-
Edgar Chaput
Stampeders vs. RedBlacks Prediction: CFL Week 2 Point Spread, Odds
Calgary had a chance to get their campaign off on the right foot at home to the BC Lions but fell 25-15. Similarly, the Redblacks were handed an opportunity to start strong away to the Alouettes but timely errors resulted in a 19-12 defeat.
Heading into this game, the CFL odds place Dave Dickenson’s Stamps as -4.5 favourites. The total is currently set at 43.5.
CFL Odds and Betting
Calgary and Ottawa squared off only once throughout the entire 2022 season. It came in August when the Stampeders travelled to Ottawa and took the game 17-3. The win was earned despite being outgained overall by the Redblacks 319 to 252. Calgary’s attack was more balanced, as 103 of their 252 came on the ground, whereas Ottawa only mustered 67 rushing yards.
Dating back to last season, the Stampeders are 4-3 in their last seven against the spread, although they’ve failed to cover two in a row – this includes their playoff elimination game last year. They were favoured at home last week, but as shall be discussed below, things didn’t go according to plan at all. If we include the end of 2022, the under has connected three games in a row.
As for Ottawa, if we perform the same exercise, they’re 3-4 ATS in the last seven tilts. Much like with their opponents, they’ve also failed to cover twice in a row. They were pinned as +2 underdogs for the game in Montreal in Week 1, but lost by a touchdown. Of note, the under has cashed in for both their last two games (this year and last) and in both cases, the scores were far, far lower than what predictions said they’d be.
Calgary Stampeders
Hosting the Lions in Week 1 gave the Stampeders a glorious chance to exact a small matter of revenge for suffering a playoff defeat last fall. If anything, the Lions looked just as superior in Week 1 as they did in that playoff game, if not more so.
The Jake Maier era in Calgary got off to a rocky start. While throwing 20 completions on 36 attempts doesn’t look horrible, it only tallied 166 yards. Big plays at critical moments were few far and few between for the Stamps’ offence, who were grossly outgained by the visitors 423 to 251. Losing the first down battle is often a sure sign that you probably won’t win the game, especially if a team isn’t making big plays, and BC tallied 26 to the hosts’ 17. In fact, Calgary only had six points heading into the final period, and their only touchdown came with less than half of that quarter left. Tre Odoms-Dukes led receivers with 75 yards and the lone TD.
The defence, for its part, allowed Lions QB Vernon Adams Jr to have a great day, as he went 27-for-35 for 288 yards, two TDS, and one interception.
Ottawa RedBlacks
Week 1 in Montreal was a matter of costly mistakes and missed opportunities. One side of the ball played its heart out while the other clearly wasn’t ready to play at all.
Ironically, the defence, which ended with a strong game, was what looked wonky on the Alouettes’ opening drive which led to a major score. From that point onward, Ottawa limited Montreal’s attack to four field goals, two from over 45 yards away. They put pressure on Cody Fajardo all night, sending him to the turf six times.
But it was the offence that sputtered even more than Montreal’s. Granted, starter Jeremiah Masoli is ruled out for the first two weeks, but Nick Arbuckle didn’t do much to make his professional resume glow. He threw three INTs, a couple of which were very dubious decisions into good coverage by Montreal’s secondary. Quan Bray led the receiving corp with three catches for 58 yards.