TORONTO — With just a three-game offering in Week 15, you have to make your picks count if you’re playing CFL Pick ‘Em.
You can see a safe, conservative approach amongst CFL.ca’s writers this week, as all three games feature teams that are trending in specific directions.
The BC Lions play host to the Toronto Argonauts to kick things off on Friday night, and the writers are clear in who they see coming away with the W. In Hamilton, the Ticats emerge from a bye week and hope that the good vibes of their OK Tire Labour Day Weekend win over the Argos are still resonating. A week after losing to the Lions at home, the Montreal Alouettes take their act on the road, looking for a win against a Calgary Stampeders team that’s on a four-game losing streak and searching for answers.
We have two pick makers who half ventured out on a limb this week and it’s in that middle game. Let’s dive into this week’s picks.
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The Argos head into BC having lost two straight and are trying to put a six-turnover loss to the REDBLACKS behind them. The host Lions are on the other end of the scale of football’s fortunes. They surprised the Als last week in Montreal with a strong defensive effort, while quarterback Nathan Rourke seems to be getting more comfortable by the week. The writers were swift and unanimous in this pick, seeing the Lions perhaps beginning a late-season push to get back on top of the West Division.
PICK
Writers: 100% BC
We have two pick makers straying from the pack here, with picks leader Jamie Nye (39-17) liking what he’s seen recently from the Ticats, while picks cellar dweller Chris O’Leary (26-30) saw what Jamie did and copied it. The REDBLACKS are coming off of that convincing win over the Argos, while the Ticats can boast the same, having topped them on Labour Day before going into their bye week. Consistency has been the Ticats’ biggest issue this season. We’ve seen what they can be over their past two games, but don’t know what we’ll get from them on Saturday and beyond. The REDBLACKS, though, are showing us something at an important time of the year and the pick makers are going in that direction.
PICK
Writers: 66% Ottawa
Having slipped to the bottom of the West Division, the Stampeders will be fighting to not let their losing streak hit five games. They face a tall task to do that this week, with the 10-3 Alouettes flying in with a bad taste in their mouths from last week’s loss to the Lions. While we wait to see what we get from Calgary this week at quarterback, we know what the Als will bring from top to bottom. As 5.5-point favourites on Saturday, the writers sided with the visitors, despite the Stamps’ 4-2 home record.
PICK
Writers: 100% Montreal