CFL Football

Edmonton Eskimos (2-8) will take on the Montreal Alouettes (7-3) in a game that shouldn’t be that close. Montreal has a small lead in the East Division right now over the Ti-Cats and a win here would strengthen their lead. Montreal has proven to be a really tough team at home and currently have a 4-1 record in their own backyard. I can’t imagine the Eskimos coming into Montreal and winning the game, but will the Als be able to cover the big spread?

The Eskimos are coming off two straight losses against the Stampeders where they didn’t look good at all. Now they need to travel across the country to take on the 1st place team in the East Division. The defence was horrendous last week, as they gave up over 400 passing yards and 200 rushing yards. When you give up 600+ total yards in a single game you typically aren’t going to have a chance to win the game.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers (3-7) travel to Ontario today for a match-up against the Toronto Argonauts (5-5). As of right now these two teams are in the bottom of the East Division although the Argos can move back into a tie with Hamilton if they can win. Hamilton would still be winning the tiebreaker, but both teams would have a 6-5 record heading into week 13. Lemon needs to ensure that he’s prepared for the game this afternoon, as Toronto can’t afford to lose their 4th game in a row.

Toronto has lost their last 3 games now (2 against Hamilton, 1 against Lions) and don’t look anything like they looked like in the first few weeks of the season. The lost last week against the Lions (37-16) was extra painful and they need to bounce back against the last place team in the East this week. If the Argos lose this week they’ll allow Winnipeg to close the gap on them and would be really putting their playoff chances in the hands of other teams.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats (5-5) travel across the country today to take on the B.C. Lions (3-7) at 10PM tonight. This isn’t a must-win game for either team, but it’s a game that will play an important role in deciding the playoffs this season. Both teams are battling right now for a spot in the playoffs and are in vital need of a victory to maintain ground with the top teams. The Lions definitely have the momentum right now after winning the past two games and also have the home field advantage.

B.C.’s offence has woken up in the later part of the season, but it might be a little too late. Printers played great last week in a 37-16 stomping of the Argonauts. Casey also looked good against the Alouettes in week 10 after coming back from an injury and it has helped the struggling Lions move back into the playoff picture. If it weren’t for Printers, the Lions would still be in bad shape due to an almost non-existent running game.

We seen plenty of surprises last week in the CFL, but the biggest one had to have been the last game of the week. Most people expected the Roughriders to cover by 4, including me, but they ended up getting smoked by Winnipeg. I missed a couple games this week, but I’ll be posting picks for all four games this week.

Calgary Stampeders (9-1) took on the Eskimos in the first game of the week and won 36-20. The Stamps now have a 7 game winning streak since losing to the Argos and it doesn’t look like anyone will stop them in the West. Burris settled down this week and had a great game. He completed 29 of 35 passes and gained over 400 yards while throwing 2 TD’s and only 1 INT.