It’s been a rough start to the 2022 CFL season for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, who has started off 0-2, mostly due to poor defensive effort. Things don’t get any easier this weekend with a visit to their rival Winnipeg Blue Bombers for week three CFL picks. Check the Tiger-Cats vs. Blue Bombers Stats below.
Winnipeg has started off the year 2-0, and even though they haven’t been dominant wins, this still looks like a team that is at least going to contend for a third straight Grey Cup.
Tiger-Cats vs. Blue Bombers Stats
The Tiger-Cats have lost the last two Grey Cup championship games to Winnipeg, so a regular-season victory isn’t going to provide much revenge. That being said, any time is a good time to end a three-game losing streak in the series.
Hamilton Stats
The Tiger-Cats are putting up nearly 400 yards of offense per game through two weeks, but they still only have an 0-2 record to show for it. That’s mainly because their defense has been the second-worst in the CFL (31.5 ppg), resulting in a 33-30 OT loss to Calgary to start the year and a 30-13 defeat at Saskatchewan last week.
The good news for Hamilton is that Winnipeg’s offense hasn’t yet gotten into midseason form. In fact, the Blue Bombers have the fewest yards per game (316) and passing yardage (233.5) in the league – yet they are also 2-0.
Hamilton’s offense has a tough task on Friday night as Winnipeg is giving up just 14.5 ppg. Dane Evans threw for 425 yards and three TDs vs. Calgary and backed that up with 222 vs. Saskatchewan, but he’s also thrown five INTs so far and is also questionable with a knee injury.
To be fair, Evans doesn’t get a ton of help from his rushing attack, as the Tiger-Cats ran the ball 11 times for just 26 yards last week.
Winnipeg Stats
The Blue Bombers have survived with a 2-0 record in CFL picks after their first two games, but they’ve been close. Winnipeg has played Ottawa in both contests to start the year, winning 19-17 at home and then 19-12 on the road last week.
Even though they only averaged 14.5 ppg in the two defeats, The Redblacks exploited Winnipeg through the air, with QB Jeremiah Masoli throwing for 380 yards in the opener and following that up with 331 in week two. The Blue Bombers have perfected bend but don’t break, but will that last?
One thing Blue Bombers coach Mike O’Shea has to like is that his running game showed up in week two. Winnipeg ran the ball 19 times for 50 yards in the season opener but rattled off 115 yards on 26 carries last week.
Tiger-Cats vs. Blue Bombers Betting Trends
- The total has gone ‘under’ in Hamilton’s last five games in Winnipeg
- The total has gone under in 11 of the last 12 Hamilton vs. Winnipeg games overall
- Winnipeg is 5-0 SU in its last five home games
Tiger-Cats vs. Blue Bombers Picks
Do we take the last two Grey Cup games into account when we figure out how to bet on football in the game between the TiCats and the Blue Bombers? One of those games dates all the way back to 2019 when Winnipeg won 33-12, and they repeated in 2021 with a 33-25 win over the Hamilton with the 2020 season canceled due to COVID.
Winnipeg is picking up right where they left off, starting the year 2-0, even if it has been in a rather unimpressive fashion. There have to be some real concerns with this Blue Bomber defense, especially against the pass.
TiCats QB Dane Evans threw for 400+ yards in the opener, but he’s also dealing with a tricky knee right now. Backup Matthew Schiltz did come in and hit 6/7 passes against Saskatchewan and, perhaps more importantly, didn’t turn the ball over, something Evans has been struggling with.
Winnipeg is just a -4.5 favorite here, a number that looks pretty good at home. Hamilton has no rush offense, and if the Blue Bombers can get the running game going like last week while also playing that stellar defense, they should be able to get a hefty victory here.
Conclusion
Take Winnipeg -4.5 and the under 42.5 in what should be another low-scoring performance from the Blue Bombers defense.
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