For the first time in history, the Canadian Football League has three clubs who are 0-4: Edmonton, Hamilton and Winnipeg.
If you’re doing the math, in a nine-team league, that’s one-third of the board that is still winless in early July. Not exactly a great marketing platform.
The crazy thing is, the Elks appear to be an improved football club.
In spite of an absolutely brutal schedule, they’ve played well enough to easily be 2-2. Winless, though, is the reality.
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Even in the midst of tons of frustration, these eyes have seen several things to feel good about. Unfortunately, the scoreboard hasn’t seen it the same way.
Instead of simply staring into that 0-4 abyss, let’s look at the why the club is where it is right now.
It’s not the coaches and it’s not the players. It’s not the leadership, either. The schedule is the culprit. Or more accurately, whoever hung this anchor around the Elks’ neck.
In fairness, opening at home against the ever-popular Saskatchewan Roughriders was ideal.
A rivalry game after a week’s worth of buildup including the who’s who of living alumni and a visit by the Grey Cup itself. Spectacular. Had the beloved Edmonton Oilers not been smack dab in the midst of their magical playoff run (which also bumped the opening kickoff), the Commonwealth crowd could easily have surpassed 30,000.
Edmonton led much of the game before losing 29-21. A gutsy effort versus a solid Riders club. No problem with that opener, schedule-wise or performance-wise.
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What followed was another matter entirely. And it doesn’t take an incredibly deep dive to arrive at the question: What was the league office thinking?
Oil Spills
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In Week 2, the Elks hosted the defending Grey Cup champion Montreal Alouettes. You don’t have to be a genius to understand when you’re trying to create positive energy in a stale market, Jason Maas’ club is a tough early opponent.
Making it much, much worse was the Als having a two-day advantage in rest and preparation compared to Edmonton. If anyone needed an advantage in that regard, it would have been the Elks, not Montreal. The end result saw a very talented Montreal club win a close one, 23-20.
Then, what did Week 3 bring? Edmonton was sent on the road to face a Toronto Argonauts team fresh off a 15-3 season, and had the advantage of coming off a bye week. So, Toronto had two weeks of rest and preparation and they were playing at home, too.
On the flip side, the Elks only had seven days between games, including the aforementioned travel across two time zones. In spite of a great effort, predictably, Toronto won, 39-36.
Any reasonable person reviewing this schedule in advance — before it became official — probably should have asked:
Is this fair to the Edmonton football club?
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Is it fair to their fans?
Is the potential for a stumbling start a good way to position a club seeking new ownership?
The answers to those three questions? One big collective no.
Yet somehow the league office managed to pull off the impossible. They made a hellish schedule even harder.
Week 4? After playing in Toronto, the Elks had to make a quick stop at home before flying to Vancouver to face a B.C. Lions club picked by many pundits to win the West Division.
But hold on, It gets better. Or more accurately, worse. Edmonton faced the Lions out west only five days after playing Toronto back east. As with the previous two weeks, once again the opponent had more prep time.
A tired Chris Jones’ club battled their butts off in Vancouver before losing, 24-21, on a Sean Whyte field goal as the clock expired. Hell of an effort, but …
Should anyone really be surprised the Elks are 0-4?
No, of course not.
Should the Elks fans be wondering what in the world the league was thinking with this early schedule?
Damn right, they should.
When the Elks host the Ottawa Redblacks on Sunday, July 14, if the hometown marketing plan was following in the Lions’ footsteps with rapper 50 Cent performing, someone with half a sense of humour might ask the question: “Since we’re winless, is 50 Cent the opening act, or is that the opening bid on the prospective sale?”
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At 0-4, many may be ready to throw in the towel. But let’s not forget the Oilers and their start. Am I predicting a Grey Cup run? No, of course not. But with the next three games being Ottawa, Ottawa and the equally winless Hamilton Tiger-Cats, there is some silver lining in this otherwise dark, dark cloud over Commonwealth Stadium.
If the Elks manage to win two of those three, they’ll be back in the hunt for third place in the division — which in the CFLest of terms would translate to a playoff position. If they win all three, not only will the Elks be back in the West race, but suddenly, at 3-4, they could be positioned to chase an East Division crossover, if needed.
Let’s be clear, the league did the Elks and their fan base no favours with the brutal four-week opening schedule. But don’t give up. Interim president Rick LeLacheur is a proud Edmontonian who loves this club. He deserves your support.
Chris Jones is a proven winner and he still has a chance to add to that reputation by overcoming this start. His players have a chance to prove their character by fighting back.
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Repeating the Oilers’ near-historic turnaround will be virtually impossible, of course. But this Elks club might just turn a brutal start into a bit of a fun run of their own. Don’t laugh. When the Oilers were 5-12-1, how many of us were thinking Stanley Cup?
You read it here first, East or West, these Edmonton Elks will be a playoff team for the first time since 2019.
E-mail: gmoddejonge@postmedia.com
On Twitter: @GerryModdejonge
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