Winnipeg @ Edmonton preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 17, 2017 ) Edmonton 26, Winnipeg 33

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers look to continue their push to earn a home playoff game when they hit the road to meet the Edmonton Eskimos on Saturday. The Blue Bombers have won seven of their last eight games, including a 29-9 victory against the Ottawa Redblacks in Week 14, to vault into second place in the West Division and hope to move six points clear of the Eskimos by sweeping the season series following a 33-26 triumph Aug. 17.

"We can only control what we can control and that's winning football games week in and week out," Winnipeg running back Andrew Harris told reporters. "The West is super tight and we're still trying to get in first place." Edmonton is heading in the wrong direction after suffering a 34-26 setback to the Toronto Argonauts on Sept. 16. The Eskimos, who didn't play last week, have dropped five straight games since starting the season off 7-0 while giving up an average of 37 points per contest during their skid to fall into third place and hope to stop their downward spiral by notching their first home win in nearly two months. "We all needed to recharge and reboot," Edmonton coach Jason Maas admitted to reporters. "We're not looking back and we're not looking ahead so we're looking at one thing and one thing only and that's having bull's eyes on Winnipeg."

TV: 9:30 p.m. ET, TSN, RDS2

ABOUT THE BLUE BOMBERS (9-3): Wide receiver Weston Dressler caught two passes for 20 yards before leaving the game with an arm injury in the second quarter and is doubtful for Saturday's clash. Matt Nichols had another solid outing as he completed 23-of-33 passes for 319 yards and two touchdowns with Darvin Adams the main beneficiary, hauling in seven passes for 195 yards and a score to earn one of the CFL's Top Performers of the Week honours. Winnipeg traded wide receiver Brett Blaszko to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in exchange for a conditional draft pick in 2018 and signed slotback Garry Brown to the practice roster.

ABOUT THE ESKIMOS (7-5): Edmonton made some personnel moves during its week off as it re-signed all-star defensive back Aaron Grymes, who was released by the Philadelphia Eagles after an 18-month stint in the NFL. "The welcome I got from my old teammates and even guys I didn't play with before has been wonderful," Grymes told reporters. "I never had more fun playing football than I did the three years I was in Edmonton." The Eskimos added kicker Swayze Walter, who was an all-star in 2014 with the Toronto Argonauts, and released veteran wide receiver Chris Getzlaf.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Edmonton QB Mike Reilly tops the league in passing yards (3,949).

2. The Eskimos have won eight of the last 10 meetings with the Blue Bombers.

3. Nichols leads the CFL with 24 passing touchdowns.

PREDICTION: Blue Bombers 33, Eskimos 28