CFL Week 11 Preview: Nathan Rourke returns to the CFL

• Canadian QB Nathan Rourke is back in BC: In 2022, Rourke led the league with a 94.2 PFF overall grade despite missing almost half the season with an injury.

• Good luck blocking Saskatchewan’s Malik Carney: The edge rusher has five sacks and 30 total pressures this season, both of which rank in the top five among all defenders. His 8.2 pass-rushing productivity score ranks second in the league.

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Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes

OTTAWA REDBLACKS VS. CALGARY STAMPEDERS

The Redblacks kept their impressive season going last week with one of the strangest ties in a long time. Ottawa and Saskatchewan each had a moment where it looked like they had won the game, only to have it overturned on video replay. Ultimately, Ottawa is surely happy to come out with a tie. They have to be far more concerned with the injury to starting quarterback Dru Brown. Brown’s absence opens the door for the return of CFL veteran Jeremiah Masoli.

Across from the Redblacks is a Calgary team that has been up and down all season long. They’re 4-5 and basically alternating wins and losses week-to-week. Quarterback Jake Maier has been solid (76.3 passing grade), but they’ll need him to be great if they want to string together some wins. A win for either team helps push them closer to a coveted playoff spot.

MATCHUP TO WATCH: WR REGGIE BEGELTON, CALGARY VS. SAM LB ADARIUS PICKETT, OTTAWA

After a slow start to the season in which Begelton cracked 60 receiving yards just once in his first seven games, he has begun to turn it around. Begelton has 17 catches for 211 yards over the past two games, with an impressive nine missed tackles forced on those receptions. He will look to keep that going against one of the best defenders in the CFL.

Pickett’s 82.3 PFF coverage grade ranks third among secondary players in the CFL. He’s allowed just 12 catches for 114 yards and a touchdown this season while recording an interception and four pass breakups. An important stat to note, especially against Begelton: Pickett has not missed a single tackle in the passing game this season. Can Begelton’s elusiveness break that streak, or will Pickett be able to keep the slot receiver contained?

PLAYER TO WATCH: QB JEREMIAH MASOLI, OTTAWA

With Dru Brown out and backup Dustin Crum failing to impress in relief last week, the starting job falls to Masoli. The fact that Masoli is even able to play football is nothing short of incredible. He was injured early in the 2022 season and missed an entire year before making his return in Week 5 last season. That return lasted 16 snaps before he ruptured his Achilles.

Masoli was playing at an impressive level when we last saw him in 2022, putting up over 1,000 yards and eight big-time throws in just four games. It remains to be seen if he can get back to that level. At age 35 and coming off two year-long injuries, getting through the game healthy this week alone would be a win for Masoli and the Redblacks.

MONTREAL ALOUETTES VS. SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS

For the second time this season, these first-place teams will do battle. The Alouettes came out on top last time, grinding out a 20-16 win at home. Montreal has won both of its games since then and has a commanding lead in the East Division with an 8-1 record. The Roughriders have lost and tied their two games since, watching their lead shrink. A win here would be massive for Saskatchewan as it tries to keep hold of the division.

The good news for the Roughriders is that starting quarterback Trevor Harris looks on track to return. Before he was injured, Harris had one of the highest passing grades in the CFL (87.8). The bad news for Saskatchewan is that Montreal’s previously injured starting quarterback Cody Fajardo also appears on track to return. Montreal has the deeper roster, but if Harris plays at the elite level he’s capable of, he could carry Saskatchewan to a win.

MATCHUP TO WATCH: LT NICK CALLENDER, MONTREAL VS. EDGE MALIK CARNEY, SASKATCHEWAN

This matchup pits one of the CFL’s best pass-rushers against one of its top pass protectors. Callender’s 77.7 pass-blocking grade ranks fourth in the CFL. He has allowed just one sack and 11 total pressures to this point. But he’ll have his hands full with Carney. The edge rusher has five sacks and 30 total pressures this season, both of which rank in the top five among all defenders. His 8.2 pass-rushing productivity score ranks second in the league.

The last time these two teams met, Carney was held to just three hurries. He’ll be looking to improve on that number, and if he can, Saskatchewan’s defense should be able to find plenty of success.

PLAYER TO WATCH: WR TYSON PHILPOT, MONTREAL

Something clicked for Philpot at the start of last season’s playoffs, and he’s been one of the best receivers in the CFL ever since. Over that span, Philpot’s 73.7 receiving grade ranks fourth. He leads the CFL in receptions (73), has almost 200 more yards after the catch than the next-best player (470 to 272) and has forced 10 more missed tackles than anyone else (25 total).

Philpot’s 2.15 yards per route run average in that span ranks second in the league. No one in the CFL can turn a seemingly nothing play into something spectacular like Philpot. He’s a must-watch player every time he’s on the field.

