Blue Bombers vs. Lions CFL Week 21 Betting Odds, Picks: Winnipeg favoured in must-win game
The final Friday night game of the 2026 CFL regular season features the playoff-hopeful Winnipeg Blue Bombers at a B.C. Lions team that already has clinched a spot.
The Bombers are -6.5 on the CFL odds with a total of 55.5 points.
CFL Odds and Betting
The CFL playoff field all comes down to the West Division with only first-place Montreal and No. 2 Toronto having qualified from the East. Edmonton (13-4) has clinched the West, with B.C. (10-7) and Saskatchewan (9-8) both in the postseason as well. The final spot comes down to Calgary (9-9), which is finished for the regular season, and Winnipeg (8-9).
It’s quite simple for the Blue Bombers: Win and they are in as they would hold the tiebreaker over the Stampeders. Lose, and Winnipeg misses the postseason for the first time in 2015 and Calgary gets the final playoff spot. If the Blue Bombers win here and Roughriders defeat the visiting Elks on Saturday, Saskatchewan would visit B.C. in the West Semi-Final, while Winnipeg would visit Toronto in the East Semi-Final as the crossover team. If the Bombers win here and the Riders lose, Winnipeg is at B.C. and Saskatchewan at Toronto.
Winnipeg had won four straight games in this series before falling 35-19 at home in late July. Zander Horvath dominated in rushing 17 times for 191 yards and three scores. As a team, the Lions rushed for 377 yards to break the single-game team record of 347 that had stood since 1969. Dru Brown was 18 for 21 passing 180 yards and a touchdown for the Bombers before leaving injured in the fourth.
The under is 4-0 in the past four meetings.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Winnipeg comes off a hard-fought 35-27 loss at Edmonton last Friday as the Elks completed their first three-game series sweep in a season since 1979.
Zach Collaros completed 28 of 33 passes for 331 yards and two touchdowns but his two picks were both costly. The last came with the Bombers down about midway through the fourth and at the Edmonton 15.
“You can’t make mistakes,” Collaros said. “You can’t lose the turnover battle, obviously.”
He did pass Khari Jones for sole possession of second place on the club’s all-time passing TD list.
Bombers wideout Tim White went over the 1,000-yard receiving mark on the season for the fifth consecutive year, longest streak in the league.
Winnipeg was trying for consecutive wins for the first time since July but couldn’t slow the ground game as the Elks rushed for 212 yards and averaged 6.4 yards per carry.
BC Lions
With the Lions locked into second place in the West Division, they almost surely will rest starters on Friday and sit back and await their playoff foe.
Nathan Rourke started their 32-13 loss at Calgary last Saturday but did not play the second half. Coach Buck Pierce already has said Rourke won’t play in this one and that Kaidon Salter will start under centre.
Salter started for Rourke on July 30 in Winnipeg and led a 35-19 win – that was his first career CFL start. Salter also played the entire of the second half last week and was 6-for-12 passing for 113 yards with an INT while rushing three times for 23 yards.
Third-string quarterback Chris Oladokun is also expected to see the field. The 29-year-old American, signed off the Kansas City Chiefs’ practice squad last month, has yet to see CFL action.
Might we see top running back Blake Horvath? His 18 rushing TDs are one shy of tying the league record.
WPG
BC