CFL 2024 Season Week 21 Game Preview: Hamilton Tiger-Cats at Ottawa Redblacks
The 2024 CFL regular season comes to a conclusion in Week 21, beginning with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on the road against East Division rival Ottawa Redblacks.
Hamilton (7-10) has been impressive over the last month-plus with four wins in five contests despite the Tiger-Cats being out of playoff contention. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell is in the conversation for MOP as the only quarterback in the CFL with over 5,000 yards and 30 touchdowns.
The Redblacks (8-8-1) have lost five straight games, starting when Hamilton beat them by 16 points last month and continuing last week in the seven-point loss to the Toronto Argonauts. Ottawa's defense has taken its lumps with injuries and their quarterback Dru Brown has been in and out with injuries as well. The offense in Ottawa is tied for last in rushing with 82.9 per game.
Preview
Game Information
Line: Redblacks -2.5, O/U 50.5
Date/Location: Friday, October 24, 2024 at TD Place in Ottawa, Ontario
Kickoff Time: 7:00 pm EST
Weather Forecast: Cloudy, 9 Degrees Celsius
TV/Streaming: TSN, RDS, CFL+
Injury Reports/Inactives
The Tiger-Cats will only be without two players, but they are key starters on both sides of the ball. Hamilton's Most Outstanding Rookie receiver Shemar Bridges will be out with a quad injury and the Tiger-Cats' Most Outstanding Defensive Player Jamal Peters is out with a neck injury.
Ottawa has six players out, with wide receiver Justin Hardy (ankle) and running back Jamal Morrow (hamstring) being the biggest names. Defensive backs Bennett Williams (head) and Justin Howell (knee) are also out for the Redblacks. The others who are out include linebacker Lucas Cormier (hand) and fullback Marco Dubois (shoulder).
Keys to Victory
Hamilton has a well-balanced attack on offense that has utilized running back Greg Bell in a breakout role. Mitchell obviously needs a strong outing with turnovers being his biggest concern. Cornerback Jonathan Moxey is a key player in the secondary and needs to play well in place of the injured Peters.
Ottawa doesn't have anything to play for, but the Redblacks are in need of momentum entering the postseason. That starts with Brown. A lot has been asked of him in carrying this offense, but the running game has to get going early. The defense's key to victory will be the front seven with defensive lineman Michael Wakefield disrupting Hamilton's running game and getting in the face of Mitchell.
Prediction
This game has no impact on playoff positioning as the Redblacks are looking forward to a road matchup against the Argos next week. For Week 21, Ottawa needs to find any kind of positivity to bring with them and it just seems like the Redblacks have not been able to find that. Hamilton has looked like the better team of late and a statement win to close the year would help give Tiger-Cats fans hope for 2025.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats 36, Ottawa Redblacks 30
You can follow Anthony Miller on X @ByAnthonyMiller.
Catch up with CFL on SI.com on Facebook and X.
