2021 CFL season explained

2021 CFL season
Duration:August 5 – November 20, 2021
Conf1:East
Conf1 Champ:Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Conf2:West
Conf2 Champ:Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Finals:108th Grey Cup
Finals Date:December 12, 2021
Finals Venue:Tim Hortons Field, Hamilton
Finals Champ:Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Prevseason Year:2020 (cancelled)
Nextseason Year:2022
Seasonslist:List of Canadian Football League seasons
Seasonslistnames:CFL

The 2021 CFL season was the 67th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 63rd season of the Canadian Football League. The regular season began on August 5 and ended November 20.[1] [2] Each team played 14 regular season games over 16 weeks.[2] Previously, the season was scheduled to begin on June 10 and end on October 30, with 18 games being played per team over 21 weeks, but this was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada.[3] Hamilton hosted the 108th Grey Cup on December 12, 2021.[4]

League business

Resumption of play

The 2020 season was postponed on numerous occasions because federal and provincial governments forbade attendance at sporting events in an effort to stop the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. The league ultimately decided to hold a shortened season in a "bubble" without fans in attendance. However, on August 17, the league called off the season. The federal and provincial governments refused to provide the subsidies needed to cover the expenses necessary for the season to be held. Additionally, public health officials could not guarantee they could approve the league's "bubble" proposal in time to complete the season before Canada's harsh winters set in. At the same time, commissioner Randy Ambrosie guaranteed a return to play in 2021, with fans in attendance at full capacity, without regard to the status of the pandemic by that time.[5]

Renaming of the Edmonton team

On June 1, 2021, Edmonton's CFL team announced that it adopted a new name, the Edmonton Elks.[6] The team had previously retired its "Edmonton Eskimos" branding on July 21, 2020, and started to temporarily use "Edmonton Football Team" and "EE Football Team", on grounds that the term Eskimo had been considered an offensive term to refer to Inuit.[7]

Salary cap

According to the new collective bargaining agreement, the 2021 salary cap was scheduled to be $5,350,000 (or an average of $118,888 per active roster spot).[8] [9] That number was subject to change as players would have revenue sharing of 20% from broadcast deals, but could also change due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[9] Individual minimum salaries were set at $65,000 in 2021 for National and American players.[8] Since no 2020 CFL Draft pick signed a contract in the cancelled 2020 season, this was the first season with all CFL Draft picks subject to a pay scale, with the first overall pick earning approximately $85,000.[8]

Schedule

The league originally released the season's full schedule on November 20, 2020, which featured a 21-week regular season schedule.[3] The regular season was scheduled to begin on June 10 with a rematch of the 107th Grey Cup with the defending champion Winnipeg Blue Bombers hosting the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.[3] Notably, the schedule featured more intra-divisional games, with BC, Calgary, and Edmonton playing 12 such games, Saskatchewan and Winnipeg playing 11 divisional games, and the East Division teams playing 10 divisional games (an increase of one to two divisional games per team).[10] This was done to reduce cross-country travel. The Toronto Argonauts were scheduled to play a neutral site game on July 19 against the Calgary Stampeders at a location that was supposed to be announced at a later date.[11]

However, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the league confirmed on April 21 that the season would be delayed until at least August 5, with a revised schedule released on June 15.[1] [2] This version featured 14 regular season games with even more of a focus on intra-divisional games as the Blue Bombers and Redblacks did not play against each other in the regular season and each team played approximately eight divisional games.[2] As the league anticipated capacity limits to be more lenient in Western Canada, the CFL aligned its schedule to have all East division teams begin their seasons at West division opponents for at least the first two weeks of the season.

If a game postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak could not have been made up within the regular season schedule, the team(s) affected by the outbreak would be charged with losses by forfeit. If at least 85% of a team's players had received at least one vaccine dose, players received their salary for the unplayed game and the team was credited with a 1–0 win.[12]

Potential partnership with the XFL

On March 10, the CFL confirmed it was pursuing discussions with the consortium that owns the XFL about some form of partnership, the details of which were not made public. The XFL, which was slated to return in 2022 following its abrupt shutdown and sale in March 2020, paused plans to return pending the results of those discussions.[13] The discussions ended on July 7, with no action taken.[14] The XFL subsequently confirmed it would not resume play until 2023 at the earliest.

