Montreal receiver Tyler Snead laughs off criticism and stands by Grey Cup prediction

CALGARY — World-class catch. World-class confidence.

Montreal Alouettes receiver Tyler Snead isn’t backing down from his guarantee of a Grey Cup victory over the Edmonton Elks.

Snead laid out for a diving 21-yard touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter to seal Montreal’s 33-23 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in last weekend’s East Division final.

“I looked up and saw the ball and knew it was coming, and from there you just kind of react more than anything,” Snead said Friday. “Once I made the catch, I just kind of lost control and blacked out.”

Then he vowed to deliver a victory for the Alouettes in Sunday’s CFL championship game at McMahon Stadium, stating, “We’re gonna win it. We’re going to go in there and win it.”

After the Alouettes’ last full practice Friday, Snead said his views hadn’t changed.

“They asked me what’s going to be the difference between this year’s Grey Cup and last year’s Grey Cup and I said this time we’re going to go win it,” he said. “That’s the goal and that’s what we’re going to try and do.”

The Alouettes are back at the Grey Cup after falling 25-17 to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in last year’s title game.

Elks receiver Austin Mack, Snead’s friend and former Alouettes teammate, said he found the comments hilarious.

“I was laughing, I mean, that’s my guy, Sneady,” Mack said. “But more than anything, I understand where that’s coming from, right? You lose last year, if you get the opportunity to go back, like you want to make sure you bring that Cup home.

“You’re a competitor, wouldn’t want it any other way. I’m imagining both sides are expecting to win. So I mean just from a competitor mindset, I get what he’s saying.”

Snead, meanwhile, didn’t understand why anyone would think he shouldn’t have that mindset.

“I’ve always thought we were going to win no matter what team I’ve been on,” he said. “That’s just confidence in the group, confidence in the locker room and obviously confidence in the work all these guys and myself to get back to where we are right now.”

Elks quarterback Cody Fajardo, another former Alouettes teammate, said he texted Snead’s comments back to him.

“When you have storylines like that, and when you have opportunities to call people out, and it gets X amount of views on social media, that’s just great for the league,” Fajardo said.

“When the ball’s kicked off, you forget about all that stuff. You’re going out there, you’re trying to execute your Xs and Os, but to build it up and to play that part in the media, it’s fun and helps get more eyes on this league.”

Snead said the responses to his bold statement haven’t taken a mean tone.

“Everything off the field’s all love and whatnot,” he said with a laugh.

In his fourth CFL season, the five-foot-seven Snead totalled 1,474 receiving yards on 95 receptions to rank second in the league.

Alouettes coach Jason Maas saw nothing wrong with the prediction and backed his receiver.

“Any time you hear a player excited about getting to this game and someone throws a microphone in their face and ask them about what the result’s going to be, of course, they’re going to be confident to say they can win it,” he said.

Maas, who guided the Alouettes to a Grey Cup victory in 2023, added that Snead’s guarantee falls right in line with Montreal’s expectations.

“I’m glad our players feel that way, because you’re coming here for one reason and one reason only. It’s not to come here and lose. It’s with the expectation that you’ve done what you could do up to this point, and you still have work to do,” Maas said. “But the expectation will be for us to win. That’s just how we’re built.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 13, 2026.

— With files from CP sports reporter Donna Spencer.

Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press