The Big Lie
Some say that CFL season starts on or after Labour Day. However that certainly is not true for the following reasons.
The Errors
*If the season only started then why not have 10 preseason games with a much shorter regular season?
*If the season only started at that point in time, then none of the starting quarterbacks would be injured by this juncture as most of them would have sat most of the games.
*If the season only started on/after Labour Day weekend then all teams would be zero and zero, but they are not.
*And then, finally, some of the season series are already decided by Labour Day or very least teams. Know what they need to do to take the season series.
So while it’s a fun notion to say that the CFL regular season does not start until Labour Day, but just isn’t true.
What Labour Day Weekend Does Mean For The Bombers
However, the Labour Day weekend, games, and the game following in to see if they’ll schedule are usually very entertaining and very pivotal to the final standings.
These next two weekends are weekends were if you win your games and your opponents in your same division lose their games some serious gaps can be made in the standings.
And that is certainly true for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers who will play Saskatchewan for the next two weekends.
Calgary and Edmonton will also play each other for the next two weekends. Whereas, BC will take on Montreal for the next two weekends.
What that means is that the Bombers need to win at least 1 of their next 2 games to stay on playoff potential pace. And if any of the Western teams including the Bombers sweep these next two games, that will go a long way to spring-boarding them up their division.
Winnipeg's Remaining Games
After this back to back with Saskatchewan, here is what Winnipeg has left on the schedule.
That is a lot of Western teams left to face, which I think is a great way to end the season.
Final Thoughts
While the idea that the season does not start on or after Labour Day (for the Bombers or any other team) is false, the games sure do get interesting around this time of year. I do not even want to say that the games mean more at this time of year because a win is still only worth 2 points regardless of when in the season you win. What I will concede is that the remaining games in the season start to provide us with a clearer picture of the playoff race. But to say that they are 'more important,' 'more entertaining,' etcetera is not a philosophy I can ascribe to.
The earlier wins/losses in the season mean just as much as the games about to be played because they all work together for the complete picture, the total win/loss ratio, and the final regular season standings.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments section wherever you are reading this. Catch all my articles here.