3rd and 1: Best Bets for Week 13 of the CFL Season

The CFL doesn’t start until Labour Day.  Someone says it every year!  It’s a silly seasonal reminder that there’s still a lot of football left to play.  And, like a cold gust invading your summer breeze, it’s a warning that harsher conditions are ahead.  As familiar is the feeling that this time of year brings, the CFL standings currently look like nothing I’ve ever seen.  When was the last time the balance of power belonged in the East?  Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto have the three best records in the league while the West doesn’t have a single team above .500.  Lucky week 13 for them, the season is only about to begin. 

Ottawa Redblacks at BC Lions

I’ve been burned by BC anticipating the turnaround that’s yet to come.  The Lions have lost five in a row after starting the season with five straight wins.  During the skid, they’ve scored half as many points and thrown for less than half as many yards as they did when they were winning. Offence has been the issue, but for obvious reasons.  Vernon Adams was the clear cut MOP until he was hurt, then injured.  Jake Dolegala started one game.  And Nathan Rourke was thrust into action after only a couple days north of the border.  He looked more comfortable in last week’s loss in Ottawa.  Back in BC this week but home is even further west than usual.  Victoria hosts Touchdown Pacific as Rourke gets a chance to play in his birth place.  Give the Redblacks full credit for earning their seventh win last week but only two of those victories have come on the road.  Jaelon Acklon and Bralon Addison are likely out while last year’s sack leader Mathieu Betts is expected to play for the Lions after returning from the NFL.  He should make an immediate impact for a defence that had 15 sacks through five games, and has just seven since.  The Lions are too talented not to turn it around.  Now’s the time.

THE PICK: LIONS -2.5

Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Saskatchewan Roughriders

Sound the Sirens.  The Bombers are in the air and headed to Regina for the Sunday rivalry.  Winnipeg barely squeaked out a victory against the league’s worst team last week.  Zach Collaros engineered his 11^th fourth quarter comeback drive since joining the Bombers in 2019, and he did it without two-fifths of his offensive line.  Left tackle Stanley Bryant is expected back. So is Adam Bighill who leads a defence that started slow, but is now allowing the fewest yards and points per game.  Since week 6, opponents are averaging less than fourteen points a game against the Bombers.  On the other side, the Riders are clinging to first place in the West by a single point but they haven’t won since week 7, which happened to be against the Bombers in Saskatchewan.  That sent Winnipeg to 2-and-5 and here they are with a chance to take over first place six weeks later. 

THE PICK: BLUE BOMBERS +2.5

Toronto Argonauts at Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Ordinarily I would lean to the underdog for the Labour Day Classic in Hamilton.  As much as anyone might tell you it’s just another game, it’s not.  Passion tends to trump talent.  But the edge is with the Argos on every angle, even emotionally after the Ti-Cats won their only meeting this year.  Chad Kelly was above average in his season debut.  There was obvious room for improvement but he still threw for over 300 yards.  I dared Chris Jones to make the Ti-Cats defence better last week, and he did!  But if Jamal Peters isn’t able to go against his former team, Kelly and Damonte Coxie could pick their secondary apart.

THE PICK: ARGONAUTS -4.5

CFL Fantasy Best Bet: NATHAN ROURKE ($ 9.0 K)

There are nine quarterbacks with more expensive price tags this week in fantasy.  Considering no more than eight quarterbacks can start in a given week, Nathan Rourke has tremendous value heading into Labour Day Weekend.  This is the first time he’ll have a whole week to prepare for a game since re-signing with the Lions and there were obvious signs of improvement last week.  He spread it around, targeting five different teammates at least five times each.  He used his legs, rushing for over 63 yards, 51 of which came on one ankle breaking, tackle shedding play that awoke the Lion inside.  I’ve been calling him the Maple Messiah for three weeks, but this is the moment he’ll live up to the moniker.