A pair of West Division foes with identical 4-2 records battle in Week 8 of the CFL on Friday night as the Saskatchewan Roughriders take on the BC Lions.
Oddsmakers are expecting a close game with CFL betting lines opening as a pick'em before shifting to make the Lions slim 1-point home underdogs.
Here are our best free Roughriders vs. Lions picks and predictions for Friday, September 24, with kickoff at 10:30 p.m. ET.
Roughriders vs Lions game info
• Location: BC Place, Vancouver, BC
• Date: Friday, September 24, 2021
• Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
• TV: TSN
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Roughriders vs Lions odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
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Roughriders at Lions betting preview
Weather
Key injuries
Roughriders: Blace Brown DB (Questionable), Ed Gainey DB (Questionable), Mike Edem S (Out), Garrett Marino DT (Out), Shaq Evans WR (Out), Terran Vaughn OL (Questionable), Larry Dean LB (Out), Freddie Bishop III DE (Out).
Lions: Shaq Cooper RB (Questionable), Lemar Durant WR (Questionable), Joel Figuroa OL (Questionable), T.J. Lee DB (Questionable), Bryan Burnham WR (Questionable), Chris Rainey WR (Doubtful), Matt Ryker OL (Out), Dominique Rhymes WR (Out), Victor Gamboa DB (Out).
Find our latest CFL injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Lions are 3-7-1 ATS in their last 11 games against a team with a winning record. Find more CFL betting trends for Roughriders vs. Lions.
Against the spread (ATS) pick
The Lions are on a three-game winning streak and have the league's best passing offense thanks to quarterback Michael Reilly. After a rough debut season for the Lions in 2019, the former Most Outstanding Player is having a bounce-back campaign and is leading the CFL in completion percentage and pass efficiency rating.
That said, the Lions running game has been toothless and a one-dimensional offense could be problematic against a defense as tough as Saskatchewan's. The Roughriders allow the fewest rushing yards per game (74.2) and yards per carry (4.4) in the league, which will give the flexibility to gameplan specifically for Reilly.
With the exception of back-to-back ugly losses against the defending champion Blue Bombers, the Roughriders have been terrific this season. That includes their season opener against BC where they jumped out to a huge 31-0 lead in the second quarter before the Lions fought back to lose by just four points.
As good as the Lions have looked lately, it's worth pointing out that two victories on their three-game winning streak came against the woeful Redblacks — who are far and away the worst team in the CFL.
The Riders will be a far tougher opponent than the teams the Lions have faced over the last month. Saskatchewan has a balanced offense and a ferocious pass rush that leads the league with 3.33 sacks per game.
With the Riders winning seven straight games in the head-to-head — and going 6-1 ATS in that span — back them to win and cover on the road.
PREDICTION: Saskatchewan -1 (-110)
Over/Under pick
The Over/Under opened at 43 but has moved all the way up to 47.5. Through the first two weeks of the CFL season, Overs went just 1-7, with the lone Over being the Lions matchup with the Riders — which saw 62 points scored.
Reilly looked fantastic in that game and came off the bench (due to an elbow injury) to lead the comeback by throwing for 203 yards on just 24 passes. Now Saskatchewan will likely have to deal with the star QB for the entire game, which won't be an easy task for a Riders pass defense that ranks third-last in the league with 8.8 yards per pass attempt allowed.
That said, it also won't be easy for the Lions to limit a Riders offense that has Cody Fajardo spreading the ball out to multiple receivers and William Powell churning out yards in the running game.
Sure, the Lions are allowing the third-fewest points per game in the league but they also surrender the third-most yards per game and have been reliant on forcing turnovers. BC has played only two games against a balanced offense: Week 1 against the Riders (where they gave up 33 points) and Week 3 versus Edmonton (when the Elks rolled up 433 yards of offense). Take the Over.
PREDICTION: Over 47.5 (-110)
Roughriders vs Lions betting card
- Saskatchewan -1 (-110)
- Over 47.5 (-110)
Picks made on 9/23/2021 at 11:30 a.m. ET
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