Photo courtesy: Edmonton Elks
The Edmonton Elks have a two-game winning streak for the first time in 2025. A balanced attack found a way to record a 28-20 home win versus the Toronto Argonauts.
Here are my thoughts on the game.
Run, Rankin, run
Justin Rankin has found a way to improve in his sophomore season. The only thing that has held him back has been how he has been used. The play calling leaned on him early on Friday, and it really paid off.
Both Rankin and Javon Leake had zero yards rushing last week in Montreal. The second drive for the Elks this week found the Ohio native racking up 63 yards — 41 of those rushing. As the diminutive back has done throughout his CFL career so far, the more touches he gets, the bigger his plays become. He finished with 92 yards rushing on 13 carries, and his 7.1-yard average led both teams. Many of those runs found him bouncing from the inside out and using a straight arm to find extra yards.
For the second week in a row, ‘Rank the Tank’ also led the team in receiving yards. Consistency may be one of his biggest contributions as he caught all five of his targets for 87 yards this week after 88 yards on four-of-four catches last week.
The balance he brings in all aspects really keeps defences guessing. That was most obviously seen in the play action call on Steven Dunbar’s late touchdown. The Argo defence froze with the threat of another Rankin run and gave the time to connect the deep toss. Keeping Rankin involved in the attack will be paramount to the team having more success.
To the disciplined go the spoils
It has been a long time since Edmonton clearly won a penalty battle. Not that penalties did not play a role, but only two accepted for 20 yards is quite the accomplishment for a team with a history of giving up football fields’ worth of yardage. Toronto was flagged eight times for a total of 90 yards, 60 of which came in the fourth quarter.
The flag that will be talked about the most is likely the one that was picked up on a challenge. Third down with 10 to go on the final Argos drive found Arbuckle looking for Jake Herslow. JJ Ross was in coverage, and there was no doubt he had his hand on the hip of the Double Blue receiver. The flag was thrown for defensive pass interference. Head Coach Mark Killam challenged immediately. With a short review, the call was overturned.
From my perspective, I would say the flag should not have been thrown in the first place, but I was surprised they overturned it, as it did not look clear and obvious that there wasn’t contact. As always seems to be the case, interference either way is tough to tell how they will rule. I do think it was the right final call.
Defensive push
This was far from a perfect defensive game, but I am seeing strides from players getting more time together. The defensive line had the most pressure we have seen this season. A less-than-experienced Toronto offensive line played a role in that, but this is where we should see some benefit from the expensive Edmonton pass rush. With two sacks recorded, it was their first game with more than one in 2025. The highlight came on a sack, strip and fumble recovery, with Brandon Barlow, Jake Ceresna and Robbie Smith taking each part respectively. That was a big swing with the Argos in scoring position and Edmonton notching a major on the next drive.
Toronto abandoned the run game, as they have been doing all season, early in the game, and so the pressure was on the defensive backfield. Kordell Jackson had an active night with eight tackles and one of the sacks. Nick Arbuckle seemed to be going to that weak side more often, which increased the action for both Jackson and Joel Dublanko. Arbuckle set a personal record of 382 yards thrown, but the bend-don’t-break defence only gave up one touchdown.
Last year, the EE found a rookie in Devodric Bynum who snagged five interceptions and grabbed the starting role at corner. When Bynum went down to injury this year, a new rookie, JJ Ross, stepped into the role. He has been excellent in his four games so far. Going up against the top receiver in the CFL, Damonte Coxie, is not an easy task. The Western Illinois product held him to only five receptions and 60 yards, something most teams haven’t been able to do.
The stats sheet only shows two tackles, but there are not many balls going towards his side. At six-foot-three, I really like his length and speed. Keep an eye out for more to come from the 24-year-old as he gains experience.
Fajardo keeps sprinkling
Cody Fajardo’s fourth start as a member of the Green and Gold continued to show him getting comfortable with his teammates and showcasing his accuracy and leadership. The Nevada product had an 81 percent completion rate, going 25-for-31 for 273 yards. The short game continues to grow with passes being spread to more receivers and more in motion. I only saw one play that had all of the receivers stopped and facing him. The chemistry is growing with Dunbar, too, as there were some throws into tight spaces, and the touchdown toss was a bullet to the right spot.
There was only one blemish in the game, with an interception thrown to Wynton McManis on the Elks’ side of half. Being on the move to throw likely caused Fajardo to lose McManis as he came across into the passing lane. In true veteran style, Fajardo went right back to Dunbar on his next attempt and moved forward.
I’m happy to see more targets going towards Kurleigh Gittens Jr., too. I think he can be an enormous asset to Fajardo with his hands and ability to catch on the run. KGJ is slightly behind his pace from last year, but could return to being a thousand-yard receiver with the right quarterback connection.
Amazing what balance will do
A quick trend that should not surprise anyone: when you balance run and pass in the offence, it helps to protect your quarterback.
Three games ago, Edmonton had only five carries and Cody Fajardo was sacked eight times. Against Hamilton, 24 run plays and only one sack. Last week, zero yards on six running back carries and six sacks. This game had the Elks with 15 rush attempts and zero sacks. This offensive line plays better with balanced play calling. More running means more success for the Elks.
Gregor MacKellar, one of the many former Argos playing in Green and Gold, had his best game to date. The Canadian lineman particularly stood out on the run plays up the gut for Rankin. His communication with centre David Beard seems to have improved. Bigger tests will come in the weeks ahead, but I like where the St. Francis Xavier product is headed. Maybe getting that new Grey Cup ring inspired him to step up his game.
Ray Finkle agrees
Vincent Blanchard took on all the Green and Gold kicking duties with the injury to Cody Grace. The Laval product was respectable in the punting role with an average of 43 yards on four punts, and nothing much was given for dangerous returner Janarion Grant to work with. For his first full game, I give a passing grade to the young Canadian.
The thought that did not cross my mind with the Grace injury was that Blanchard would need a new holder for field goals. The youngster had been on a tear in the last seven games, only missing one field goal from 54 yards out. Third-string quarterback Cole Snyder stepped in as the holder, and it caused a few adventures. Blanchard went four-of-six in this game, and a 52-yard attempt at the end of the first half almost ended in disaster as the miss was nearly returned for a TD by Grant. Snyder was the credited player for the touchdown-saving tackle.
With the three-minute warning in the game just past, Blanchard had a 43-yard attempt go wide left. On the hold, it seemed the laces were facing the kicker, making it tough to convert. That’s one of the small things that go into being a holder. There was one more miss, but that was given a mulligan due to Toronto going offside. The trio gets more time this week to get back to consistency.
Edmonton is back in action in one week to face the Ottawa Redblacks in the nation’s capital. Ottawa has not always been a friendly stop for the Green and Gold. Building off the momentum of back-to-back wins will be key to any talk of staying in the playoff race.