Global players

After first being introduced for the 2019 CFL season, the league featured two active roster spots for players designated as "global" players for each team.[15] Each team also had up to three spots on their practice rosters for global players.[15] Global players were defined as those who did not hold Canadian or American citizenship nor did they qualify as a National player in any other way.[16] This was subject to change after the cancellation of Global Combines in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[17]

COVID-19 restrictions

Some CFL teams enforced limitations on spectator capacity for their games. Even without capacity restrictions, teams still employed enhanced health and safety protocols, such as increased access to sanitization, paperless transactions and digital tickets.[18] [19] With announcements by the Edmonton Elks and Saskatchewan Roughriders on August 30, all CFL teams announced plans to require that spectators present proof that they are vaccinated for COVID-19, either as the result of a voluntary decision, or as the result of provincial public health orders requiring proof of vaccine (British Columbia, Manitoba, and Quebec).[20]

!Team!Capacity!Vaccine requirement!Source
BCProof of vaccination required beginning September 13 per provincial public health orders.[21] [22]
CalgaryProof of full vaccination required beginning September 15 per CSEC policy.[23] [24]
EdmontonProof of full vaccination or negative COVID-19 test required beginning October 15 per team policy.[25]
HamiltonProof of full vaccination or negative COVID-19 test required beginning September 6 per team policy.[26] [27]
MontrealProof of vaccination required beginning September 18 per provincial public health orders.[28]
OttawaProof of full vaccination or negative COVID-19 test required beginning September 12 per OSEG policy.
SaskatchewanProof of full vaccination or negative COVID-19 test required beginning September 17 per team policy.[29]
TorontoProof of vaccination or negative COVID-19 test required beginning in September per MLSE policy.[30]
WinnipegProof of full vaccination required per provincial public health orders.[31]

Player movement

Signing moratorium

With the 2020 CFL season initially postponed and then ultimately cancelled, the league had placed a moratorium on re-signing players. Teams were able to re-sign players after December 7, 2020, at 12:00 p.m. ET.[32]

Free agency

The 2021 free agency period began on February 9 at 12:00 p.m. ET.[33] [32] Similar to the previous off-season, pending free agents and teams were able to negotiate offers for one week starting January 31, ending February 7.[34] All formal offers to a player during this time would be sent to both the league and the players union and could not be rescinded.[35]

Trade deadline

The in-season trade deadline was on October 27 at 5:00 pm ET.[36]

Regular season

Standings

Postseason

See main article: 108th Grey Cup. The Grey Cup was played at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ontario, on December 12.

Playoff bracket

  • -Team won in Overtime.

Broadcasting

The CFL was broadcast on TSN and RDS across all platforms in Canada as part of their contract.[37] The broadcast rights were reported to have been extended through 2025.[38]

Award winners

CFL Top Performers of the Week

WeekFirstSecondThirdFans' Choice
One Brady Oliveira
Two Cody Fajardo
Three Cody Fajardo Nick Arbuckle
Four Marc Liegghio
Five Brandon Alexander
Six Michael Reilly Stefen Banks
Seven Michael Reilly DeAundre Alford
Eight Cody Fajardo Cody Fajardo
Nine Zach Collaros
Ten Andrew Harris
Eleven Rene Paredes
Twelve William Stanback Eugene Lewis
Thirteen Boris Bede
Fourteen A. C. Leonard Adam Bighill
Fifteen Duke Williams
Sixteen Johnny Augustine

Source[39]

CFL Top Performers of the Month

MonthFirstSecondThird
August Michael Reilly
September Michael Reilly
October Jeremiah Masoli
November Lucky Whitehead Boris Bede
Source[39]

2021 CFL All-Stars

Offence

Defence

Special teams

Source[40]

2021 CFL Western All-Stars

Offence

Defence

Special teams

Source[41]

2021 CFL Eastern All-Stars

Offence

Defence

Special teams

Source[41]

