Philadelphia, PA (My Sportsbook) -
EDMONTON ESKIMOS (6-6) AT WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS (4-8)
DATE & TIME: Friday, October 2, 7:30 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: Hoping to put together back-to-back wins for the first time in 2009, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers welcome the Edmonton Eskimos to Canad Inns Stadium on Friday night.
Winnipeg has just four wins in 12 tries this season, with the most recent of those coming on September 26 versus Toronto in a 29-24 final at home. Previously the Bombers defeated Toronto, Calgary and British Columbia, yet at no point has the team been able to have successful outings in successive weeks.
Even though Winnipeg went scoreless in the fourth quarter last week, the team had built up enough of a buffer to keep the visiting Argonauts out of the win column. Kicker Alexis Serna was a big part of the triumph as he knocked through four field goals, while quarterback Michael Bishop converted 23-of-32 passes for 312 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Even though he didn't get into the end zone, receiver Otis Amey still played a huge role with his six catches for a game-high 118 yards.
As for the Eskimos, a team that made a number of moves off the field earlier this week, they were treated to their third loss in the last four outings on Saturday when they allowed Saskatchewan to slip by in a 23-20 decision at home.
Ricky Ray hit on slightly more than half of his 29 pass attempts, converting 15 connections into 244 yards, yet not one of those passes directly resulted in a score.
Running back Arkee Whitlock carried the ball 10 times for a team-best 85 yards and a score, his 55-yard romp in the fourth quarter turning up as the eventual game-winner.
Defensively the Esks made a significant impact when they scored the first points of the contest on a 59-yard interception return for a touchdown by T.J. Hill. Edmonton managed to get the job done despite suffering 12 penalties for a loss of 76 yards and ball possession that amounted to barely 24 minutes.
Back to the action off the field for Edmonton, the team announced that defensive tackle Dario Romero was placed on the injured list and will end up missing the rest of the season. In an effort to offset that move, the Eskimos signed defensive lineman Jerome Haywood, a veteran of eight CFL seasons. Haywood enters his tenure with the Eskimos having recorded 29 sacks and 223 total tackles with Ottawa, Montreal and Winnipeg previously.
As if that were not enough, Edmonton also tried to bolster its secondary by picking up defensive back Byron Parker who had worn out his welcome in Toronto. Parker, who was part of the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles this year before returning to the Argos for whom he has played since 2005, had been vocal about his displeasure with the defensive schemes for Toronto and was subsequently cut loose by the worst team in the league.
Right now Edmonton could use all the help it can get on defense, considering the unit is last in the league in yards allowed with a hefty 391.4 ypg permitted to the opposition. The squad is second-to-last in the CFL with just 10 interceptions and is at the bottom with 30.8 ppg allowed thus far.
As far as the Edmonton offense is concerned, Ray is second in the league in passing with 3,416 yards, hitting 68.3 percent of his attempts for 16 touchdowns and just nine picks, but unless the defense turns up the intensity it might not make much of a difference how well Ray and his receivers perform.
As for the Blue Bombers, their point production over the course of 12 games has been rather anaemic at just 229 points. Last in the league with an average of 19.1 ppg, it should come as no surprise that Winnipeg handles the ball for barely 25 minutes per game and is averaging barely 290 ypg overall.
Winnipeg's passing attack has been dreadful in 2009, ranking last with a mere 2,152 total yards and eight touchdowns on 48.6 percent completions. In addition to being unable to move the ball efficiently through the air, the Bombers have issued 18 interceptions, tying them for the most in the league with both British Columbia and Saskatchewan.
These two teams kicked off the 2009 season against each other back on July 2, with Edmonton capturing a narrow 19-17 win at home. Ray had one passing touchdown and another on the ground for the Eskimos who now hold an 86-75-3 record in regular-season meetings against Winnipeg.
Even though the changes on defense this week for the Eskimos probably won't make too much of an impact, the fact that the Blue Bombers are far from a threatening offensive juggernaut makes this a winnable road game for Edmonton.
My Sportsbook Predicted Outcome: Edmonton 23, Winnipeg 14
SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS (7-5) AT BRITISH COLUMBIA LIONS (5-7)
DATE & TIME: Friday, October 2, 10:30 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: Having alternated wins and losses over the last six outings, the British Columbia Lions hope the trend continues at least through this weekend as they host the Saskatchewan Roughriders in a West Division showdown at BC Place Stadium.
Dating back to an August 14 win at Toronto, the Lions have been unable to put together consistent efforts from one week to the next and are currently last in the division with a record of 5-7 following a 27-18 setback to Calgary last Friday.
After a scoreless first quarter, Martell Mallett and Paris Jackson both scored touchdowns for the Lions, but after that there were just four more points scored for the visitors in the setback.
Mallet finished the game with a team-best 136 yards, averaging better than nine yards per carry, while Jackson had just three catches for 33 yards. Quarterback Buck Pierce responded with 17-of-27 passing for 230 yards and an interception, one of two turnovers for the squad.
As for the Roughriders, winners of three of their last four contests, they needed a one-yard TD run by Steven Jyles, with a successful two-point conversion with Darian Durant passing to Andy Fantuz, to slip by Edmonton and capture a 23-20 road win last week.
