CFL Betting Notes – Week 6

Week 5 Betting Recap

The Edmonton Eskimos kicked off Week 5 of the CFL regular season with last Thursday’s 33-6 rout over British Columbia closing as three-point road favorites. On Friday night, the Winnipeg Bombers remained perfect on the year both straight-up and against the spread after hammering Toronto 48-21 as heavy 15-point favorites at home.

Saturday’s CFL doubleheader started with Montreal stunning the Ottawa RedBlacks 36-19 as nine-point road underdogs. Later that day, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats got past Calgary 30-23 as four-point favorites at home to hold onto first place in the East Division title race.

Thursday, July 18

Toronto Argonauts (0-4 SU, 1-3 ATS) at Calgary Stampeders (2-2 SU, 1-3 ATS)
Point-spread: Stampeders -11 ½
Total: 52.5

Game Overview

Toronto is still searching for its first victory of the season behind an offense that has only scored a grand total of 59 points in its first four games. The Argonauts’ defense has not been all that much better with a points-allowed average of 49.5. Mcleod Bethel-Thompson got the start at quarterback in Friday’s loss.

He completed just 56.4 percent of his 39 passing attempts for 388 yards and three scores and he was also picked off twice. Toronto gained 65 yards running the ball on 14 attempts.

The Stampeders fell to .500 with Saturday’s loss to Hamilton and two games off the pace in the West Division standings. Nick Arbuckle continues to fill in for an injured Bo Levi Mitchell at quarterback. He put up some big numbers against the Tiger-Cats with 368 yards passing while completing 24-of-40 passing attempts, but he could not get the offense into the end zone through the air. Calgary’s rushing attack was almost nonexistent with 27 yards on nine carries.

Betting Trends

-- Calgary has won 10 of its last 11 games against Toronto SU and it has a 7-1 record ATS in the last eight meetings. The total has stayed UNDER in four of the last six matchups in this inter-division clash.

Friday, July 19

Ottawa Roughriders (2-2 SU, 1-3 ATS) at Winnipeg Blue Bombers (4-0 SU, 4-0 ATS)
Point-spread: Jets -10
Total: 55

Game Overview

Two weeks ago, Ottawa was on the wrong end of a 29-14 loss to Winnipeg closing as a three-point home favorite. The total stayed UNDER the 54-point closing line. Last week’s stunning loss to Montreal as a heavy home favorite went OVER 51 ½ points and the total has gone OVER in three of the RedBlacks’ first four games.

That game was 9-9 at halftime before they were outscored by 17 points in the second half. Quarterback Dominique Davis scored a pair of touchdowns running the ball.

The Blue Bombers’ strong start can be attributed to an offense that is averaging 34.5 points a game. They have also gotten some strong play from a defense that leads the CFL points allowed (19.8). They jumped out to a 21-0 lead against Toronto in the first quarter and cruised to their fourth win on the year.

QB Matt Nichols bounced back from a Week 4 injury to throw for 209 yards and three touchdowns in Friday’s romp.

Betting Trends

-- The Blue Bombers have a 5-1 edge both SU and ATS in its last six games against Ottawa. The total has gone OVER in four of the last six meetings overall and in six of the last nine meetings in Winnipeg.

Saturday, July 20

Edmonton Eskimos (3-1 SU, 2-2 ATS at Montreal Alouettes (2-2 SU, 3-1 ATS)
Point-spread: Eskimos -4
Total: 54

Game Overview

Edmonton opened the season with a 32-25 victory over Montreal, but it could not cover as an eight-point favorite at home. The total went OVER 49 ½-point total line in that game. In Thursday’s 27-point win against BC, the Eskimos took a 16-3 lead into halftime. Trevor Harris went a highly efficient 22-for-28 throwing the ball for 276 passing yards and two scores. CJ Gable anchored the running game with 68 yards rushing on 19 carries.

Following a SU 0-2 start, Montreal is coming off back-to-back upsets as a heavy underdog. It beat Hamilton 36-29 in Week 4 as a 13 ½-point underdog at home ahead of Saturday’s upset on the road against Ottawa. The Alouettes got a career day from Vernon Adams Jr. at quarterback with 327 yards passing and two scoring strikes. William Stanback had another strong outing running the ball with 100 yards on 18 carries.

Betting Trends

-- Including the win in Week 1, Edmonton is a perfect 5-0 SU in its last five games against Montreal. It also has a perfect 5-0 record SU and ATS in its last five road games in this inter-division tilt. The total has gone OVER in five of the last six matchups.

British Columbia Lions (1-4 SU, 1-4 ATS) at Saskatchewan Roughriders (1-3 SU, 2-2 ATS)
Point-spread: Roughriders -4 ½
Total: 50 ½

Game Overview

High expectations have been met with a very disappointing performance in BC. The arrival of Mike Reilly at quarterback has failed to invigorate an offense that is averaging just 20.5 points per game. He was held to 157 yards passing in last Thursday’s loss to Edmonton with John White rushing for 53 yards on 11 attempts in the team’s 210 yards of total offense. The Lions’ defense has allowed an average of 31.6 points in five games.

The Roughriders are coming off a Week 4 bye after losing to Calgary 37-10 the week before as five-point home favorites. The total stayed UNDER 51 ½ points in that game and it has stayed UNDER in three of their first four outings. Saturday will be the first meeting in a home-and-home series against BC. Cody Fajardo has gotten the call at quarterback for an injured Zach Collaros. He has thrown for 945 yards and four touchdowns against two interceptions.

Betting Trends

-- The Lions have a 7-3 edge both SU and ATS in this West Division matchup over the past 10 meetings. They have also won four of the last six meetings SU in Saskatchewan. The total stayed UNDER in 10 of the last 13 meetings at Mosaic Stadium.