CFL Week 15: PFF Team of the Week & Player Awards

• Ottawa QB Dustin Crum has big day in tough loss: Crum showcased his typical accuracy (72.4% adjusted completion rate) while looking deeper than he has all year (11.9-yard average depth of target). He had two big-time throws and bno turnover-worthy plays. He didn’t throw a touchdown pass, but he made up for it by rushing for three.

• Another big week for the Edmonton Elks' offensive line: They were led by right tackle Brett Boyko and newly extended center Mark Korte, both of whom didn’t allow a single pressure. As a unit, the Elks surrendered zero sacks, zero hits and just five hurries.

• Nobody could block Elks’ Jake Ceresna: The edge rusher recorded two sacks and three hurries, but he also won a ridiculous seven other pass-rush snaps. His 33.3% pass-rush win rate was the highest in the CFL by far this past week, as was his 84.5 pass-rush grade.

Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

Week 15 was quite the CFL slate, as we saw some big upsets and huge comebacks. There were plenty of significant individual performances across the board, as can be seen on this week’s Team of the Week.

Five teams had four or more players make the team below, while the Toronto versus Montreal game produced just four players combined. The Saskatchewan Roughriders are the lone team without a player to make the squad. 

OFFENSE

QB: Dustin Crum, Ottawa
RB: Kevin Brown, Edmonton
Outside WR: Terry Godwin II, Hamilton
Slot WR: Justin McInnis, BC
Slot WR: Dalton Schoen, Winnipeg
Slot WR: Justin Hardy, Ottawa
Outside WR: Kyran Moore, Edmonton
LT: Brandon Revenberg, Hamilton
LG: Ryan Hunter, Toronto
C: Mark Korte, Edmonton
RG: Peter Nicastro, Toronto
RT: Jermarcus Hardrick, Winnipeg

DEFENSE

DI: Ricky Walker, Winnipeg
DI: Tibo Debaillie, BC
Edge: Lorenzo Mauldin IV, Ottawa
Edge: Jake Ceresna, Edmonton
LB: Tyrice Beverette, Montreal
LB: Kyrie Wilson, Winnipeg
Cover LB: Reggie Stubblefield, Montreal
CB: Jalon Edwards-Cooper, BC
CB: Sherrod Baltimore, Ottawa
HB: Evan Holm, Winnipeg
HB: Javien Elliott, Hamilton
S: Stavros Katsantonis, Hamilton

SPECIAL TEAMS

K: Lewis Ward, Ottawa
P: Jake Julien, Edmonton
Returner: Terry Williams, BC

QUARTERBACK OF THE WEEK: QB DUSTIN CRUM, OTTAWA REDBLACKS

While the Redblacks lost their seventh straight game last weekend, it was not because of Dustin Crum. The rookie quarterback did all he could in what was his highest-graded game of the season (88.7). Crum showcased his typical accuracy (72.4% adjusted completion rate) while looking deeper than he has all year (11.9-yard average depth of target).

He made two big-time throws and no turnover-worthy plays. He didn’t throw a touchdown pass, but he made up for it by rushing for three. He forced three missed tackles when running the ball and picked up five additional first downs on top of the trifecta of touchdowns. Crum has quietly moved into third place among quarterbacks with a 90.1 overall grade, trailing only Most Outstanding Player favorites Chad Kelly (91.2) and Zach Collaros (90.6).

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: RB KEVIN BROWN, EDMONTON ELKS

It was an incredible week for the Edmonton Elks' rushing game, spearheaded by Kevin Brown. The running back needed just 19 carries to gain 175 yards and a touchdown. He amassed exactly half of those yards after first contact and forced six missed tackles. Brown gained yards on every single one of his carries. He also picked up a first down on his lone reception in the game. Brown’s 86.0 rushing grade this season ranks fifth in the league (he would be higher if not for his four fumbles), and his 47 missed tackles forced ranks third. 

OFFENSIVE LINE OF THE WEEK: EDMONTON ELKS

This award goes hand in hand with the above paragraph, as Brown doesn’t have such a huge game if not for his offensive line. In the run game, the Elks were getting massive pushes up front, leading to a team average of 2.9 yards before contact per attempt, the second-highest mark of the week.

When it came to pass blocking, the Elks were even better. They were led by right tackle Brett Boyko and newly extended center Mark Korte, both of whom didn’t allow a single pressure. As a unit, the Elks allowed zero sacks, zero hits and just five hurries. Since Tre Ford took over as quarterback for Edmonton, the offensive line has yet to allow a sack and has surrendered just three quarterback hits. 

PASS RUSHER OF THE WEEK: EDGE JAKE CERESNA, EDMONTON

We’re on a streak of Elks when it comes to these weekly awards. Ceresna was an unblockable force for the team's defense and deserves a lot of credit for their win. The edge rusher recorded two sacks and three hurries, but he also won a ridiculous seven other pass-rush snaps. His 33.3% pass-rush win rate was the highest in the CFL by far this past week, as was his 84.5 pass-rush grade. On the season, Ceresna boasts the fifth-highest pass-rush grade among edge defenders (81.5), and his 53 total pressures ranks fifth among all defenders.

RUN DEFENDER OF THE WEEK: LB TYRICE BEVERETTE, MONTREAL

Montreal didn’t exactly take away Toronto’s run game last week, but they were able to keep it in check. They can thank the strong play of Beverette for that. The linebacker finished with a league-high 76.9 run-defense grade after making five total tackles in that phase of the game. Two of them were defensive stops, and he didn’t have a single negatively graded run-defense snap in the contest.

Beverette has not been a particularly good run defender this season, as this was his first game with a run-defense grade above 70.0 since Week 8. But Montreal is hoping that this past week is a sign of things to come as they gear up down the home stretch of the season. 

COVERAGE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: S STAVROS KATSANTONIS, HAMILTON

As a more traditional deep safety, Katsantonis isn’t often matched up against receivers in the same way a cornerback or halfback is. Instead, he needs to provide deep help and prevent big plays. That’s exactly what he did this week for the TiCats.

Katsantonis was tough to get past all game, as he broke up two deep throws by Winnipeg quarterback Zach Collaros and then actually picked him off on a third. Katsantonis started the year with a bit of a rough stretch but has since seemed to figure things out. Over the past four games, he’s the third-highest graded defender in the CFL (82.3) and has more interceptions (three) than first downs surrendered (two).