Tevin Jones says the Calgary Stampeders are the CFL’s best team. There is just one stubborn detail: the standings don’t agree
“We think we’re the best team in the whole CFL, but our record doesn’t show it,” Jones said to reporters.
If nothing else, it’s good confidence for their playoff push.
Calgary takes that confidence—and its 6-8 record—to TD Place for Saturday’s 1 p.m. MT rematch against the 0-13 Ottawa Redblacks. Last weekend’s opener was less mismatch than mayhem, ending only when René Paredes drilled a CFL-record 62-yard walk-off field goal for a 40-38 wild victory.
Jones helped light the fuse. He caught five passes for 102 yards, including a 60-yard touchdown from Vernon Adams Jr. Jones now has 23 receptions for 388 yards and four touchdowns this season, and sits 14 yards from 3,000 for his career.
Adams rebounded from Calgary’s ugly 53-16 loss in Edmonton by throwing for 357 yards and two touchdowns. Jones said the quarterback’s best football appears when he is comfortable, confident and having fun.
The same prescription fits the Stampeders.
The confidence sounds audacious because Calgary has spent the season turning narrow defeats into a recurring bad habit. Its first six losses came by one score before Edmonton swept the Labour Day home-and-home, including a 53-16 hammering. Calgary finally landed on the right side of the drama against Ottawa, but Paredes’ miracle did not erase the defensive leaks that made it necessary.
They are fifth in the West, behind 7-6 Winnipeg and BC, with four games remaining. The Calgary’s road ahead of the Ottawa series was clearly defined if the Stampeders want to make the playoffs: sweep the Redblacks, then beat Winnipeg and BC to secure valuable head-to-head tiebreakers. A Calgary win combined with a Hamilton loss this weekend would officially confirm a West-to-East playoff crossover, although it would not guarantee Calgary owns it.
First they have to beat a desperate Ottawa team. McLeod Bethel-Thompson threw five touchdown passes in Calgary, while Keelan White caught three and Justin Hardy produced 12 receptions for 129 yards and another score in trying to get its first win of the season.
“Ottawa’s record doesn’t show it either, but they’re a great team, hands down,” Jones said.
His solution is wonderfully uncomplicated.
“I don’t care who we’re playing—little league, high school or college—we’ve got to go out there and play like they’re the best team in the world,” he said. “All we’ve got to do is focus on ourselves, put one foot in front of the other and do what we’re supposed to do.”
Head coach Dave Dickenson agrees confidence needs company.
“Momentum’s real,” Dickenson said to reporters. “But it’s also about creating your own energy, playing better football and correcting mistakes.”
Ottawa scored five passing touchdowns amid Calgary communication breakdowns. Dickenson wants better tackling, sharper execution and new “counterpunches” across all three phases.
So, yes, Calgary can believe it is the league’s best. Belief is useful fuel. But the Stampeders now need receipts—and preferably fewer heart palpitations than last Saturday.
“They’re desperate, and we still are,” Dickenson said. “So we understand this is a huge game for us.
“In my mind, what happened last game was it was a back and forth game that we felt good about winning. It really was because there’s a lot of things we know we can do better at and we have to do better at. But still, we’ve had many of those games this year where it’s come down to a play or two, and unfortunately, we’ve been on the other end of it. So it’s nice to be on on the winning side of that.”
Beat Ottawa again, and the swagger lives. Lose to a winless opponent, and the standings win the argument.
