CFL Week 2 News and Notes

Trend Sheet

Thursday, July 3

7:00 PM HAMILTON vs. TORONTO
Hamilton is 3-19 SU in its last 22 games
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Hamilton's last 9 games
Toronto is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Hamilton
Toronto is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Hamilton

10:00 PM CALGARY vs. EDMONTON
Calgary is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Edmonton
Calgary is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Edmonton
Edmonton is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games
Edmonton is 2-10 ATS in its last 12 games at home

Friday, July 4

7:00 PM WINNIPEG vs. MONTREAL
Winnipeg is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Winnipeg is 4-10 ATS in its last 14 games when playing Montreal
Montreal is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against Winnipeg
Montreal is 13-3 SU in its last 16 games when playing at home against Winnipeg

10:00 PM SASKATCHEWAN vs. BRITISH COLUMBIA
Saskatchewan is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games
Saskatchewan is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
British Columbia is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games
British Columbia is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games

Week 2 CFL games

Thursday, July 3

Hamilton (0-1) @ Toronto (1-0)-- TiCats got smoked at home by Montreal last week, 33-10, allowing 472 total yards (6.7 yds per play). Hamilton committed 14 penalties for 104 yards, so a lousy start to season. Argos won 23-16 at Winnipeg, picking off three passes (+3 TOs), winning despite being outgained 361-230. .

Calgary (1-0) @ Edmonton (0-1)-- Stampeders outgained Lions 457-295 in 28-18 win last week; Calgary ran ball 31 times for 147 yards, most rushing tries by any CFL team last week. Eskimos lost 34-13 in Regina, after trailing just 9-7 at half; their 59 yards rushing were least in CFL last week.

Friday, July 4

Winnipeg (0-1) @ Montreal (1-0)-- Alouettes were 26-38/284 in passing game in 33-10 win at Hamilton last week, as new coach Trestman bring his ideas from NFL/college to CFL. Als ran ball for 18 yards, had 32 first downs. Glenn threw three picks in loss to Toronto last wk; they held Argos to less than 50% passing

Saskatchewan (1-0) @ BC Lions (0-1)-- BC ran ball just 15 times for 65 yards in 28-18 loss at Calgary last week, least tries on the ground last week. Stamps outgained BC 457-295. Roughriders averaged 7.7 yards per play in beating Eskimos last week; they scored 25 points in second half after leading just 9-7 at the half.

CFL Week 2 picks
MILLER GROUP

I’m going to be checking in with my CFL selections each week this season, and it all gets started with a Week 2 double bill on Thursday night. The Tiger-Cats make the short trip to Toronto to tackle the Argonauts while the Battle of Alberta resumes in Edmonton.

Let’s get down to business.

Thursday

Hamilton Tiger-Cats at Toronto Argonauts –10, 43.5
Plays: Toronto –10 and under 43.5

The Tiger-Cats have Casey Printers and Jesse Lumsden, but not much else. They looked awful in their home opener against the Montreal Alouettes, a team that many expect to be in line for a down year. The expectations are high in Hamilton this season, but I have my doubts as to whether they can show a marked improvement over last year.

Charlie Taaffe just isn’t the answer at the head coach position. Until he realizes that the offense has to run through Lumsden, the Ti-Cats will continue to struggle. An inexperienced defense can’t shoulder the entire load.

The Argos scratched out a narrow victory in Winnipeg last Friday night. I came away impressed by their ever-evolving defense. This is the best stop unit in the league, and they should have little trouble slowing down the Ti-Cats stuck-in-the-mud offense. I’ll dabble with the under as well. Offensively, the Argos remain a work in progress. Joseph and Robertson (QB and RB) are in their first season in this offense. There’s plenty of talent, but don’t count on them running up the score tonight.

Calgary Stampeders at Edmonton Eskimos +2.5, 53.5
Plays: Calgary –2.5 and under 53.5

Calgary didn’t get a lot of press entering this season, but I feel they could be a real sleeper in the West. Last week, QB Henry Burris completed 69 perfect of his passes for 274 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. With Joffrey Reynolds in the backfield, Burris doesn’t have to carry the load, and that’s a good thing. This isn’t going to be a first class defense, but with so many offensive weapons it shouldn’t matter. I just don’t see how the Eskimos can do enough on defense to keep Calgary within arm’s reach tonight.

The Eskimos need a lot more out of QB Ricky Ray than they’ve gotten over the last couple of years. In Week 1 he put up some fairly solid numbers, throwing for close to 250 yards on 67 percent passing, but didn’t find the end zone once. Granted, that was against a tough Saskatchewan defense. Without an imposing force at running back (Damien Anderson doesn’t fit the mold), I’m thinking there’s a little too much pressure being put on Frito Ray. The Eskimos defense should bounce back from last week’s dismal effort, but they won’t score enough to outgun the Stamps on this night.

CFL Week 2: Friday picks and analysis
By CHARLES-ANDRÉ MARCHAND

Winnipeg Blue Bombers (0-1) at Montreal Alouettes (1-0)

Odds: Alouettes -1

Ben Cahoon will probably be back in the lineup for the Alouettes, who easily defeated Hamilton last week despite a dozen injuries, some to key players.

Marc Trestman’s coaching debut has also been impressive with an improved playbook that has shown a lot of variety on the offensive side of the game. Overall, the Blue Bombers seem more balanced than the Alouettes and Kevin Glenn was pretty impressive in last week’s lost to the Argos where he threw for 321 yards and completed 32 of the 48 passes he attempted.

But Anthony Calvillo did gain 293 yards with the 25 passes he completed out of 37 and Kerry Watkins was dominant in the absence of Cahoon with 6 receptions and 102 yards gains for two TDs.

This is a tough one to call but, if only because of the home field advantage and the novelties in Trestman’s offensive playbook, you could take a chance on Montreal in this one.

Pick: Alouettes (with caution)

Saskatchewan Roughriders (1-0) at B.C. Lions (0-1)

Odds: B.C. -6

Marcus Crandall did impress last week in Saskatchewan’s win over the Eskimos, but Edmonton could have surprised the reigning Grey Cup champions with a bit more opportunism in the red zone.

It is hard to imagine the B.C. Lions wasting such chances to score.

Crandall completed 19 of 29 pass attempts and got help form Wes Cates who ran for 86 yards and two touchdowns. Buck Pierce and Jarious Jackson shared duties at quarterback for the Lions while Cory Rodgers caught two touchdown passes, one from each. The Lions were not at their best against the Stampeders but it is somewhat doubtful they will face the same type of adversity against Saskatchewan.

It may be a close one but still, but B.C. will beat the spread and put a first win on the board.

Pick: Lions