Week 2 of the CFL season kicks off on Thursday night in the nation's capital where the Calgary Stampeders take on the Ottawa Redblacks. Both of these teams are looking for their first win of the year after ugly performances from their quarterbacks during their season openers.
Oddsmakers aren't expecting these offenses to come alive this week with CFL betting lines opening with a total of just 42.5. Here are my best free Stampeders vs. Redblacks CFL picks and predictions for June 13.
Stampeders vs RedBlacks best odds
Stampeders vs RedBlacks picks and predictions
Both of these teams looked awful on offense last week but only one of them looked good on the other side of the ball, and it was the squad that's catching six points at home on Thursday.
Ottawa's stop unit was stingy against the Alouettes, especially when you consider the poor field position it often had to work with due to five turnovers. The Redblacks limited the Als to 19 points while piling up six sacks and 10 tackles for loss.
New defensive coordinator Barron Miles is aggressive and loves to dial up the pressure and he has the personnel to do it. Lorenzo Mauldin IV who led the CFL in sacks last season, appears to finally have help on the line with Michael Wakefield and Bryce Carter. In addition, Douglas Coleman III (a former All-Big 12 safety at Texas Tech) looks like a breakout star at SAM linebacker and can drop into coverage or blitz.
They'll be able to get a push against a Calgary offensive line that should have issues blocking on the edge. The Stampeders had one of the top lines in the league last year but released All-Star left tackle Derek Dennis just before the season began and lost right tackle Julian Good-Jones to the NFL.
Hugh Coleman earned the starting RT job to begin the year but is currently injured which means that unproven first-year players Caleb Benenoch and D'Antne Demery will man those important tackle spots.
The Stampeders had the second-fewest yards per play (4.79) and threw for the fewest yards of any team in Week 1 with Jake Maier passing for just 166 yards with a touchdown and a pick. He also has fewer weapons around him with wideout Luther Hakunavanhu a game-time decision, Jalen Philpot on the IL, and last year's league-leading rusher Ka'Deem Carey also ruled out.
The Redblacks have plenty of problems on offense as well. But as long as Nick Arbuckle cuts down on the three interceptions he threw last week and doesn't put their defense in some awful positions, they should be good enough to hold Calgary below its team total.
My best bet: Stampeders team total Under 25.5 (-110 at bet365)
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Stampeders vs RedBlacks spread and Over/Under analysis
CFL betting lines opened with the Stamps as 3.5-point road favorites before quickly ticking up to -5 at most books.
While Maier struggled last week, he has generally played pretty well when called upon as Calgary's QB over the last two seasons. Oddsmakers likely see some positive regression from Maier and it will be interesting to see what projections they have for Arbuckle.
The Redblacks QB is holding down the fort until starter Jeremiah Masoli returns to the lineup. He can be awful at times but also has his moments and he'll face off against a Stamps D with plenty of new faces that surrendered 410 yards last week.
Part of the reason why Calgary is favored by so many points in this spot is the rest difference. The Redblacks are coming off just four days of rest since they played on Saturday while the Stamps have enjoyed six days off.
Another factor to keep in mind is that the Redblacks haven't been benefitting from home-field advantage in recent years. They went just 0-9 straight up and 1-8 against the spread at TD Place last season.
The total opened at a low 42.5 but has seen action on the Over, shifting that number to 43.5. Considering how poorly both offenses played last week and how strong Ottawa's stop unit looked, it makes sense to see a lower total this week.
Stampeders vs RedBlacks trend to know
The Under is 6-1 in the last seven meetings between these teams. Find more CFL betting trends for Stampeders vs. RedBlacks.
Stampeders vs RedBlacks game info
| Location: | TD Place Stadium, Ottawa, ON |
| Date: | Thursday, June 15, 2023 |
| Kickoff: | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| TV: | TSN |
Stampeders vs RedBlacks key injuries
Stampeders: Ka'Deem Carey RB (Out), Hugh Thornton RT (Out), Luther Hakunavanhu WR (Questionable), Jalen Philpot WR (Out), Nick Taylor DB (Out).
RedBlacks: Jeremiah Masoli QB (Out), Ante Litre RB (Questionable), Sherrod Baltimore DB (Out), Devonte Williams RB (Questionable), Jovan Santos-Knox MLB (Out), Money Hunter DB (Out), Bralon Addison WR (Out), Shaq Evans WR (Out), Tevaun Smith WR (Out).
Find our latest CFL injury reports.
