to get some backlash for this because he put up some monster numbers. The numbers don’t lie. But to me, you have a guy at Rick’s age back there, you have a sitting duck. It just allows for defensive coordinators to do so much more when you know the quarterback can’t move. They’re dangerous but I don’t put them in the upper echelon of teams in the league.”
Ricky Ray started all but one game in 2017, winning the fourth Grey Cup of his career (David Chidley/CFL.ca)
Another hotly contested debate surrounds the Bombers, one of the league’s most polarizing teams the last two seasons.
General Manager Kyle Walters made some more big splashes this off-season, bringing in Nic Demski, Adarius Bowman and Kienan LaFrance on offence and Chandler Fenner and Anthony Gaitor on defence. But will it be enough for the Bombers to catapult themselves to the next level?
While Cybulski puts the Bombers right in the middle of the pack, Sanchez has Winnipeg as the second-ranked team in the CFL behind Calgary at this point in the off-season.
“This is tough. I feel like the Bombers deserve a better fate because I love the depth, but this is a team that has to show me when it matters most,” said Cybulski. “I think this is a put up or shut up sort of season for this team. Andrew Harris can’t keep being Andrew Harris forever, that window is getting smaller and smaller with what that guy does and what he brings to the field and the punishment he takes with the amount of times he catches balls and takes hand-offs.”
For Sanchez, any success for the Blue and Gold starts with Matt Nichols. He believes Nichols is up to the task.
“This is a big year for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers,” said Sanchez. “Matt Nichols is now a number one guy, no question about it, he’s a franchise quarterback — forget all that game management junk, he’s proven it time and time again.
“I still don’t think they have as much talent outside as most teams in the West, but what they do have is a strong run game, a mauling offensive line and a quarterback who’s as accurate as you can find. I really like the Bombers, they’re number two.”
