Roughriders vs. Eskimos Prediction: CFL Week 8 Point Spread, Odds
It’s the first meeting of the 2018 regular season between the teams; Edmonton goes to Saskatchewan in Week 17.
Betting Analysis
Early betting at Sports Interaction has a solid lean on the Roughriders getting 8 points and really heavy on the over 53 points. That’s the highest total of the weekend. On the moneyline, Edmonton is -320 and Saskatchewan +260.
In the race to 10 points, the Eskimos are -189 and Roughriders +140. To score first, Edmonton is -189 with a touchdown at +260. Saskatchewan is +120 to take the first lead and a touchdown is +400. On the winning margin prop, the Eskimos by 7-12 points is favoured at +375, followed by 13-18 points (-425), 1-6 points (+475) and 19-24 points (+600). Then it’s Saskatchewan at 1-6 points (+650).
The clubs did play in this year’s CFL preseason opener with the Eskimos winning 35-12 at home. The Roughriders are 4-1 ATS in the past five meetings that count, and the over is 7-3 in the past 10 in Edmonton.
Saskatchewan Roughriders
The Riders were 7.5-point home underdogs last Saturday vs. unbeaten Calgary, and the Stamps prevailed 34-22 – leading 24-0 after one quarter. Brandon Bridge was just 19-for-29 for 147 yards and Saskatchewan’s longest pass play was just 17 yards. Brett Lauther had five field goals and defensive end Tobi Antigha had the lone Saskatchewan TD, a 52-yard interception returned for a score. There was potentially positive and negative news this week for the Riders.
The positive was that starting quarterback Zach Collaros was activated from the six-game injured list Monday. He suffered a concussion in Week 2. Meanwhile, the team released running back Jerome Messam after the Canadian was charged with voyeurism from a 2016 incident. Messam was a 1,000-yard rusher the past two years but had just 205 yards on the ground in 2018. In addition, Duron Carter will return to receiver after spending most of the season at defensive back.
Edmonton Eskimos
Edmonton was a 10-point favourite at struggling Montreal last week and the Eskimos rolled to a 44-23 victory, their most points scored this year. Mike Reilly threw for 415 yards and four touchdowns and ran for another and was named one of the CFL’s top performers of Week 7. Duke Williams had four catches for 116 yards and two scores as he and Reilly continue to be the top 1-2 punch in the CFL. Sean Whyte added three field goals. Defensively, Kwaku Boateng had three sacks.
The one negative was Edmonton flagged 17 times for 191 yards. The team also placed linebackers Christophe Mulumba-Tshimanga and Blair Smith, along with fullback Pascal Lochard on the six-game injured list. Edmonton has covered six of its past eight following a victory.
