Last week, we saw the Ottawa Redblacks jump over the inactive Toronto Argonauts back into first place in the Eastern Division while the top spots in the West held with the B.C. Lions and the Calgary Stampeders both winning. Ottawa has the bye this week and it would not surprise to see Toronto jump back on top after hosting Winnipeg. The Bombers have looked respectable in winning two straight, but they are still more likely to wind up outside of the playoffs than continue their recent good play. Here is our weekly CFL betting rundown for Week 8.
Thursday August 11
Montreal Alouettes @ Edmonton Eskimos
CFL Betting Odds: Edmonton -8
At 2-4 and in 4th place in the West, it is fair to say that Edmonton has not gotten off to a good start. Last week, the Grey Cup champions lost on the road to Ottawa in a Grey Cup rematch. It is hard to find fault with that result, but if they sink even further this week, the natives will definitely be restless. The Eskimos need a bounce back for sure and likely the three point deficit at Ottawa flattered them as they were outgained by more than 100 yards last week.
Montreal is also 2-4, but they are right where there were expected to be. Speaking of meeting expectations, after thrashing Saskatchewan the week before, they were humbled in losing to BC by 20 points last week. As discussed last week, they had no business beating anyone like that.
Pick: Edmonton
Friday August 12
Winnipeg Blue Bombers @ Toronto Argonauts
CFL Betting Odds: Toronto -3.5
The Argos lost their top spot in the East while sitting idle last week, but they have a great chance to take it right back with a win over Winnipeg on Friday. Quarterback Ricky Ray is still out with a knee injury, which means we will more get of backup Logan Kilgore.
Winnipeg dominated in a weather-delayed win over Hamilton last week. They were up by 21 points in the first quarter and 34 points at halftime as they cruised to the victory. Quarterback Matt Nichols is starting to look more and more comfortable directing the attack. He will never be elite, but he is managing the game well and not turning the ball over. The defense forced mistake-prone Ti-Cats quarterback Jeremiah Masoli into three picks. If they can make Kilgore, uncomfortable maybe they can steal one on the road, but we like the Argos in this spot to secure the win and cover.
Pick: Toronto
Saturday August 13
Calgary Stampeders @ Saskatchewan Roughriders
CFL Betting Odds: Calgary -5.5
This definitely looks like a layup for Calgary. It’s a rare scheduling quirk of back-to-back games against the same team. Not only are the Stamps looking like the best team in the league thus far, but when these teams met last week in Calgary, the home side won by 20 points. It is doubtful a change of venue is going to do all that much to the outcome here. CFL leading rusher Jerome Messam had a big day last week with 109 yards on the ground and quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell threw for more than 300 yards. If you are Saskatchewan, you can try and take some confidence from the fact that the game was close heading into the final quarter. However, we still like the Stampeders to exploit the matchup and get the job done on the spread here.
Pick: Calgary
Hamilton Tiger-Cats @ BC Lions
CFL Betting Odds: BC -3
The Ti-Cats got hammered last week at Winnipeg. The loss confirmed that Masoli is not the answer at quarterback and thankfully for Hamilton, they are expecting to have Zach Collaros starting on Saturday for the first time this season. Collaros is a thrower, is athletic enough to go out on rolls and is much more efficient overall, so there is great reason for optimism. The only downer is that a trip to BC, which has given up the fewest points in the league, is going to be a tough first test. Even a couple of interceptions couldn’t stop the Lions from dominating at Montreal last week. Those were the only real negatives in a 20 point victory and they will look forward to hosting Hamilton in this battle of the feline variety.
Pick: BC
