# Stampeders Close Regular Season With Win, Now Wait to Learn Playoff Fate

Source page: https://profootballnewshub.com/cfl/news/stampeders-close-regular-season-with-win-now-wait-to-learn-playoff-fate

> The Calgary Stampeders beat out their final regular season opponent at McMahon Stadium and now have nothing left to do but wait. With the 9-9 record locked i...

By Trey Downs · Published 2026-10-19 20:15 UTC · Updated 2026-10-19 20:15 UTC

_Drafted with AI from our own data and checked by an editor._

The Calgary Stampeders beat out their final regular season opponent at McMahon Stadium and now have nothing left to do but wait. With the 9-9 record locked in, the Stampeders will spend their bye week watching other results to find out whether they have a spot in the playoffs.

Head coach Dave Dickenson said the team has no control over what happens next. "We gave ourselves a chance. I think we have a good team. I really do. I think we're getting better too, and I think we're improving," Dickenson said. "It'd be nice to play more, but at least we gave ourselves a chance the way it's kind of finishing. If it's not in the cards, it's not in the cards, but at least we kept competing."

## An Unusual Position

Dickenson admitted the wait is not a situation he anticipated. "I knew about the schedule. I thought about this. I was thinking in my mind, if we can win the West, we'll have 3 weeks off, which in my mind was not ideal. Didn't really necessarily think we'd be waiting to see if we make the playoffs or not," he said.

Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. echoed that sentiment after the win. "It is a little awkward, you know what I'm saying? We could have helped ourselves out earlier in the year. You can't go back on it. So it is what it is. And we just want to sit back and see what happens," Adams said.

Kicker Rene Paredes, who may have played his final regular season game at McMahon, called the circumstance unlike anything he has experienced. "I mean, I don't think I've seen it in 15 years. We took care of our job. We got 9 for 9, and all we could do is just wait till next week, and hopefully we have a shot at playoffs," Paredes said. "If it is my last game, I'm good with it."

Linebacker Charles Wiley, who received the game ball, said the team has no choice but to accept the uncertainty. "Comes with the game. I've never been a part of anything like that. I don't think anybody else has been a part of anything like that, but that's what we got to deal with right now. So the biggest thing is everybody got to stay ready, hope for the best, and we did what we were supposed to do."

## Preparing For Two Possible Opponents

Dickenson said the team plans to treat the bye week like a mini training camp while preparing for either of two possible playoff opponents. "We're going to go Friday, Saturday. We'll treat it like training camp. We'll just do a lot of individual stuff, drill work, compete periods, situational football," he said. "We know we're gonna play, I believe, [BC](https://profootballnewshub.com/cfl/teams/bc-lions) or [Toronto](https://profootballnewshub.com/cfl/teams/toronto-argonauts). So we know that. So we'll keep working and lock in on those 2 opponents."

Dickenson also made clear where his rooting interest lies for the coming week. "No, I need Buck to win, right? So we want BC," he said. "I'll be lobbying to say, hey, you don't want to go into the playoffs on a losing streak, 2-game losing streak. And we won't be if we get in there."

## Adams Points to Recent Form

Adams, coming off back-to-back Player of the Week honors, said the team has been building momentum. "I think we won 4 of the last 5. I felt like we've been playing really good football, even the game we lost last week, I felt we played really good," Adams said. "Hopefully if we do get in, we can continue that and keep playing our best football here going into November. I think we're trending in the right direction."

Asked whether this is his best regular season as a pro, Adams did not hesitate. "Yeah. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It is. It is. As a pro. Yes, absolutely," he said. "Still growing and still learning, and yeah, just blessed. Just by the grace of God."

Adams also praised the performance of his skill players, four of whom finished with 50-plus receiving yards. "Everyone were in their right spots. And D-Money, man, he was all over the field running the ball, protection, checkdowns. He's a total pro. He knows what he's doing out there. Just glad to have him on our side."

## Offensive Line Gets Credit

Dickenson pointed to the offensive line as the biggest reason the offense found success against a tough Ottawa defense. "They run a lot of different calls, a lot of different blitzes. One of the best defenses in the league. I thought our offensive line probably played our best game," Dickenson said. "We feel pretty good with Bryce Bell at center. He's just been hurt the whole year. We feel good with Preston Nichols back in there at right tackle. I always wanted him to be our right tackle. And then Demery coming back helped."

> "Vernon is dangerous, not only in his passing game, but if you can get him out on the edges, he can really move people and use his feet. That's the recipe for us to do well. It took us a while. They definitely competed hard, but we finally got them kind of worn down and took care of the 4th quarter." — Dave Dickenson

## Wiley's Game Ball

Wiley, who was coming back from injury, said earning the game ball in the finale carried extra meaning. "The season had its ups and downs. I got injured a couple weeks ago, and so being able to come off of that and being able to contribute at a very high level, a lot of these guys kept me up," Wiley said. "I've been working very hard to be able to get to this moment, and I'm just happy that I was able to cash everything out."

Wiley added that the full roster delivered across the board in the finale. "Offense did their job. Defense did our job. Special teams did an excellent job. This was a very 3-cylinder game that it was just good football all around."

## Watch the Full Videos

**Calgary Stampeders: General Manager & Head Coach Dave Dickenson | Post-Game | 17.10.26**

**Calgary Stampeders: Vernon Adams Jr. | Post-Game | 17.10.26**

**Calgary Stampeders: Rene Paredes | Post-Game | 17.10.26**

**Calgary Stampeders: Charles Wiley | Post-Game | 17.10.26**

From Pro Football News Hub. More at https://profootballnewshub.com/llms.txt