Power Poll (Week 10)

I think I now know how College Football poll voters feel. I had a hell of a time deciding who to put at numbers two through five. Hamilton beat Montreal and Edmonton beat Calgary. Calgary beat Hamilton and Montreal beat Edmonton. Edmonton beat Hamilton and Calgary beat Montreal. So you have to have Calgary ahead of Hamilton and Montreal, but Edmonton has to be above Calgary, but below Montreal. Hamilton has to be ahead of Montreal, but below Edmonton and Calgary. You see the conundrum? I got a headache just writing that. Logic is out the window, so it's just based on the eyeball test.

1. Winnipeg Blue Bombers (Last Week: 1)

The Bombers lost, but remain in first. But Winnipeg showed everyone what happens when their Defense is just "good," not "great." The Bombers have no offense right now. And what the heck happened to Fred Reid? That said, I expect Winnipeg to pound the tar out of the Riders this week. They're still the best team, but they have flaws. In fact, that's what makes this season so much fun; there is no one dominant team.

2. Hamilton Tiger-Cats (Last Week: 4)

Call me a homer, call me delusional, call me whatever you want, but you don't often see a team dismantle the Als the way the Cats did on Labour Day. It was a win where the lopsided score actually made the Als look better than their play deserved. For at least one week, Hamilton looks like the second-best team in the CFL.

3. Edmonton Eskimos (Last Week: 5)

The Edmonton Eskimos went into their bye week having scored five points in their previous two games. Then they come out and pound the Stamps in Calgary by four touchdowns? If that is not proof positive of what a bye week can do to a struggling team, I don't know what is. The Eskimos have now won two at McMahon this season and hold a decided mental edge over their provincial rivals.

4. Calgary Stampeders (Last Week: 2)

Is it possible that Edmonton just has Calgary's number this year? The Stamps are a good football team, but Edmonton just seems to be able to lay the wood to them. The rematch on Friday will provide the final answer to this question.

5. Montreal Alouettes (Last Week: 3)

Simply put, Montreal looked bad on Labour Day. It was probably an aberration more than a sign of things to come, but that was one of the most pitiful efforts I've seen out of the Alouettes in some time. Montreal gets a shot of redemption when they host the Ti-Cats this Sunday. Another putrid performance and the Als might be saying "au revoir" to their decade of dominance.

6. British Columbia Lions (Last Week: 6)

It's almost to the point of absurdity how BC's seasons follow the same script year after year. Start slow, question whether Buono still has it, win seven of their last nine games in the second half of the season, scare someone in the playoffs, then have people think next year is the year. Wash, rinse, repeat.

7. Saskatchewan Roughriders (Last Week: 8)

Even a blind man could see the Labour Day weekend outcome coming. All signs pointed in Saskatchewan's favour. Labour Day home game, return of Ken Miller, coming off a bye. It was obvious that the Riders would come out fired up and win on Sunday. What is equally obvious, however, is that the Bombers will beat the Riders in the Banjo Bowl by about 30 points. The Riders played well, but this is still not a very good football team.

8. Toronto Argonauts (Last Week: 7)

The Argos are a mess right now. Their Offense is historically inept. I mean, when was the last time a CFL team passed for fewer than 100 yards in a game? Neither Cleo Lemon nor Dalton Bell is the answer. Good thing the Argos traded for Steven Jyles (who is eligible to come off the injured list this week). But it's too little, too late. The Argos have a faint hope of making the playoffs, but we all know it's not going to happen. Their time would probably be better spent concentrating on how to avoid a repeat in 2012.

Highest Climb: Hamilton, Edmonton (+2)
Steepest Fall: Calgary, Montreal (-2)