The Argos are coming off a controversial 20-19 walk-off victory over Saskatchewan in Week 12, a win that was secured with a missed field goal rouge. The Ti-Cats have lost four straight games, including last week’s 26-23 decision in Winnipeg.

Toronto opened as a 4.5-point favourite to win on the CFL odds, with the total set at 52.5.

CFL Odds and Betting

Prior to this season, the Argonauts were on a six-game winning streak in head-to-head action. That changed in Week 7 when Hamilton won 27-24 at home for their first victory of the season. The season series wraps up September 20 in Toronto.

The Argos have struggled on the road this season, going 1-3 straight up compared to 5-1 SU at BMO Field. They’ve been a middling cover option at 4-6 against the spread while hitting the Over in six of 10 games.

It’s been a terrible year for the Ti-Cats, who sit dead last in the CFL with a 2-9 record. They haven’t been much better as a cover option, posting a 3-8 record ATS. The only consistency for Hamilton has been the Over, which has hit seven times this season.

Toronto Argonauts

Toronto received a big boost to the lineup last week with the return of Chad Kelly from a nine-game suspension. Kelly, the CFL’s reigning Most Outstanding Player, looked rusty in his first game action since last year’s East Division final. He finished with 322 passing yards, no touchdowns and one interception. The Argos also turned the ball over three times on downs at Saskatchewan’s goal line.

Kelly’s No. 1 priority will be reinvigorating a Toronto offence that ranks last in the CFL in average passing yards (222.0) and total yards (338.9) per game. He did show some early chemistry with Damonte Coxie, who finished last week’s game with 112 yards on five receptions. David Ungerer also had five receptions, finishing with 72 yards.

One area of pride for the Argonauts has been their league-leading rushing defence that allows an average of just 71.6 rushing yards per game and 4.4 rushing yards per play. That could be particularly important this week as Hamilton has the worst rushing offence in the CFL.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

A bad year only got worse for the Tiger-Cats in last week’s loss against the Bombers. Bo Levi Mitchell struggled heavily, completing just half of his 28 pass attempts for 220 yards with no TDs or interceptions. It’s been a strange season for Mitchell, who leads the CFL in passing yards (3,026) and passing TDs (19), but also interceptions (12). Tim White had a monster performance last week with a season-high 134 receiving yards. Greg Bell led the way on offence with two rushing TDs.

Hamilton’s biggest adjustment is the hiring of Chris Jones as senior defensive assistant while also firing defensive coordinator Mark Washington. Jones took over defensive play-calling duties last week and the Ti-Cats showed positive improvement. Hamilton forced three turnovers, racked up three sacks and held Winnipeg’s offence to just 19 points after they averaged 33.4 points in the previous 10 weeks.

CFL Prediction: Who Will Win Argonauts vs. Tiger-Cats?