It is North America’s oldest football national trophy and this Sunday the Grey Cup will be awarded at BC Place in Vancouver as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers face the Toronto Argonauts. The Bombers opened as a touchdown favorite but that line quickly went to ten points as the Argos star quarterback, Chad Kelly, will miss the game with an injury. Can Nick Arbuckle lead Toronto to an upset win or will the Bombers win their 3rd title in five years?? Let’s break things down.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
The Blue Bombers are the fourth team in CFL history to reach five straight championship games, but have lost the last two trips to the Grey Cup. Winnipeg opened the season as +200 favorites to win the Grey Cup but were as high as +1000 after an 0-4 start. Winnipeg went 11-3 the rest of the way to finish first in the West and were able to get by Saskatchewan with ease. The Bombers are looking for a bit of revenge as the Argos beat in the the 2022 Grey Cup after blocking a last-second field goal attempt. QB Zack Collaros led the way throwing for 4,336 yards and 17 touchdowns during the regular season and 301 yards and four touchdowns against the Rough Riders in the West Final. The defense, No. 1 in the cfl allowing 339.1 PPG during the regular season and tops against the pass. The Bombers seem to be on a mission and will be ready against Toronto.
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are back in the Grey Cup but are without starting quarterback Chad Kelly, who broke his leg in the East Final. Now they’ll have to rely on backup Nick Arbuckle went 5-for-8 for 73 yards with a couple crucial completions in the fourth to help seal the win. Can he do it again on Sunday? Toronto finished 10-8 in the regular season and have been playing good football in the playoffs but the loss of Kelly will hurt. The defense will need to play even better as they were No. 2 against the run all season, but second worst against the pass. Ka’Deem Carey racked up 1,060 yards in the regular season and another 135 yards in the playoffs. He’ll be leaned on heavily as they try to control the game.
Best Bet Prediction: Under 50
The game is indoors so the weather won’t play a factor but this seems to be a game that will be controlled on the ground as both teams have two of the top three leading rushers during the regular season. And without their star QB, the Argos may try to grind it out, like they did in both wins this season against the Bombers, a 16-14 win and a 14-11 victory.
Game Betting Odds
Argonauts +10.5
Blue Bombers -10.5
Total: 50
Recent Betting Trends
Argos 11-9 ATS this season while the Bombers are 9-10 ATS
Toronto has gone OVER in 14 of 20 games, while Winnipeg is 5-14 on the OVER
The Argos swept the Bombers in two regular season games. Both games went under with the winning margin in each game, three points or less. They split the last 10 meetings straight up and against the spread, while the Over is 6-4.