2021 CFL Awards

Notes and References

  1. Web site: CFL Announces Plans To Return-to-play For 2021 Season. cfl.ca. April 21, 2021.
  2. Web site: Circle your calendars: CFL releases 2021 schedule . . June 15, 2021.
  3. Web site: 2021 CFL Schedule. cfl.ca. November 20, 2020.
  4. Web site: Going for Two: CFL awards 2020 and 2021 Grey Cups. cfl.ca. February 21, 2019. November 20, 2020.
  5. Web site: CFL cancels 2020 season, 'committed' to 2021. TSN. August 17, 2020.
  6. Edmonton Officially Announces Team Name As Elks. CFL Enterprises, LP. CFL.ca. June 1, 2021. September 18, 2021.
  7. Web site: CFL's Edmonton Eskimos dropping 'Eskimo' from team name. Global News. July 21, 2020. September 18, 2021.
  8. Web site: UPDATED: What we know about the new CBA 3DownNation. Staff. 3Down. May 15, 2019 . en-US. November 20, 2020.
  9. Web site: New CFL collective bargaining agreement will be three-year deal - TSN.ca. TSN ca Staff. May 15, 2019. TSN. November 4, 2019.
  10. Web site: Divisional games take centre stage in unique 2021 schedule. cfl.ca. November 20, 2020.
  11. Web site: 2021 CFL schedule released. Toronto Argonauts. November 20, 2020. November 20, 2020. November 20, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201120170904/https://www.argonauts.ca/2020/11/20/2021-cfl-schedule-released/. dead.
  12. Web site: CFLPA disapproves of league's COVID-19 cancellation plan. 2021-08-08. Sportsnet.ca. en.
  13. Web site: Middleton . Marc . XFL and CFL Enter Into Talks, 2022 Relaunch Season Likely To Be Delayed . March 10, 2021 . WrestlingHeadlines.com . March 11, 2021.
  14. Web site: XFL planning 2023 return after talks on partnership with CFL tabled. ESPN.com. July 7, 2021. July 7, 2021.
  15. Web site: CFL Combine planned for Paris, France in 2020. press.cfl.ca. October 4, 2019. November 20, 2020.
  16. Web site: CFLPA sends memo to players detailing changes to CBA. 3DownNation. January 8, 2020. November 20, 2020.
  17. Web site: CFL cancels 2020 season, 'committed' to 2021. August 17, 2020. November 20, 2020. TSN. en.
  18. Web site: Romero. Diego. 2021-08-05. Going to an Edmonton Elks game this season? Here's what you need to know. live. 2021-08-21. CTV News Edmonton. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20210805201154/https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/going-to-an-edmonton-elks-game-this-season-here-s-what-you-need-to-know-1.5536040 . August 5, 2021 .
  19. Web site: Full crowd expected at 2021 Saskatchewan Roughriders home opener. live. 2021-08-21. Global News. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20210730191128/https://globalnews.ca/news/8074495/sold-out-saskatchewan-roughriders-home-opener/ . July 30, 2021 .
  20. Web site: 2021-08-13. At The Stadium Safely. 2021-08-30. Montreal Alouettes. en.
  21. Web site: Dr. Bonnie Henry speaks to fans at Lions' return to BC Place (VIDEO) Offside. 2021-08-21. dailyhive.com. en.
  22. Web site: Kotyk. Alyse. 2021-08-23. Proof of vaccine to be required for some non-essential businesses in B.C., officials announce. live. 2021-08-23. CTV News British Columbia. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20210823213308/https://bc.ctvnews.ca/proof-of-vaccine-to-be-required-for-some-non-essential-businesses-in-b-c-officials-announce-1.5557660 . August 23, 2021 .
  23. Web site: Villani. Mark. 2021-08-07. Calgary Stampeders to host more than 22,000 fans at McMahon Stadium. live. 2021-08-21. CTV News Calgary. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20210807202518/https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/calgary-stampeders-to-host-more-than-22-000-fans-at-mcmahon-stadium-1.5538365 . August 7, 2021 .
  24. Web site: Calgary Flames, Stampeders, Hitmen fans & staff must be fully vaccinated to attend games Globalnews.ca. 2021-08-23. Global News. en-US.
  25. Web site: Roughriders, Elks to require fans to be vaccinated or show negative test. 2021-08-30. Sportsnet.ca. en.
  26. Web site: Ontario to enter Step 3 of COVID-19 reopening plan on July 16, days earlier than expected. live. 2021-08-21. Global News. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20210709152634/https://globalnews.ca/news/8015771/covid-ontario-reopening-plan-step-3-indoor-gyms-dining/ . July 9, 2021 .
  27. Web site: 2021-08-23. Ontario CFL teams add vaccine requirements/negative COVID testing for admission. 2021-08-23. CFL.ca. en.
  28. Web site: 2021-08-01. Restrictions lifted in Quebec despite Canada's top doctors warning of a fourth wave. 2021-08-21. Montreal. en.
  29. Web site: Riders to make COVID vaccinations a requirement for fans at Mosaic Stadium. 2021-08-30. 650 CKOM. en.
  30. Web site: 2021-08-17. Argos fans will require vaccine proof or neg COVID test in mid Sept.. 2021-08-21. CFL.ca. en.
  31. Web site: 2021-07-14. Bombers to open on Aug. 5 at full capacity. 2021-08-21. CFL.ca. en.
  32. Web site: CFL gears up for 2021. December 4, 2020. CFL.ca. en. December 4, 2020.
  33. Web site: cfl.ca . Official 2021 free agent tracker . December 4, 2020.
  34. Web site: Negotiating window a new feature of 2020 free agency. January 27, 2020. CFL.ca. en. December 4, 2020.
  35. Web site: Details for the CFL's new negotiating window prior to free agency. January 27, 2020. 3DownNation. en. December 4, 2020.
  36. Web site: CFL sets 2021 trade deadline for Oct. 27. September 28, 2021. 3DownNation. en. October 13, 2021.
  37. Web site: tsn.ca . CFL and TSN extend rights on long-term deal . November 21, 2019 . November 20, 2020.
  38. Web site: BARNES: CFL agrees to new six-year TV deal with TSN. September 6, 2019. Toronto Sun.
  39. Web site: CFL Top Performers. Canadian Football League. October 1, 2021.
  40. Web site: Stars aligned: 2021 CFL All-Stars announced . . December 15, 2021.
  41. Web site: 2021 CFL Division All-Stars Unveiled . . November 24, 2021.

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