5 questions that need answering down The Final Stretch

Week 17?! Really?! Where has the time gone?

On the CFL’s weekly newsletter I saw the term "The Final Stretch" and while it has clearly snuck up on me, the reality is that we are here as the temperatures drop and the sunlight each day shortens.

The good news is that there is still plenty of intrigue and questions to be answered over the next month or so before we head to the 2026 Grey Cup Playoffs.

While the East Division crown appears headed to Montreal, as the most obvious of the theoretical questions, here are my top five burning mysteries as we wind down the 2026 campaign.

IS DAVIS ALEXANDER THE INEVITABLE MOP?

There is no debating the special season of Alouettes quarterback Davis Alexander. As the George Reed Most Outstanding Player debate usually goes, there is momentum around certain candidates and, at times, it feels like if enough ‘buzz’ is generated, that the tangible facts worth using for measurement sometimes get lost in the discussion.

Alexander has so many interesting notes to his name in 2026 and continues to add to his unique and fiery resume as the season rolls along with memorable moments and statistical performances. My only question is whether anyone could build a strong enough resume between now and the end of the season to challenge his stature, or whether the closest thing to a legitimate "challenger" is his top target Tyson Philpot?

ARE THE STAMPS A REAL THREAT OR AN EMPTY ONE?

I’ve done a variety of Stampeders games this year on the CFL on TSN broadcast. At times, they have looked like a giant, three-phase football team capable of beating you any way they want. In other matchups, they’ve come across as a mouse standing very close to a flashlight flexing in order to appear larger, until the perspective gets put into proper focus and you realize the danger was anything but imminent.

In a one-game scenario the Stamps are perhaps the CFL’s most confusing proposition. The big question now outside of whether or not they’ll answer the bell and go 12 rounds in the playoffs is whether or not they’ll get the chance to see the postseason.

WILL CHAD KELLY'S INTERCEPTIONS EVER REALLY MATTER?!

Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly leads the league in both touchdowns thrown and interceptions, with the second number being slightly stunning when put into context.

Kelly has 22 interceptions and his Eastern foe Davis Alexander has 3. Having seven times more interceptions than Alexander seems like a stat line for a quarterback on a woefully incompetent offence, but the Double Blue are anything but that.

Kelly and the Argos will go to the playoffs and try to gun their way up and down the field in what feels like it should be a five touchdown and five interception kind of Eastern Semi or Final. The question here is whether or not that will ever cause Toronto to fall apart, or whether they'll just keep living and dying by the sword?

CAN THE ELKS REALLY TURN THIS ALL THE WAY AROUND?

Thinking back to recent years of Edmonton Elks football, it’s stunning to see how far head coach Mark Kilam has brought this group alongside general manager Ed Hervey and quarterback Cody Fajardo.

So many moments this season have screamed "miraculous turnaround" for the Elks, who are finding ways to erase the recent past and create an entirely new and special dynamic and culture within their club. Doing it down The Final Stretch to punctuate a special season and build momentum would send all kinds of special messages to the league and Edmonton fans, but was this just a nice summer story, or is it a potential championship charge being built?

WHAT WILL THIS ALL LOOK LIKE NEXT YEAR?

As we near the playoff push, the looming changes to the playoff structure are front of mind. Next year, eight teams will make the playoffs and under the current standings ALL FIVE teams from the West would reach the dance, while Ottawa would be the odd man out.