The Ottawa Redblacks and Montreal Alouettes meet Saturday in CFL action at Molson Stadium. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.
Ottawa Redblacks Betting Preview
The Ottawa Redblacks will begin the Bob Dyce era, as he coached just 4 games last year, and this franchise has nowhere to go but up. The Redblacks have won a combined 10 games in their last 3 seasons. The good news for the Redblacks is they have one of the best defensive players in Lorenzo Mauldin, who had 17 sacks last season. Linebacker Adam Auclair is coming off a productive rookie season, and Monshadrik Hunter led Ottawa with 4 interceptions. The Redblacks defense is good enough to keep them in games this season. The question is at quarterback, as Jeremiah Masoli is approaching 35 years old, and he’s had issues staying healthy. Masoli has been banged up this offseason, and he played just 4 games last season. Get the Masoli we saw with Hamilton a few years ago, and the Redblacks have a chance to be greatly improved. If not, the struggles could continue.
Montreal Alouettes Betting Preview
The Montreal Alouettes are coming off a 9-win season that ended in the East Final, and they enter this year looking different. Jason Maas is the new head coach after a few years as the Roughriders offensive coordinator, and he brings quarterback Cody Fajardo with him. Fajardo has had issues with interceptions these last 2 seasons, but his running ability is key and let’s not forget the season he had in 2019 that made him an all star. His legs along with Walter Fletcher and William Stanback could make the Alouettes the toughest team in the league to stop on the ground. Defensively, Tyrice Beverette returns after 77 tackles, Avery Ellis had 4 sacks and Marc-Antoine Dequoy had 4 interceptions. This is sure to be an interesting season in La Métropole.
Trends
The RedBlacks are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 road games and 5-15 ATS in their last 20 Saturday games. The Alouettes are 21-5-1 ATS in their last 27 Saturday games and 3-1-1 ATS in their last 5 home games. The under is 13-3 in RedBlacks last 16 Saturday games. The under is 5-0 in Alouettes last 5 home games. The RedBlacks are 11-0 ATS in their last 11 meetings in Montreal and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 meetings.
Randy’s Free Pick
New coaches on both sides and moving parts, this will be a feeling out process for both sides. With that said, the Ottawa Redblacks have far more questions at quarterback, and that’s not ideal with a season opener on the road. The Montreal Alouettes have the coach / quarterback chemistry already down, and their ground game potential is key. At home, the Alouettes are just itching for a positive start to the season, especially with new ownership. I’ll lay the small chalk.