For the second week in a row, the Saskatchewan Roughriders and BC Lions will take on each other, this time in Vancouver. Will the Lions, who are wallowing in the bottom of the West standings, avenge their loss to Saskatchewan? Or will the Roughriders double down on their mastery of BC? Going into the game, the sportsbook favors the visiting team by a field goal.
The Roughriders emerged from their Week 5 bye and went down to work, beating BC at home, 38-25. Nevada product and Saskatchewan quarterback Cody Fajardo threw for 278 passing yards and two touchdowns on 17-for-23 completions. He did shoot himself in the foot with two interceptions thrown, but overall, he did enough to lead Saskatchewan to victory. That said, he probably would’ve had a much worse performance if it weren’t for the incredible job wide receiver Shaq Evans had downfield, as the former UCLA Bruins wideout recorded 158 receiving yards and a touchdown on just five receptions. Evans is currently third in the CFL with 408 receiving yards. Look for Fajardo to target Evans more in the rematch with BC, though, he will need others to step up to prevent the offense from being too predictable.
The Roughriders, who are also third in the league with 112.2 rushing yards per game, are 4-0 in their last four meetings with BC.
Betting on the BC Lions (1-5)
It was a case of a different wee but the same result for the Lions, as they suffered yet another loss in the aforementioned previous outing against Saskatchewan. Lions quarterback Mike Reilly flashed his big arm once again, throwing for 346 passing yards on 31-for-40 completions to go with a touchdown and an interception. Reilly is one of the most prolific quarterbacks in the league in terms of yardage, as he is second overall with 1,602 passing yards, but he’s struggling to carry the Lions’ offense. They are only second-worst in the CFL with just 21.2 points per game. One reason for that is BC’s poor pass protection. The Lions have allowed the most sacks with 21, so if they are to defeat Saskatchewan at home to avenge their previous loss to the same team, their offensive line will need better communication upfront in trying to stop Saskatchewan from getting to Reilly, who was taken down four times in Week 6.
