Preview of CFL Playoffs With Betting Odds
Edmonton Eskimos at Toronto Argonauts
The CFL playoffs are this weekend with a Sunday doubleheader. In the early game, the Edmonton Eskimos visit the Toronto Argonauts. The winner will move on to the Grey Cup Semifinal at the Montreal Alouettes a week from Sunday.
Edmonton beat Toronto at Toronto 26-17 on August 27. Former Argo Kerry Joseph came off the bench to lead the Eskimos to the win after the first string quarterback Steven Jyles, another ex-Argo, went down after a late hit.
Edmonton also beat Toronto on the season's opening week in Edmonton 19-15. Jyles was 21 of 36 in that game to spoil the Argos quarterback Ricky Ray's return to Edmonton.
Edmonton finished the season 7-11, one of two sub .500 teams to make the playoffs. Toronto finished 9-9, good for second place in the East division.
Pinnacle has Edmonton +3.5 1.909 or 2.450. Toronto is -3.5 2.000 or 1.621. Over/under is 50.5. We like the under. In neither meeting this year did the two get to 50 points combined, and that was in good weather. We also like Edmonton a bit since they beat Toronto both meetings. The old saying that "it's hard to beat a team for the third time", we aren't sure we buy it. It just might be that the Eskimos match up well with the Argos. Just to be safe, we'll take the 3.5 points though. Edmonton +3.5.
Saskatchewan Rough Riders at Calgary Stampeders
The Rough Riders finished third in the West division with an 8-10 record. All four West teams are in the playoffs. Calgary finished in second place with a 12-6 mark and beat Saskatchewan twice in three meetings. Calgary won the first two, the Rough Riders the third, which I guess flies in the face of what we said about the previous game. The winner will move on to play the British Columbia Lions in the semifinals next week.
The first meeting, in week four, was a thriller in Calgary as the Stampeders prevailed 41-38. Quarterback Kevin Glenn sparked a fourth quarter rally from 17 points down to tie the game and the Stamps won it in overtime.
The Stamps won a defensive contest in week nine on the road against the Riders 17-10. Joe West scored a touchdown on his first career reception in the game for the Stampeders.
In week 13, Saskatchewan won 30-25 at home. Riders quarterback Darian Durant threw for two touchdowns to lead the Riders to the victory in that one, avoiding a season sweep.
Pinnacle has Saskatchewan +5 2.000 or + 2.450. Calgary is -5 1.909 or -1.459. Over/under is 51.5. We are going to go with the over since two of the three games were high scoring affairs. We also like the Stampeders to win the game but covering the spread might be difficult. But we'll risk it. Stamps -5.
