2015 CFL Power Rankings Week 8

I wrote this earlier in the week but didn't post it before the Thursday game.

1. Hamilton Tiger-Cats
It would be hard to argue against Hamilton as the top ranked team. They have won four in a row, are unbeaten at home and absolutely destroyed BC last week,
offensively, defensively and with special teams. That's despite injuries to Andy Fantuz, CJ Gable, Bakari Grant ad that safety. The Cats are deep in both import and non-import talent and their defensive front seven is second to none in the league. Another Brandon Banks punt return TD, plus a passing TD for him, is an endorsement for special teams coach Jeff Reinebold.

2. Calgary Stampeders
The Stamps demolished Ottawa at home, showing that apart from Hamilton, they are a cut above the other CFL teams. In a league rife with backup quarterbacks forced into starting, Bo Levi Mitchell is considerably better than the average quarterback. Even with an injury to start Canadian running back Jon Cornish, the Stamps offense is still formidable.

3. Edmonton Eskimos
Considering that the Eskimos have been missing starting quarterback Mike Reilly for weeks, the Eskimo defense has kept the team winning, even with some mediocre quarterbacking from backup Matt Nichols? Eventually Reilly will be back and the team will be even better. Adarius Bowman
being out hurts.

4. Toronto
Toronto keeps winning with Trevor Harris and basically some no names. I'm not sure how long it can last, but they are a decent team with Harris.






5. Ottawa REDBLACKS
Spanked by Calgary and their own incompetence last week, Ottawa is having trouble while receiver Chris Williams is injured, even though they have a lot of other receiving options.

6. Montreal Alouettes
Rakeem Cato isn't looking as good as his initial games. At least the Michael Sam distraction is over.











7. BC Lions
They were dominated by Hamilton last week, even with Lulay and Harris. Now their best linebacker Eliminiam is out. Not good.

8. Winnipeg Blue Bombers
With Drew Willy out, the Bombers finally tried out Robert Marve at quarterback against the Argos at home. He didn't look bad, so at least there is some hope in Bomber land for making the playoffs until Willy returns. Not a lot of hope, but the West isn't that great this year.

9. Saskatchewan Roughriders
They're 0-7 and Durant and Glenn are hurt. Maybe next year Saskatchewan.

Bell and Tanenbaum to Buy Argos, 2016 Grey Cup Likely in Toronto Not Hamilton

TSN is reporting that Bell and Larry Tanenbaum from MLSE will likely but the Toronto Argonauts tomorrow. The deal appears to include the Argos hosting the 2016 Grey Cup:

"Bell is the majority owner of TSN, the exclusive television rights holder of the CFL.The deal includes the Argos hosting two Grey Cup games, including the 2016 CFL championship game.

Whether either or both of those games will be played at Rogers Centre or BMO Field is yet to be determined, with the possibility the 2016 game could coincide with the NHL staging its first Toronto outdoor game at BMO."

Hamilton looked like it had a chance to host the 2016 Grey Cup (the last time was in 1996) however this deal seems to trump it. Ottawa likely has the inside edge for hosting the 2017 due to the 150th anniversary of Canada. Would the league hold the Grey Cup three years in a row in Southern Ontario? I'm guessing no unfortunately.

Likely a lot of pissed off TFC fans.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers Make Money in 2014

I meant to post about Winnipeg's annual report when it came out, but I'm a bit late. Despite a bad season and not making the playoffs, the Bombers made money:

"Today the Winnipeg Football Club released its 2014 Annual Report and announced an overall operating profit of $3.9 Million – an increase of $1 Million from 2013. These solid results were due to revenue growth of 10.7%, as almost all of the Club’s significant revenue streams had positive increases in 2014, including double digit growth in corporate partnerships, suites, and concessions. Season ticket revenue and game day tickets, which make up total game revenue, continue to be the Club’s major revenue source at 37% of total operating revenue."

I wonder how much the Bombers great start contributed to these good numbers, as a 10.7% revenue increase is way above inflation. A lot of tickets were probably bought before the fans were aware the team was bad. Interesting that the ticket revenue is at 37%. That's obviously high compared to say an NFL team, but not bad. I will have to take a more detailed look at the report to see where merchandise sales are. I'm not sure whether the Bombers sell more merchandise than the Ticats or not.

Expenses increased to due to the higher salary cap:

"The increase in operating expenses relates to the focus on Football Operations where there was an increase of $735,000, due primarily to the new five year collective bargaining agreement with an increased salary cap, along with an increased emphasis on scouting and recruiting. In December 2014, the Club made its first scheduled payment of $4.5 Million to Triple B Stadium Inc., as a first payment on Investors Group Field."

The Bombers host the 2015 Grey Cup this year, which should produce an excellent 2015 in terms of revenue. If the Bombers actually have a great season it could be a remarkable year for revenue. However I wouldn't bet on the Bombers getting to Grey Cup 2015.

Hamilton or Toronto for the 2016 Grey Cup?

I've already blogged about the Ticats having a good chance of landing the 2016 Grey Cup at Tim Horton's Field. However there's some news and not particularly good. Apparently former CFL commissioner and now Toronto Mayor John Tory made a claim about the 2016 cup coming to Toronto in 2016:

Tory, a former CFL commissioner, may have prematurely awarded the league’s championship game to Toronto next year.

Talking with 590 The Fan’s Jeff Blair, Tory said 2016 is going to be a big sporting year for the city, including hosting the Grey Cup.

“Think about what a great year for sports it’s going to be in 2016,” Tory said. “I was reminded of the fact the Grey Cup is here. We’ve got the NBA all-star game, we’ve got the World Cup of Hockey, and that’s on the heels of the Pan Am Games this year.”

But Tory was forced to back off his declaration a few hours later. Tory’s spokesman Amanda Galbraith said the mayor misspoke.

Considering that Toronto just had the Cup in 2012 that seems to me like going to the well to often, especially considering the lack of interest in the league in the Toronto area. Hamilton hasn't hosted since 1996 and 1972 before that and we have a new, hopefully finished soon stadium. 

I'm wondering if the reason for the Toronto rumours is that the league would like to make the Argos more saleable with the profits from a 2016 Cup baked into the cake. Without that need I would feel more confident about Hamilton's chances. Still I think that four years is too short for Toronto.

When Will the 2016 Grey Cup Location Be Announced?

I've predicted that the Hamilton Tiger-Cats will get to host the 2016 Grey Cup on this blog. The game hasn't been here since 1996 and before that 1972.

When will we find out the location of the 2016 game? The location for next year's game in Winnipeg, was announced earlier this year on March 24th. So expect only a few more months for the 2016 announcement. Ottawa might also be a possibility, but I'm thinking that 2017 might be a better possibility for them.

Although a question is would the league have back to back games in Ontario? With two new stadiums and the fact that Ottawa and Hamilton aren't super close, I don't think that's a big deal.

Grey Cup in Hamilton in 2016

There's certainly still a lot to say about the new stadium, however one positive is that the new stadium is supposedly expandable to 40,000 seats. That is apparently large enough to host a Grey Cup, which the city hasn't since 1996 and 1972 before that. The configuration of the stadium with the open end zones may be that way to facilitate the temporary bleachers to get to 40K.

With the stadium to be built in time for the 2014 season (hopefully), and only the 2013 Grey Cup awarded, that leaves a lot of possibilities. There's pretty much no way Hamilton could host the 2014 event, with the most important that construction delays could cause problems. The 2015 is a possibility, but that is the same year as the Pan Am games and only three years after the Toronto Grey Cup. Likely 2016 is the first possible year and 20 years after the 1996 Cup.

However Ottawa now looks likely to be back in the CFL and will also want to be hosting a Grey Cup. Whether Ottawa is far enough away that back to back cups in Hamilton and Ottawa wouldn't be an issue is an open question. 

Getting a Cup quickly could smooth over some of the resentments over the new stadium and getting the Cats on a schedule of hosting it every eight years would be a boon to the city. The 1996 Cup had difficulties selling out the stadium, however the Ticats organization is considerably more dynamic now then back then. More people likely travel to the Cup now than back in 1996. If Saskatchewan gets in, then a sellout is likely guaranteed just from ex-pats and diehards travelling from the prairies.

This is all speculation, but again, the new stadium allows the Cats to host a Grey Cup.