We’re about at the midway point of the regular season and to say there have been some outstanding performances would be an understatement.
Offensively, the league hasn’t seen scoring like this in quite some time and that has meant several players are doing things never before seen.
Davis Alexander broke Darian Durant’s CFL record for most passes without throwing an interception.
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Tyson Philpot matched the likes of Milt Stegall and Terry Greer for fewest games to 1,000 yards receiving and still has the chance to break the single-season receiving yards record.
Tyriek McAllister scored three touchdowns, three different ways in ONE HALF OF FOOTBALL!
Justin Rankin was on pace for the first double 1,000 season with rushing and receiving yards, but has cooled down in the pass game, so is now projected at a still impressive 941 yards.
Five quarterbacks are projected to throw for 5,000 yards, with Davis Alexander projected to top 6,000. He would be the first quarterback to do that in over 20 years.
Vernon Adams Jr. is on pace to get close to Doug Flutie’s CFL record of 48 touchdown passes in a season (Adams’ projected number is 47.25.)
So to be tasked with coming up with the top five contenders to win the George Reed Most Outstanding Player award so far in the 2026 season is a bit daunting.
Here’s MY top 5, and let the debate begin.
TYSON PHILPOT | RECEIVER | MONTREAL ALOUETTES
When you think of the word OUTSTANDING, there is nothing more outstanding than a record-breaking, single-season record. Allan Pitts’ mark of 2,034 receiving yards has stood since he set it in 1994.
Many players in the CFL weren’t even born in 1994. Tyson Philpot definitely wasn’t, though his dad won a Grey Cup with the BC Lions that season.
Philpot is on pace for 2,300 yards. That is a remarkable season, deserving of the double award of MOP and Most Outstanding Canadian.
DAVIS ALEXANDER | QUARTERBACK | MONTREAL ALOUETTES
Philpot’s stiffest competition for the top player in the CFL will be his quarterback, Davis Alexander.
As previously mentioned, Alexander is on pace for 6,000 yards passing. That is an outstanding season, but the reason I’d be voting for Philpot is due to Alexander’s passing mark not being at the top of CFL history.
Now you can debate that if Alexander didn’t get Philpot the ball, Philpot wouldn’t be where he is. That is true, but if Philpot didn’t lead the league in yards after catch, Alexander wouldn’t be on pace for his mark either.
The bottom line is this. Both the quarterback and receiver are having outstanding seasons and we’ll have to wait to see how this plays out during the season.
VERNON ADAMS JR. | QUARTERBACK | CALGARY STAMPEDERS
21-0
21 touchdowns and ZERO interceptions!
Adams Jr. could break a CFL single-season touchdown mark and do it with an incredible TD/INT ratio. Sure, the Stampeders as a team are 4-4 right now and there are three teams with better records, but when you look at the defence, it’s meant Adams Jr.’s offence has had to face serious pressure to drop 30+ points almost every week.
But overall, Vernon Adams Jr.’s start to the season has been worthy of a Most Outstanding Player nomination out of the West Division, especially if the wins start to add up in the back half of the season.
We all know, Adams Jr., like Alexander, will throw an interception eventually, but if the touchdowns keep piling up, we could be in for another record being broken in the CFL.
JUSTIN RANKIN | RUNNING BACK | EDMONTON ELKS
If I have Tyson Philpot up on top of the rankings, I have to slot Justin Rankin above his quarterback, Cody Fajardo.
Rankin, you could argue, has created his 1,007 yards from scrimmage more on his own than Philpot and has found the end zone double the amount of times.
Rankin, however, has slowed down over the last few weeks so his name has definitely lost a bit of glimmer in the headlines, but we saw a flash of his dual-threat ability with a rushing touchdown against Saskatchewan and then a reception for 51 yards, for the Elks’ biggest play of the game.
Rankin is on pace for over 2,200 yards, which would put him third all-time behind Mike Pringle’s pair of 2,414 seasons in 1994 and 1998.
Now that Cody Fajardo is establishing the pass game more, will teams start to give Rankin more space? If so, look out for a lot more big plays from a player that led these rankings in the early portion of the year.
Some say Fajardo is the top player in Edmonton, but that’s recency bias after the 510-yard passing game. Over the course of the first eight games of the season, I have a slight edge to Rankin.
TREVOR HARRIS | QUARTERBACK | SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS
I just mentioned how Cody Fajardo is VERY MUCH in this race and some would replace him with Rankin, so be it.
But Trevor Harris has been the far more consistent quarterback throughout the season.
Harris has 17 touchdowns to Cody’s 14. Both have only lost twice (once to each other), and both are on pace for very similar passing yards.
So how do you differentiate the two? Yes, Fajardo’s 510-yard performance is better than anything Harris has done this season, but remember, both players threw for four touchdowns in that game. Harris also has one more 300-yard passing game than Fajardo and has a better QB efficiency. Harris’ completion percentage is better and he’s even taken fewer sacks than his Edmonton counterpart.
Oh, and he’s doing it with a far more aggressive downfield game plan than Fajardo – meaning higher risk throws.
But when it comes down to who is having the more outstanding year at quarterback, too many people are sleeping on No. 7 in green and white … again.
