CFL Week 10 Betting Preview: Picks, Odds and Best Bets for Stampeders-Argonauts, Redblacks-Roughriders, Elks-Alouettes and Tiger-Cats-Lions

Toronto finally gets to play a home game, Ottawa is still hunting for its first win of the year, and the West Division race keeps getting tighter by the week — Week 10 of the CFL season has a little bit of everything.

Four games are on the board this week, with lines ranging from a razor-thin 1.5-point spread in Toronto to a nearly two-touchdown number in Regina. Here’s a breakdown of every matchup, along with a pick for each.

Calgary Stampeders vs. Toronto Argonauts

Thursday, 7:30 p.m. ET, BMO Field, Toronto. Toronto is a 1.5-point favorite with the total set at 67.5. This one carries some extra weight for the Argonauts (3-4) — thanks to the FIFA World Cup taking over Toronto this summer, this is actually their first game at BMO Field all season. Quarterback Chad Kelly, who left the last game with a neck injury after a hit late in the first half against BC, has been a full participant in practice all week and is expected to start, with backup Nick Arbuckle — who started 15 games for Toronto last season — ready to step in if needed. Linebacker Cameron Judge is also back after missing three games with a hamstring issue, while Toronto will still be without its regular kicker and punter, both nursing hamstring injuries of their own.

Calgary (4-4) arrives red-hot off a 44-20 road demolition of Hamilton and lists no players on its injury report heading into this one — a rarity this deep into a CFL season. The Stampeders have been one of the most explosive offenses in the league all year, and betting markets have noticed: Calgary is getting backed at a healthy clip here as the road underdog. A short week for Toronto coming off its bye adds another layer of uncertainty for a team trying to find its footing in a building it hasn’t played in yet this year.

Pick: Calgary Stampeders +1.5

Ottawa Redblacks vs. Saskatchewan Roughriders

Friday, 9:00 p.m. ET, Mosaic Stadium, Regina. Saskatchewan is a heavy favorite here — around 8.5 points — with the total sitting near 61.5. The Roughriders have been one of the CFL’s steadiest teams all year behind Trevor Harris, who’s turned in one of the best statistical seasons of his career, spreading the ball around efficiently and protecting it far better than most starters around the league. Regina at home has been a difficult building for visiting offenses all season, and Saskatchewan’s defense has generated its share of splash plays, including a pick-six earlier this year that flipped a game in an instant. Bettors looking to shop a number this lopsided across multiple books might find better value using an odds calculator before locking in a side.

Ottawa, meanwhile, remains the league’s lone winless team, a reality that’s worn on everyone from the coaching staff to the locker room as the losses have piled up. Quarterback Jake Maier has had his moments statistically, but the Redblacks haven’t been able to string together the complementary football needed to close out a game against a legitimate contender. Ottawa did hang with Saskatchewan in their first meeting this season, trading punches into the fourth quarter before the Riders’ defense shut the door late. A short week and a trip out west against a team that’s simply more talented top to bottom makes covering a number this size a tough ask.

Pick: Saskatchewan Roughriders -8.5

Edmonton Elks vs. Montreal Alouettes

Saturday, 3:00 p.m. ET, Percival Molson Stadium, Montreal. Montreal is favored by 3.5 with the total at 58.5, and this looks like the marquee matchup of the week — two of the best records in the league squaring off. The Alouettes have been nearly unbeatable at home behind Davis Alexander, who’s quietly been one of the most efficient passers in the CFL this season, mixing accuracy with just enough mobility to extend plays when protection breaks down. Montreal’s offensive line has held up well, and the Alouettes have found ways to win close games as well as blowouts this year.

Edmonton has answered every bit of adversity thrown its way and travels east as one of the West’s top teams in its own right. The Elks have leaned on a physical run game and a defense that creates enough pressure to bother even a clean pocket passer like Alexander. These two met earlier this season in a shootout that came down to the wire, and there’s little reason to expect anything different this time — both offenses have the pieces to make this a track meet, even with a road trip across three time zones for Edmonton.

Pick: Montreal Alouettes -3.5

Hamilton Tiger-Cats vs. BC Lions

Saturday, 7:00 p.m. ET, BC Place, Vancouver. BC is favored by 4.5, with the total set at 55.5. The Lions have been getting healthier at just the right time — quarterback Nathan Rourke, the reigning CFL Most Outstanding Player, has been back at practice running with the first team after a shoulder injury that once looked like it could linger. BC went 1-1 in Rourke’s absence and just knocked off Winnipeg 35-19 in Week 9, showing the roster around him has enough depth to hold steady no matter who’s throwing the ball.

Hamilton has turned to Tre Ford as its starter following an injury elsewhere on the depth chart, and Ford has flashed real ability, including a big passing and rushing day in his first outing behind center. Still, the Tiger-Cats got run off the field by Calgary just last week, and now they’re on the road on a short turnaround against a Lions team playing its best football of the season at home. BC Place has not been a friendly building for visitors, and the Lions’ defense has been good enough to make life difficult for a young quarterback still finding his footing.

Pick: BC Lions -4.5

This Week’s Best Bets

Two plays stand out above the rest on a slate loaded with lopsided numbers. Calgary getting a field goal on the road against a Toronto team playing its first home game of the season feels like the best value of the week — the Stampeders have been the more dangerous offense all year, and short-week travel spots like this are exactly where a live underdog covers. On the other side, Saskatchewan laying more than a touchdown against a winless Ottawa squad is about as close to a lock as this slate offers; the gap between these two rosters simply hasn’t closed all season.

1. Calgary at Toronto: Calgary Stampeders +1.5
2. Ottawa at Saskatchewan: Saskatchewan Roughriders -8.5

Bettors chasing value should lean toward the Stampeders as this week’s marquee play, while anyone looking for a safer anchor in a parlay can turn to the Roughriders to handle business at home. New bettors looking to get in on CFL markets for the first time might want to check a DraftKings promo code before placing anything, since a first-bet offer can soften the risk on either of these plays. Either way, it’s another loaded weekend of CFL football with plenty of betting value spread across all four games.