The Canadian Press
There is no trophy for TSN CFL Fantasy football users to hoist on Sunday night, as the 106th Grey Cup Presented by Shaw’s offers one last shot at bragging rights before the fun begins again next June. In order to spend the winter atop the Fantasy mountain, it will pay to know who’s the best play in the matchup between the REDBLACKS and Stampeders while maximizing the final $30,000 available.
The past offers some indication as to who deserves to start, who deserves to be left alone, and who can steal the show – putting their name among the other unsung heroes of the previous 105 installments of the Grey Cup. In a game overflowing with star power, making one final starting lineup will be a challenge.
Leave it on the Fantasy field. Go out with no regrets.
Ottawa (12-7-0) vs. Calgary (13-6-0)
Sunday, 6:00 p.m. ET
Start: Diontae Spencer, WR/RS, REDBLACKS, $8,816 Salary
Few — if any — players can alter a game like Spencer, who comes into Sunday’s title game with a wake of battered and bruised secondaries behind him. The East All-Star has put up seven straight games with at least 10 Fantasy points, including three contests with at least 22.1 FP, including last week’s 22.4 performance in the East Final win over Hamilton. He has found the end zone in each of the last four games, putting up a total of six majors, and will be a huge focus for a Calgary pass defence that finished the regular season fourth overall in passing yards allowed per game. The Stamps have given up just 25 completions of better than 30 yards, but if Spencer can’t hurt them with his receiving skills, his ability to swing a game as a return specialist makes him worth the Fantasy play. If Spencer puts it together in each facet of his game, watch out.
Start: Don Jackson, RB, Stampeders, $7,274 Salary
The REDBLACKS must be concerned that Jackson is looking a lot like the back who carved them up for a total of 186 yards and a major on 30 carries in the two regular season games between the teams. Jackson needed some time to get back in gear after missing a total of five games with a spate of injuries and has run for 174 yards and a score on 25 carries in his last two games. Ottawa was in the middle-of-the-pack in run defence during the regular season, but what makes Jackson’s potential tempting is that he’ll see a considerable workload with Romar Morris ($4,655) out with an Achilles injury and the Stampeders looking to keep Terry Williams ($4,923) limited to the return game. Keep this number in mind: Jackson averaged 112 rushing yards in the four games Calgary gave him the ball at least 15 times, including 15 carries in each game against Ottawa.
Sit: Brad Sinopoli, WR, REDBLACKS, $6,789 Salary
Every Fantasy point counts, and when scoring majors isn’t a strength, it becomes a weakness in a winner-take-all format. Sinopoli’s lone Fantasy sin is that he has just four touchdowns among his combined total of 118 receptions and has not seen the end zone on his own accord since Week 13. A model of consistency otherwise, Sinopoli has scored at least 10 Fantasy points in all but four games this season. However, the Calgary defence was responsible for two of those poor outings, holding Sinopoli to 8.0 FP in Week 3 before keeping the East All-Star to just 7.7 FP in Week 5. Spencer and Greg Ellingson ($7,518) will be the go-to targets when Trevor Harris ($9,656) chooses to test the heart of the Stampeders secondary, and with R.J. Harris ($4,554) also capable of making big plays deep, Sinopoli’s users will need him to come through in the red zone to make him a viable play.
Sit: DaVaris Daniels, WR, Stampeders, $7,191 Salary
News of his return to practice last week evoked hope not only for Calgary’s fan base, but for Fantasy users as well. Make no mistake: Daniels makes starting Bo Levi Mitchell ($8,994) more entertaining, but even if the explosive playmaker suits up and finds his way on Saturday’s depth chart, Fantasy users will have to wonder how many snaps Daniels will see on Sunday night. There’s also the question of how effective he can be after missing more than two months with a broken collarbone. The Stamps survived the seemingly endless rash of injuries at receiver to arrive at this juncture, so Fantasy users should look at Eric Rogers ($6,716) and Markeith Ambles ($4,428) before rolling the dice on Daniels.
