3 stats that defined Edmonton's Week 20 win over Winnipeg
Paul Swanson/CFL.ca
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EDMONTON — The Edmonton Elks secured a 35-27 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Friday night, clinching the West Division title and booking their place in the Western Final.
Edmonton leaned on a strong ground game and timely plays on both sides of the ball to improve to 13-4.
Winnipeg fell to 8-9 and missed a chance to clinch a playoff berth.
CFL.ca brings you three key stats that defined the Edmonton Elks' win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Week 20.
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133 - JUSTIN RANKIN RUSHING YARDS
Justin Rankin is rounding back into form at the right time for Edmonton. He was a workhorse on Friday, finishing with 133 yards on 23 carries for his highest total since Week 3. The versatile back has feasted on the Bombers this season, piling up 332 rushing yards across three matchups.
His biggest contribution came late in the fourth quarter, when he ripped off 10 carries for 69 yards on a drive that chewed up more than five minutes. Winnipeg knew the ball was going to Rankin, but the Bombers had no answer as he churned out yards and ran down the clock.
4 - CODY FAJARDO TOUCHDOWNS
Cody Fajardo was under pressure all night and found few openings in the secondary, but still accounted for four touchdowns. He scored twice on the ground and twice through the air, snapping a three-game passing touchdown drought while making the most of just 17 attempts.
His most crucial score came late in the first half. With just 44 seconds to work with, Fajardo capitalized on a strong return from Montrell Washington, finding Austin Mack at the back of the end zone on third down. The touchdown cut Winnipeg's lead to four heading into halftime and gave Edmonton momentum to build on after the break, when the Elks opened the second half with another scoring drive.
2 - ZACH COLLAROS INTERCEPTIONS
The game turned on a couple of key plays, and while Zach Collaros was hyper efficient, his two interceptions proved costly. Kenny Logan Jr.'s second-quarter pick set up ShunDerrick Powell's touchdown on the very next play, while Nick Anderson's fourth-quarter interception stopped a promising Winnipeg drive deep in Elks territory, where a touchdown could have put the Bombers ahead. Instead, Edmonton leaned on Rankin to drain the clock before Fajardo sealed the win with a rushing score.