We’ve got back-to-back doubleheaders to look forward to as the 2016 CFL season enters Week 2.
The Redblacks and Alouettes will get things started with a 7 p.m. (eastern) clash Thursday in Montreal, followed by an Argonauts/Roughriders showdown at 10 p.m. in Regina.
Friday, the Lions will visit the Tiger-Cats in Hamilton and the Stampeders will host the Blue Bombers in Calgary. Those games will begin at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m., respectively, as well.
You can catch all four games on TSN.
Week 2 CFL betting lines
(Odds as of 1 p.m. eastern on Wednesday, June 29; visit our Live CFL Odds page for the latest odds.)
Week 2 CFL Betting Picks
Argos at Roughriders
We basically sat last week out from a betting perspective, though we did predict Hamilton would cover the spread against the Argos (we also liked the Under, which lost.)
Now, unlike last week, we’ve seen 8 of the league’s 9 teams in action and have a better idea of what to expect.
The one wildcard is the Roughriders, who had a bye in Week 1 and may have to shake off the rust a bit in their season opener against an Argos team coming off a disappointing loss last week to Hamilton.
There are greater expectations in Riderland this year with the hiring of Chris Jones as head coach and GM, and we can see Saskatchewan being amped up for his debut. However, it could take a little while for the Riders’ improvement to show, while the Argos are hungry to put last week’s poor showing behind them. We’ll take the Argos +3 (you could actually get +3.5 -110 at www.BetOnline.ag as of Wednesday afternoon.)
Blue Bombers at Stampeders
The Stampeders should be in a bad mood for this one, and that’s not good news for the visiting Blue Bombers.
Calgary held a 17-6 lead in the third quarter of last week’s season opener in B.C. before basically sleepwalking the rest of the way. The Stamps allowed a punt return touchdown, missed a field goal of 31 yards and scored just 1 point in the final 22 minutes of the contest. They also failed to get into the end zone on four consecutive chances from the one-yard line, so we’re sure new coach Dave Dickenson has been cracking the whip this week in practice.
The Bombers were outclassed by a mediocre Montreal team in their home opener last week, gaining just 13 first downs themselves (5 were awarded by penalty). Winnipeg trailed 22-4 midway through the fourth quarter before making things a bit more respectable with a field goal and late touchdown, but that TD came on a 63-yard play and not a sustained drive. Things may have been even worse for the Bombers had they not forced two turnovers down near their own goal line.
The bottom line is that Calgary is both capable of and motivated to blow the Blue Bombers out Friday night, and that’s what we think they’ll do . We’re taking Calgary -9.5 (most sportsbooks had -10 or higher, but www.Pinnacle.com was offering -9.5 as of Wednesday afternoon.)