The Winnipeg Blue Bombers head to Tim Hortons Field to face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday night. With seven weeks left in the regular season, the Bombers have already clinched a playoff spot following their Banjo Bowl beatdown of the Roughriders. Meanwhile, the 5-7 Ticats still have work to do if they want to avoid missing the postseason for the first time since 2017.
CFL odds opened with the Bombers as 6.5-point road favorites for this Week 15 showdown, with the Over/Under listed at 48. Here are my best free CFL picks and predictions for Blue Bombers vs. Tiger-Cats on September 16.
Blue Bombers vs Tiger-Cats best odds
Blue Bombers vs Tiger-Cats picks and predictions
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are one of the best teams in the CFL but they seem to have a tough time maintaining defensive intensity away from the intimidating confines of IG Field. Over the last two months, they have surrendered at least 28 points in road games against the Redblacks, Elks, and Roughriders — all teams that had first-year starters at quarterback.
They face another young QB this week with Taylor Powell seemingly making strides every week for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The rookie began the year as Hamilton's third-string QB but was thrust into the starting role in Week 7 due to injuries. While the Ticats used a conservative offense in Powell's first few starts, they've started to open up the playbook and he has completed 68.9% of his passes for 622 and six touchdowns over the last two weeks.
While the interior of Hamilton's offensive line has been great, they had been vulnerable at tackle with prized free agent acquisition Joel Figueroa and Tyrone Riley sidelined by injuries. Luckily, Figueroa returned to the lineup after an eight-game absence last Friday and Riley has been a full participant in practice this week, which should ultimately give Powell more time to throw in Week 15.
With their offense starting to click, the Ticats have scored at least 27 points in their last three games, but their defense remains one of the worst in the CFL. They rank second-last in the league in points per game allowed (27.2), yards allowed per play (6.92), and yards allowed per pass attempt (9.8). Their secondary could be even more porous on Saturday with two of their best defensive backs — Tunde Adeleke and Richard Leonard — limited in practice with injuries.
That's brutal news against a Bombers offense that leads the league with 405.4 yards per game. Winnipeg is fresh off a 51-6 beatdown of the Roughriders and has scored at least 30 points in five of its last six games. The only contest during that span where they went below that number was against the Stamps in Week 11 when they had backup QB Dru Brown under center instead of reigning two-time MOP Zach Collaros.
With Collaros slinging the ball to a deadly group of wideouts and Powell showing improvement, expect a shootout in Hamilton.
My best bet: Over 47.5 (-110 at DraftKings)
Blue Bombers vs Tiger-Cats spread and Over/Under analysis
This spread opened with the Blue Bombers as 6.5-point favorites and despite their average scoring margin of +12.5 ppg, that line hasn't budged. The total hit the board at 47.5 and can still be found at that opening number.
The Bombers are capable of blowing any team out but they also have issues with motivation and focus from week to week. Don't forget that after shutting down the Stampeders offense in Week 5, they were caught napping against Ottawa and rookie quarterback Dustin Crum in Week 6, leading to an upset loss in overtime. They also destroyed the Lions 50-14 in Week 9 but then needed to mount a fourth-quarter comeback to beat the lowly Elks the following week.
In Week 12, Winnipeg smoked the Alouettes by 30 points but then lost to the Roughriders in Week 13. The Bombers got revenge for that defeat by smashing the Riders 51-6 last Saturday, but this could be a bit of an emotional letdown spot following the intensity of the Banjo Bowl rivalry.
Keep in mind that many of the Bombers' lopsided victories have come at IG Field, where they enjoy one of the best home-field environments in the CFL. They've gone just 0-4 against the spread on the road, however, and now take on a Hamilton squad that is starting to click on offense. The Ticats are coming off a 27-24 win against the Redblacks and they upset the Leos 30-13 on the road two weeks ago.
The Bombers are 5-1 straight up and ATS in the last six meetings between these teams. That said, only two of those contests took place in Hamilton — a 48-31 upset win by the Ticats last September and Winnipeg's overtime victory in the 2021 Grey Cup.
Blue Bombers vs Tiger-Cats trend to know
The Over is 5-1 in Winnipeg's last six games overall while going 5-2 in Hamilton's previous seven contests against winning teams. Find more CFL betting trends for Blue Bombers vs. Tiger-Cats.
Blue Bombers vs Tiger-Cats game info
| Location: | Tim Hortons Field, Hamilton, ON |
| Date: | Saturday, September 16, 2023 |
| Kickoff: | 4:00 p.m. ET |
| TV: | TSN |
Blue Bombers vs Tiger-Cats key injuries
Blue Bombers: Jackson Jeffcoat DE (Questionable), Alden Darby Jr DB (Out), Janarion Grant WR/KR (Out).
Tiger-Cats: James Butler RB (Questionable), Tunde Adeleke DB (Questionable), Richard Leonard DB (Questionable), Dylan Wynn DT (Questionable), Matthew Shiltz QB (Out), Bo Levi Mitchell QB (Out), Kyle Wilson LB (Out), Duke Williams WR (Out).
Find our latest CFL injury reports.
