The last quarter of the season approaches, and the playoff picture is slowly starting to take shape. Two months ago, a week with three interdivisional games would have been easy to call; not so any more. Is this the week Ottawa steals a win and doubles their total? Will Hamilton continue their unlikely run at three-quarters of THF? Can anyone beat Calgary? These questions and more are answered in the LWOS CFL Predictions.
CFL Predictions Week 15
Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Ottawa Redblacks
Nick’s thoughts: The two longest losing streaks in the league clash on Friday Night Football. The expansion Redblacks haven’t won a game since week 4 when they beat Toronto by a single point and are now on a nine-ame losing streak. Meanwhile after a fiery start in the ‘Peg with much promise surrounding Drew Willy and the potent high-flying attack, the Blue and Gold haven’t won in four games. The primetime Friday Night games featuring the Redblacks have been low-scoring, boring games with an average combined score of 31 in seven games (10-8 and 7-5 losses coming in week 8 and 11, respectively). This one won’t be any different for Rick Campbell’s side as Mike O’Shea and the Bombers should take it
Matthew Bin: Winnipeg 13 – Ottawa 19
Nicholas Di Giovanni: Winnipeg 11 – Ottawa 10
Steve Gifkins: Winnipeg 30 – Ottawa 20
Lance Keiser: Winnipeg 13 – Ottawa 15
Calgary Stampeders at Saskatchewan Roughriders
Lance’s thoughts: When these teams play it’s usually a classic, but this time it may be anything but. With uncertainty behind center for the Riders becoming a major storyline, expect third-stringer Seth Doege to get the start against the top team in the league. Calgary will be using a hefty dose of Jon Cornish against the Rider run defence, which was Swiss-cheesed by Edmonton last week. If Doege can make timely reads expect it to be closer than anticipated, but in the end the Stamps should cruise to a victory at Mosaic, leaving the Rider faithful wondering: can Durant throw left-handed?
Matthew Bin: Calgary 30 – Saskatchewan 7
Nicholas Di Giovanni: Calgary 38 – Saskatchewan 24
Steve Gifkins: Calgary 28 – Saskatchewan 21
Lance Keiser: Calgary 27 – Saskatchewan 23
Edmonton Eskimos at Toronto Argonauts
Steve’s thoughts: Toronto is coming off a bye week and waiting at home to host the surging Eskimos in their first home game since August 17th. The Argos will be hoping to continue the momentum from their dominating win over the BC Lions two weeks ago. Finally we will get to see the Argos offense fully healthy with Chad Owens and Andre Durie playing their second game together since being injured early in the season. Edmonton Head Coach Chris Jones will be looking to beat up on his old team as he makes his return to Toronto after being the Argos defensive coordinator in 2012 and 2013. Former Argo cornerback Pat Watkins and the rest of the Eskimos secondary should match up real well against the aerial attack of the Argos, but with Edmonton traveling across the country and Toronto coming a bye week I give a slight edge to Toronto.
Matthew Bin: Edmonton 19 – Toronto 21
Nicholas Di Giovanni: Edmonton 27 – Toronto 15
Steve Gifkins: Edmonton 21 – Toronto 24
Lance Keiser: Edmonton 21 – Toronto 35
B.C. Lions at Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Matt’s thoughts: Expectations are high for the Hamilton faithful, who are now talking about a repeat visit to the Grey Cup final. After trouncing two Western teams both at home and on the road – the scoreline against Edmonton flattered the Esks – the Cats’ bend-don’t-break defence looks like it’s really coming together. B.C., meanwhile, has lost their best offensive weapon with Andrew Harris dislocating an ankle. The Lions’ defence is no slouch either, but while Hamilton is bolting a winning team together, B.C. is trying to duct-tape pieces back on. It won’t be a walk for Hamilton, but they’ll take the win.
Matthew Bin: B.C. 15 – Hamilton 24
Nicholas Di Giovanni: B.C. 17 – Hamilton 20
Steve Gifkins: B.C. 31 – Hamilton 30
Lance Keiser: B.C. 13 – Hamilton 24
Week 14 Notes
Last week’s games weren’t so difficult to call, and there were no big upsets, so three of the LWOS panel were perfect in their picks, with only Nick going 3-1.
Commenter salty1264 let his home team pride get away with him, leaving him 3-1 after the Bombers crashed and burned at the hands of the Ticats. And commenter Primus went against the odds and picked a couple of long shots; sometimes those pay off, but not this week, so Primus finished up 2-2.
Remember to post your own picks in the comments this week, and we’ll see how you do compared to Matt, Nick, Steve, and Lance.
Thank you for reading. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport and @LWOSworld – and “liking” our Facebook page.
For the latest in sports injury news, check out our friends at Sports Injury Alert.
Have you tuned into Last Word On Sports Radio? LWOS is pleased to bring you 24/7 sports radio to your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. What are you waiting for?
Main Photo:
