Toronto Argonauts can clinch home playoff game with win over Redblacks

Photo courtesy: Scott Grant/CFLPhotoArchive.com

The Toronto Argonauts can clinch a home playoff game with a win over the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday afternoon.

The Boatmen have won three of their last four games, including recent wins over the first-place Montreal Alouettes and Winnipeg Blue Bombers, to secure a spot in the playoffs for the fourth straight season. The club can now book a home postseason game for the fourth straight year with a win over the Redblacks, who currently sit one point back of Toronto in the standings.

Ottawa won the only previous meeting between the teams this season by a score of 41-27 on Sept. 7. The Argonauts allowed six sacks and committed six turnovers in the loss at TD Place Stadium, including four interceptions from franchise quarterback Chad Kelly. The CFL’s reigning Most Outstanding Player has played considerably better since then, notching six total touchdowns and throwing two interceptions in four outings.

Ottawa can leapfrog the Argonauts in the standings with a win on Saturday, though the team can’t clinch a home playoff game until next week at the earliest. The Redblacks will host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Friday, Oct. 25 to finish the regular season, while Toronto will visit the Edmonton Elks that same night. The Redblacks need a win or an Argonauts loss to host the East Semi-Final, which would be their first home playoff game since 2018.

The Montreal Alouettes clinched first place in the East Division two weeks ago, giving them the right to host the East Final for the first time since 2012. The Argonauts hosted Montreal in last year’s East Final, only to suffer a shocking 38-17 upset loss to the eventual Grey Cup champions.

The Argonauts (9-7) will host the Redblacks (8-7-1) on Saturday, Oct. 19 with kickoff slated for 3:00 p.m. EDT. The betting lines for the rest of Week 20 are as follows.