Can the Riders finally get on the board with a win over the surging Eskimos?
Last week, Nye had nearly full confidence in the Stamps beating the REDBLACKS but his prediction fell through. This week, he is putting most of his support behind the Lions with a condition on who starts at quarterback for the Bombers.
Let’s start with an explanation of the confidence percentage. The feature in CFL Pick ‘Em is an extra bonus to show just how confident you are a team will win. For instance, if you think the Tiger-Cats will win but think the Argos also have a good chance you may only want to put an extra 10 points, but if you think there is a slim chance the Argos can win, you likely want to slide that gauge into the 90s or all the way to 100.
B.C. vs. Winnipeg
Drew Willy will start, but is he fully 100%? When it comes to a leg injury it can remove a lot of options if you can’t avoid the pressure in the pocket. Add to that, Nick Moore is out for the Bombers, eliminating one of Willy’s favourite outlets. The Lions have played good football in the last couple of weeks, despite giving up a 21-point lead. Andrew Harris has been rolling and Winnipeg’s defence has not had a good start to the season. You don’t have to be a genius to know where I’m going here.
PICK: B.C. with 50% confidence
Saskatchewan vs. Edmonton
It is Brett Smith for the Riders on Friday and he has to go up against the #1 defence in the league, the Edmonton Eskimos. Only the most faithful in Rider Nation will predict a Saskatchewan victory in Edmonton. The Eskimos have six straight wins at home in the regular season by 17 points or more… four straight of 29+ points. Not a friendly environment to make your first CFL start. The Eskimos defense has been ferocious, and their offense got a jolt from James Franklin at quarterback. Matt Nichols will start and have a little more pressure to perform with Franklin clearly an option Chris Jones won’t hesitate to go to. I’m not picking the Riders until they show a killer instinct when they have the lead, and with Smith starting… it will take a Rakeem Cato-esque upset to beat Edmonton.
PICK: Edmonton with 99% confidence
Montreal vs. Calgary
I was stunned to see the high percentage of people picking the Stampeders in this game. With Jon Cornish injured and the Stampeders struggling for consistency, this is going to be a great one. Noel Thorpe has that Alouettes defence humming and they’ll wreak havoc once again. Can Rakeem Cato do it again? He is one of the top three quarterbacks when it comes to QB efficiency in the CFL as he’s doing a good job of protecting the ball, said for one bad half. This is my upset pick of the week… but I’m not betting big on it.
PICK: Montreal with 10% confidence
Toronto vs. Hamilton
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are home again and they welcome their rival. It should be a great atmosphere at Tim Hortons Field and I think that may be the difference in what has all the makings of the game of the week in the CFL. C.J. Gable looks like he’s found his all-star calibre form again and that Tiger-Cats defence is very good. Trevor Harris and the Argos, however, are just as dangerous. They have a decent defence and Harris looks like one of the next great quarterbacks in the CFL. I can’t wait for some Monday Night Football. This is straight pick ’em… no extra points being risked by me on this one.
PICK: Hamilton
