3 strengths for every team in Division Finals presented by Wegovy®

The Division Finals presented by Wegovy® are almost here.

Saturday afternoon sees Montreal host Winnipeg in the Eastern Final presented by Wegovy® before BC visits Edmonton in the Western Final presented by Wegovy® that evening.

As we get set for this weekend’s doubleheader, here are three strengths for each team vying for a spot in the 113th Grey Cup.

WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS

BRADY OLIVEIRA

While the status of quarterback Zach Collaros will garner most of the headlines, the Bombers always have an ace up their sleeve. Tailback Brady Oliveira led the CFL with 1,493 rushing yards in the regular season to go along with seven touchdowns. Oliveira added 95 yards on 20 carries in the Eastern Semi-Final presented by Wegovy®.

DEFENDING THE PASS

Winnipeg finished the regular season as the league’s top passing defence, allowing just 389 completions and 272.1 passing yards per game. The Blue Bombers also paced the CFL with 82 pass knockdowns, with Evan Holm (15), Willie Jefferson (13), and Major Williams (12) all in double digits.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Returner Trey Vaval is the league’s Most Outstanding Special Teams Player for a second consecutive season, finishing with a league best 2,612 combined return yards and was one of three players to return a kick for a touchdown. Kicker Sergio Castillo, on the other hand, led the CFL with 64 field goal attempts and finished second with 53 successful tries.

MONTREAL ALOUETTES

THE LEAGUE’S BEST OFFENCE

The Als finished first overall with 420.9 yards per game in net offence, 65 offensive touchdowns, 448 first downs, and 7.53 average yards per play. With quarterback Davis Alexander, receivers Tyson Philpot and Tyler Snead, and a run game that excelled with whoever was in the backfield, there wasn’t a more potent offence in the regular season.

ELITE INDIVIDUALS AT EVERY DEFENSIVE POSITION

Mustafa Johnson is a dominant force in the middle of the defensive line. Tyrice Beverette and Geoffrey Cantin-Arku are among the CFL’s best linebackers. Lorenzo Burns and Kabion Ento form one of the league’s best cornerback duos. The Alouettes have truly elite talent in all three defensive layers.

THE OFFENSIVE LINE

Montreal emphatically finished number one by allowing just 19 sacks during the regular season, good for just over one per game. Also excelling in run blocking, this line boasts a pair of finalists for the league’s Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman in Nick Callender and Pier-Olivier Lestage.

BC LIONS

METHODICAL OFFENCE

One of BC’s strengths going 9-1 down the stretch was how well they controlled the football. The Lions finished second overall with an average of 31 minutes and four seconds of possession time. BC’s methodical offence was helped by a committed run game that saw them lead the league with an average gain of 5.9 yards per rush.

RUN DEFENCE

The Lions were the hardest team to run on throughout the regular season. Allowing league best marks of 71.3 rushing yards per game and 4.4 yards per rush, BC built their identity on both sides of the run game.

THE TWO-HEADED MONSTER

Speaking of which, the Lions enter Saturday with an effective one-two punch at tailback. Zander Horvath emerged as the team’s primary threat and led the league with 18 rushing touchdowns, tied for the second highest total in league history and the most by any player since 2007. James Butler, on the other hand, remains a viable threat and finished the season with 539 yards and five touchdowns.

EDMONTON ELKS

THE RUN GAME

The Elks were the league’s top rushing team during the regular season with 2,296 yards, which was good for 127.6 per game. Tailback Justin Rankin led the way and finished second in the league with 1,170 yards. Cody Fajardo, on the other hand, led all quarterbacks with 517 rushing yards of his own.

THE CORNERS

Edmonton’s Tyrell Ford and JJ Ross emerged as an elite cornerback duo in 2025. The pair cemented that this season as they combined for 12 interceptions. Ford paced the league with seven from his position at field corner, while Ross added five more from the boundary.

VINCENT BLANCHARD

There wasn’t a kicker who impacted his team’s success in 2026 more than Vincent Blanchard. The 2024 CFL Canadian Draft pick led the league with 55 successful field goals and a 93.2 per cent accuracy rate. That second total is the ninth-best single-season mark in league history and second best in Elks history, behind only Sean Whyte (93.8 per cent) in 2016.