More and more colleagues and friends have been asking for my picks in the Canadian Football League. So the time has arrived for me to share my thoughts on each week’s slate of CFL games, choosing the winner of each against the spread. Lining your pockets with some extra money is the end goal, but it’s much easier said than done.
Week 6 gives us three home favourites with Winnipeg being the lone underdog in their own house. Every team in the CFL has two or three wins except for the Riders, who we all know are still winless. Parity around the league to begin the season has made for some very close results. That said, let’s take aim at nabbing some winners.
Lions (2-2) @ Blue Bombers (2-3)
Last week: Lions lost 30–27 at home to Toronto; Bombers lost 32-3 in Edmonton
In the #NoLeadIsSafe CFL, the Lions blew a 21-point lead at home to fall in Week 5. Travis Lulay had another poor passing outing—that’s two straight games with less than 170 yards through the air. His backfield mate, Andrew Harris, has been on a tear in 2015. The Lions’ Canadian runner is averaging 116 yards of offence per game and he’s tied for the CFL lead with four total touchdowns. Harris is the main man Winnipeg needs to contain at Investors Group Field on Thursday night.
On the other side, the Bombers announced that Drew Willy is set to start after taking a high-low hit that forced him from the matchup against Edmonton. And that was when the Eskimos blew open the game—it was 4–3 before Willy left, and the final was a 29-point drubbing. It’s evident that Winnipeg is a much different team with Willy on the field and upright. So if the offensive line can protect No. 5 in blue and gold, the Bombers can win outright.
Line: Lions -3
Pick: Winnipeg and the points
Roughriders (0-5) @ Eskimos (3-1)
Last week: Riders lost 31–21 at home to Hamilton; Eskimos won 32-3 at home over Winnipeg
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse for the Riders, Kevin Glenn gets injured and won’t play versus Edmonton. That means CFL rookie quarterback Brett Smith will make his first career start on the road against an ultra-aggressive defence.
Chris Jones has his defensive unit attacking exactly the way he likes and that spells danger for opposing offences; just ask Henry Burris, Drew Willy or Brian Brohm how uncomfortable the Eskimos can make a passer, let alone a first-time starter. This one could get ugly in a hurry.
Line: Eskimos -10
Pick: Edmonton
Alouettes (2-2) @ Stampeders (3-2)
Last week: Alouettes had a bye; Stampeders lost 29–26 in Ottawa
Montreal should be fresh coming off a bye, but getting out of Calgary with a win will take all the energy the Alouettes stored up during their down time. The Stamps are 3-0 at home and you know the defending Grey Cup champs want to make up for a 29–11 defeat suffered in Montreal during Week 2.
Jon Cornish is out for about six to eight weeks with a broken thumb—scaphoid bone—and once again Calgary trudges on without the 2013 CFL MOP. He missed six games in 2014, but Calgary still managed to go 5-1 in those contests, so they know how to win without Cornish.
Line: Stampeders -4.5
Pick: Calgary
Argos (3-1) @ Tiger-Cats (2-2)
Last week: Argos won 30–27 in B.C.; Ticats won 31–21 in Saskatchewan
It’s the first time in 2015 that both Toronto and Hamilton will play a regular-season game in Ontario. The Pan Am Games put each Eastern team on lengthy road trips to start the season.
The heated Argos-Ticats rivalry gets renewed at the donut box where the Tabbies are 7-0 so far. And that home-field advantage the Steeltown fans have created at Tim Hortons Field has been a game-changer. Until proven otherwise you have to keep rolling with the Ticats in their home stadium—simple as that.
Line: Ticats -4
Pick: Hamilton