Carrying a good portion of the load for the Riders was Wes Cates who accounted for a game-high 103 yards on 17 rushing attempts, while Fantuz pulled in seven passes for 71 yards.
Durant had an up and down effort as he converted 23-of-33 passes for 269 yards, but he delivered three interceptions along the way without the benefit of a single TD pass.
The defense stood tall for Saskatchewan as Renauld Williams recovered a fumble in the end zone for a score and the squad also forced Edmonton kicker Noel Prefontaine to concede in the end zone for another two points.
At this point in the season, the Roughriders are first in the league in fumble recoveries with 22, but because the offense has handed the ball back to the opposition so often the team is just a plus-seven in the turnover department.
Needless to say, British Columbia would love to be in the position that the Roughriders are in terms of turnovers because the Lions have given the ball away a league-high 42 times, which means the group is tied for seventh in turnover margin with a minus-11 over the course of 12 games.
In an effort to give the BC defense a little more strength, defensive end Ricky Foley has made it his mission to chase down opposing quarterbacks and as of this moment he is tied for the league lead with nine sacks. Now in his fourth year in the league, those nine sacks are one more than he had combined through his first three seasons with the Lions.
Unfortunately, while Foley has been trying to make a significant difference with his penetration, the Lions are being exploited by running attacks that have produced 147.4 ypg on the ground, easily the most permitted by any team in the league heading into Week 14.
If the Lions are not careful this week they might be in for a tough time on the turf because Saskatchewan actually leads the league in rushing touchdowns with 17. Cates, who is averaging better than five yards per carry, is responsible for five of those scores, while Durant has contributed another three while generating just under eight yards per tote.
Durant is currently fourth in the league in passing with better than 2,800 yards, but his 14 TDs are overshadowed by his 16 interceptions, easily the most among all CFL signal-callers. Should he take matters into his own hands and try to make big plays happen with his arm rather than his legs, he and the Roughriders might find the road a bit rough.
As far as the all-time series in regular-season meetings between these two teams is concerned, BC's 35-20 win in Week 6 of this season drew the Lions one step closer to evening out a relationship that currently favors Saskatchewan by a count of 87-75-4. The Roughriders, who will host British Columbia on October 24, also won the season opener between the programs by a score of 28-24.
It is not easy to beat a team over and over again during the season, but Saskatchewan appears to have BC's number right now and could be in line for yet another triumph this time around as well.
My Sportsbook Predicted Outcome: Saskatchewan 31, British Columbia 23
MONTREAL ALOUETTES (10-2) AT TORONTO ARGONAUTS (3-9)
DATE & TIME: Saturday, October 3, 1:00 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: The high-flying Montreal Alouettes head to the Rogers Centre this weekend, the first of two trips this season, in order to face off against an ailing Toronto Argonauts squad in Week 14 action of the Canadian Football League.
The Als, four games ahead of the competition in the East Division at 10-2, have been cruising through the 2009 campaign with only a couple of speed bumps to slow them down. Last week, the program won its third straight and the sixth in the last seven tries with an overwhelming 42-8 decision versus Hamilton.
Against the Tiger-Cats, whom Montreal limited to just eight points in their first meeting of the season as well, Avon Cobourne was given free reign to roam the field, resulting in his 193 yards and two touchdowns on 23 rushing attempts. Cobourne also reeled in five passes for another 46 yards, his receptions total being second only to Kerry Watkins who had seven grabs for 80 yards and a score.
Quarterback Anthony Calvillo continued his assault on the rest of the league as he completed 25-of-36 passes for 286 yards and two touchdowns, the other going to Jamel Richardson.
Defensively, the Als held Hamilton to a mere 34 yards rushing and just 139 yards of total offense in the outing.
While Montreal was dismantling the Tiger-Cats on the road, Toronto was fighting to come from behind in what turned into a 29-24 loss to Winnipeg on Saturday.
After scoring just nine points over the course of the first three quarters, Toronto came up with 15 in the fourth frame and held the hosts scoreless in the final period, but it was too little too late to change the outing. Cody Pickett converted 13-of-22 passes for just 98 yards and Kerry Joseph contributed another 123 yards on 11 completions, although the latter tossed a pair of interceptions as well. Joseph scored the lone offensive touchdown of the contest for the Argos with a three-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Defensively, Andre Durie made a dent in the final score when he took a fumble recovery three yards into the end zone for the visitors. Limiting Winnipeg to just 66 yards rushing and watching the Blue Bombers assessed 15 penalties for a loss of 178 yards should have helped the cause, but that still wasn't enough in the final assessment.
With the loss Toronto has now bowed in back-to-back games and seven of the last eight overall.
The Argos made significant news off the field this week again as they sent disgruntled cornerback Byron Parker to the Edmonton Eskimos for future draft considerations. Parker, who was dissatisfied with his role and likened the teams schemes to that of a Pop Warner squad in terms of complexity, is a two- time CFL all-star who was clearly frustrated with the team's lackluster performance at just 3-9.