EDMONTON ELKS VS. HAMILTON TIGER-CATS

The Elks are riding high, having won two straight games after their 0-7 start and vaulting themselves back into the race for the final playoff spot. Unfortunately for them, they lost sparkplug quarterback Tre Ford to injury last week. He’s currently day-to-day, so it remains to be seen if he’ll be able to play.

Hamilton is looking to bounce back from two straight losses to the first-place Montreal Alouettes. They’ve officially benched future Canadian Football Hall of Fame quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell, opting instead for Taylor Powell. The Tiger-Cats do have the two highest-graded pass-rushers in the CFL in interior defenders Dewayne Hendrix and Casey Sayles (89.8 and 88.5 pass-rush grades, respectively), but that hasn’t resulted in many wins.

MATCHUP TO WATCH: RB JAMES BUTLER, HAMILTON VS. LB NICK ANDERSON, EDMONTON

Butler started the season with a massive game, then followed it up with three straight duds. But since Week 7, he ranks second in the CFL with 255 rushing yards, seven explosive runs and 15 missed tackles forced. Butler has been looking like one of the top running backs in the league again.

Cue Nick Anderson, the highest-graded run-stopping linebacker in the CFL. Anderson’s 88.7 run-defense grade ranks third at any position, and his 31 run tackles rank fifth. Most impressively, Anderson has received a negative grade on just 2.2% of his run-defense snaps. That’s the second-best percentage in the league, behind only Montreal’s Tyrice Beverette. If anyone is capable of stopping Butler, it’s Anderson.

PLAYER TO WATCH: QB TAYLOR POWELL, HAMILTON

With Bo Levi Mitchell getting yanked last week, Hamilton has decided to roll with Powell as its starting quarterback for the immediate future. If Powell continues to play like he did last week, the team will have made the right decision. Powell was the highest-graded quarterback of Week 10, posting an 86.7 overall grade. He showed accuracy (81.6% adjusted completion rate) as well as an ability to take care of the football (zero turnover-worthy plays). That was Powell’s biggest issue last year, when he made 17 turnover-worthy plays to just 11 big-time throws.

If Powell can keep the trend of last game going over the rest of the season, he may be able to turn Hamilton’s season around.

WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS VS. BRITISH COLUMBIA LIONS

Early in the week, this matchup was billed as a struggling, injured B.C. Lions offense limping into a matchup with the surging Winnipeg defense. But with the Lions’ signing of Canadian quarterback Nathan Rourke, it’s all about him now. Winnipeg’s defense has been phenomenal as of late, led by cornerback Tyrell Ford, the highest-graded defender in the CFL (88.0). He and his fellow secondary teammates will have their hands full guarding the B.C. receiver trio of Justin McInnis (83.5 receiving grade, highest in the CFL), Alexander Hollins (71.6, sixth highest) and Keon Hatcher (highest-graded receiver in 2023).

Those are a lot of weapons for Rourke as the Lions try to get their season on track and send Winnipeg back to the basement of the West.

MATCHUP TO WATCH: WR KENNY LAWLER, WINNIPEG VS. CB GARRY PETERS, BRITISH COLUMBIA

After missing eight games with a broken arm, former All-Star receiver Lawler appears ready to return. That’s big news for a Winnipeg offense that has sorely missed him. Lawler was one of the highest-graded receivers in the CFL a year ago (81.0 receiving grade) and led the league with a 2.75 yards per route run average. He’ll have quite the battle in his first week back, taking on one of the best cover cornerbacks in the CFL.

Peters isn’t having quite the same impact as last year, with just one interception and six forced incompletions. But he has allowed just 17 catches for 183 yards and only eight first downs all season. Teams are finally looking away from him after he was one of the most targeted cornerbacks in the league over the past two seasons. Don’t expect Winnipeg to avoid throwing to Lawler just because Peters is covering him, though.

PLAYER TO WATCH: QB NATHAN ROURKE, BRITISH COLUMBIA

Rourke’s return to the CFL has made this game the must-watch game of the year so far. In 2022, Rourke led the league with a 94.2 PFF overall grade despite missing almost half the season with an injury. He had an 83.6% adjusted completion rate and 18 big-time throws to just nine turnover-worthy plays. His 2022 numbers extrapolated out to an 18-game season would have given him more than 6,000 passing yards and 45 touchdowns, as well as 560 rushing yards and another 13 touchdowns on the ground.

Rourke has bounced around NFL rosters ever since, but he is now back in Canada. Make no mistake about it, Rourke has the potential to be a Canadian football legend. It will be incredibly interesting to see how he’ll do as he returns to the Canadian game with minimal preparation time.