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Up in smoke in the Big Smoke

The first game of this weekend pits Edmonton against Toronto in the Rogers Centre and I am happy to report that a clay baseball infield is no longer part of the turf in the ’Dome. Horrific sports teams are a way of life in T.O. so the Blue Jays are dead and buried for the year — thus no baseball.

The first game of this weekend pits Edmonton against Toronto in the Rogers Centre and I am happy to report that a clay baseball infield is no longer part of the turf in the ’Dome. Horrific sports teams are a way of life in T.O. so the Blue Jays are dead and buried for the year — thus no baseball.

The Argonauts have to play out the string in this season despite a mathematical chance of a playoff appearance with odds similar in likelihood to Charlize Theron showing up drunk on my doorstep this weekend.

I would lean very reluctantly toward an Eskimo victory in this one. Toronto is a one trick pony this year and that trick is defence. Only close friends and family could say anything positive about their offence and they have an obligation out of loyalty.

Edmonton wins this one because Toronto is that bad.

The biggest game of the weekend is Saturday’s game between Saskatchewan and Calgary at Taylor Field by the Rockies (aka McMahon Stadium).

There are many variables in this game to consider before I pick the ’Riders to win. Henry Burris has played the worst football of his career over the past few weeks and it is a big mystery to me and a giant concern for Calgary fans. His recent on-field performance should cut down on his off-field whining about his lack of recognition. I doubt whether Hank wants to draw much attention to himself after his last four games.

Saskatchewan lost their best offensive threat when receiver Wes Dressler went high to catch a Darian Durant airball and came down with the ball and a broken leg. Now the rest of the ’Rider offence will learn about life after Dressler and I hope that Durant gets a little better handle on his game to compensate for the loss of his greatest safety net (Dressler).

There is enough talent to get the job done on both sides of the ball but I hope to see Saskatchewan’s inside D-guys amp up their game against Calgary. The ’Riders have to put pressure on Henry to prevent him from ending his slump against them.

The upset of the weekend will be a Hamilton victory against Montreal. The Ticats will not make the mistake of a lengthy stint with Quinton Porter at quarterback in this one. The steady play of quarterback Kevin Glenn is the only path to victory for Hamilton over Montreal and I doubt whether Ticat coach Marcel Bellefeuille is interested in another tutorial for Porter at the expense of a victory.

The last and second biggest game of the weekend is B.C. at Winnipeg. The Bombers have played inspired football lately. They have also played Hamilton, Edmonton and Toronto — and B.C. is none of the above. They are good enough to make a run at first place in the West and the Lions will be more than a handful for Michael ( I love to throw into double and triple coverage) Bishop.

Bishop has played better than normal but he still makes at least five bad decisions per game. B.C. will exploit his mistakes and only a monumental game by the Bomber defence will keep this game close. Look for a B.C. win.

Jim Sutherland is a local freelance writer whose column on the CFL appears on Tuesdays and Fridays. He can be reached at mystarcollectorcar.com