Parker becomes the second standout player from Toronto to be dismissed after the program sent wideout Arland Bruce to Hamilton after the receiver voiced his displeasure with both head coach Bart Andrus and quarterback Kerry Joseph.
Getting rid of Parker is a questionable move at this stage of the season given that the Argos rank last in the league in interceptions with just nine and have a scoring defense that is in the middle of the pack while allowing 26.4 ppg. What could be seen as a cost-cutting measure is also a clear sign that Toronto isn't all that interested in putting up much of a fight the rest of the way.
What the Argos don't need right now is to tangle with the most potent offense in the CFL, but that's what faces the club upon Montreal's arrival this week. The Als are the top-scoring program with 32.2 ppg and are flying along with better than 408 ypg in total offense. Completing 72.1 percent of his pass attempts, Calvillo is second in the league in passing TDs with 17, but more importantly, has a mere five interceptions in 426 attempts.
When Calvillo isn't carving up defenses, Cobourne is handling the honors with a league-best 1,043 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground. Tops in the league with 1,423 yards from scrimmage, Cobourne is also the leading scorer with his 78 points.
In the first meeting of the season, the Als blanked Toronto at home back on August 7 by a score of 25-0. Calvillo threw for 395 yards, compared to a mere 143 yards for Joseph and Cody Pickett, while Cobourne registered a pair of rushing scores for the hosts.
Winners of the last four meetings, Montreal, which will see the Argos in the regular-season finale on November 7, now owns a 90-74-2 regular-season mark versus Toronto.
Unless something drastic happens to the Montreal offense this week, the Als should be on their way to another easy victory, reminiscent of what happened last week against Hamilton.
My Sportsbook Predicted Outcome: Montreal 49, Toronto 20
HAMILTON TIGER-CATS (6-6) AT CALGARY STAMPEDERS (7-5)
DATE & TIME: Saturday, October 3, 7:00 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: In an effort to bounce back from yet another poor showing against the Montreal Alouettes, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats turn their attention to the Calgary Stampeders this weekend at McMahon Stadium.
Last week, the Tiger-Cats faced the league-leading Als for the second time this season, and for the second time Hamilton was limited to a mere eight points in a 34-point setback at home. Back on July 23, Hamilton put up just eight points in a 13-point loss at Montreal as well.
This time around the Ti-Cats were held scoreless through the first half and it wasn't until kicker Nicholas Setta knocked through a single in the third quarter and Kevin Glenn hit Marquay McDaniel with a five-yard touchdown pass that the team showed any signs of life.
Sadly, Hamilton's offense was held down at almost every turn, churning out a mere 34 yards on eight rushing attempts, while the quarterback combination of Glenn, Quinton Porter and Adam Tafralis converted just 13-of-22 passes for 105 yards and an interception. Suffering three turnovers meant the Tiger-Cat defense was left on the field for more than 41 minutes and had to endure 535 yards posted by Montreal.
The story was much different for the Stampeders in their outing last week as the defense bent a bit in the second quarter against British Columbia, giving up a pair of touchdowns in that frame, but other than that there was little for the Stamps to fear in their 27-18 win at home. Calgary put together a balanced offensive attack that produced 208 yards on the ground and another 197 yards through the air.
Henry Burris hit 14-of-27 passes for those yards and had a TD toss to Jeremaine Copeland who accounted for four catches for 57 yards. Running back Joffrey Reynolds found plenty of gaps in the BC defense, shredding the squad for 151 yards on just 17 attempts.
With the win Calgary picked up its seventh victory in 12 tries this season and is tied with Saskatchewan for first place in the West Division of the CFL.
Completing just under 60 percent of his pass attempts thus far, Burris is third in the league in passing yardage with 3,313 and is tops with 18 touchdowns through the air. What makes the signal-caller such a threat is that he is also ninth in the CFL in rushing with another 400 yards, leading to seven more touchdowns. Burris has the Stamps second in the league in scoring with 31 ppg, trailing only Montreal which is tops in several statistical categories.
With a league-best 126.8 ypg on the ground and another 282.1 ypg passing over the first 12 games of the season, Calgary maintains one of the most balanced offensive attacks in the league.
On the other side of the coin, Hamilton is one of the weaker offenses this year, averaging just 23.3 ppg, although some of that has to be attributed to the Alouettes who put a stranglehold on the Tiger-Cats in two games. Even though Glenn leads the team with his 10 passing TDs and just four interceptions in almost 200 attempts, it is clear that Hamilton will try almost anything to get the offense jump-started when it falters.
In the most recent meeting between these two teams back in Week 12, Calgary started off with 14 points in the first quarter on the road, but it was the Tiger-Cats who showed more bite late in the game when Arland Bruce scored a pair of receiving touchdowns on his way to being named the CFL Offensive Player of the Week.
Despite the win for Hamilton a couple weeks back at Ivor Wynne Stadium, the Cats still trail in the all-time regular-season series with Calgary by a count of 47-29.
Considering Hamilton's inability to win on the road this season, the squad is a league-worst 1-4 away from home, giving the edge to Calgary isn't that much of a stretch.
My Sportsbook Predicted Outcome: Calgary 31, Hamilton 20
Overall Season Record: 23-25; Last Week's Record: 2-2.
