The Montreal Alouettes come off a bye week as they welcome the BC Lions to Percival Molson Stadium on Saturday night.
Oddsmakers were originally expecting a close game between these teams, with CFL betting lines opening with this game as a pick'em, but the odds have seen big movement with the Als now installed as 4-point home favorites.
Here are our best free Lions vs. Alouettes picks and predictions for CFL Week 7 action on September 18, with kickoff at 7 p.m. ET.
Lions vs Alouettes game info
• Location: Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, Montreal, QC
• Date: Saturday, September 18, 2021
• Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
• TV: TSN
Lions vs Alouettes odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
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Lions at Alouettes betting preview
Weather
Key injuries
Lions: Michael Reilly QB (Questionable), James Butler RB (Probable), Joel Figueroa OL (Questionable), TJ Lee DB (Questionable), Lemar Durant WR (Questionable), Dominique Rhymes WR (Out).
Alouettes: Antonio Simmons DE (Probable), Ty Cranston DB (Probable), Najee Murray CB (Probable), Ryan Carter DB (Out).
Find our latest CFL injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Lions are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 meetings in Montreal. Find more CFL betting trends for Lions vs. Alouettes.
Against the spread (ATS) pick
The Lions are coming off back-to-back blowout wins while the Als are fresh off a bye and a 22-point victory of their own. It might take some of the shine off their recent success to point out that all three wins for both sides came against the lowly Redblacks, who once again have the worst team in the league.
It might be tempting to back the Als when you consider that they're coming off a bye and playing at home. However, they are just 1-4 ATS in their last five games following a bye week and have failed to cover the spread in four consecutive games at home.
Montreal has an excellent ground game, led by William Stanback Jr., but the Lions run defense has been solid this season, ranking second in the league at 4.35 yards per rush attempt. The Lions' stop unit has also done a good job of creating turnovers, leading the league with eight interceptions and forcing four fumbles.
Meanwhile, Montreal's defense has struggled lately, allowing at least 27 points in three straight games. That's bad news as they go up against a BC offense that leads the league with 297.4 passing yards per game while ranking second in scoring with 25.8 points per game.
BC's star quarterback Michael Reilly has been limited in practice due to an ongoing elbow injury but considering that he has been toughing out that injury all season and is still tied for the league lead with a completion percentage of 74.1, we're expecting him to play on Saturday. With the Lions 5-1 ATS in their last six away games, back them to come away with a big win on the road.
PREDICTION: Lions +4 (-110)
Over/Under pick
The Alouettes passing game looked out of sync for much of the year but came to life in Week 5 with Vernon Adams Jr. completing 78.3 percent of his passes for 288 yards and four scores. Adams was an East Division All-Star in 2019 and if he gets his season on track, the Als should have plenty of success on offense, especially considering how strong their running game is.
Unfortunately, while the Als offense was clicking on all cylinders against the Redblacks, their defense was extremely unimpressive. Montreal surrendered 314 yards through the air against Ottawa and looked every bit as weak in the secondary as it did in 2019, when it allowed a CFL-worst 316.1 passing yards per game.
That's bad news as they face a Lions passing game that will most likely feature one of the league's best passers in Reilly, who is riding high after torching Ottawa for 319 passing yards and four touchdowns.
Another factor to consider is special teams and Montreal has the league's top punt returner Mario Alford (16.8 yards per return) going up against the Lions punt coverage unit which ranks third-worst. However, when it comes to kickoff return coverage, the Als rank dead-last in the league with 23.4 yards per kickoff return and they'll try to contain one of the CFL's top kickoff returners in Chris Rainey.
With Over cashing in five of Montreal's last seven games, back it again on Saturday night.
PREDICTION: Over 48 (-110)
Lions vs Alouettes betting card
- Lions +4 (-110)
- Over 48 (-110)
Picks made on 9/16/2021 at 2:30 p.m. ET
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