Still winless and still bleeding penalties, Ottawa heads into a historic quadruple-header Saturday as the biggest underdog on the board.
Game Details
- Matchup: Ottawa Redblacks at Toronto Argonauts
- When: Saturday, September 12 at 1:00 PM ET
- Where: BMO Field, Toronto, ON
- TV: TSN
- Stream: Watch live on CFL+
Odds
- Spread: Toronto Argonauts -10
- Moneyline: Ottawa Redblacks +450, Toronto Argonauts -625
- Over/Under: 62
Ottawa is 2-6-1 against the spread this season, and the over has hit five times against five unders and a push. Toronto sits at 6-5-1 ATS but has leaned under more often than not, going 5-7 on that split.
Overview
There's no dressing this one up. Ottawa is 0-11, dead last in the league, and about to open the first four-game Saturday slate the CFL has run since 1995 — kicking things off as the first game of that marathon at 1 p.m. ET. The Redblacks arrive having lost five straight by an average of nearly three touchdowns, most recently a 45-24 unraveling at home against BC where the offense managed minus-3 rushing yards, reportedly the worst single-game rushing total in the CFL since 1994. That's not a typo. Toronto, meanwhile, is 6-6 and coming off a 37-22 win over Hamilton behind another big night from Chad Kelly, riding a little momentum into a matchup most people around the league already have circled as a win.
The head-to-head history isn't kind either. Toronto beat Ottawa 44-24 back in Week 3, and the Argonauts have won four of their last five meetings at BMO Field. There's a subplot worth watching, too: Redblacks head coach Ryan Dinwiddie returns to the building where he built his reputation, going 30-13 at BMO Field and winning two Grey Cups before heading to Ottawa. It's a strange homecoming — the guy who built Toronto's recent contender status now trying to find a way to slow it down with a roster that's lost every game it's played.
Ottawa does have one card to play: the Redblacks are second in the league with 98 red-zone plays and have made 40 trips inside the 20, but they're converting touchdowns only 48 percent of the time. That's the story of this season in one stat — moving the ball, then finding ways to not finish. Toronto's defense has allowed a league-low 18 passing touchdowns, which doesn't bode well for an Ottawa offense that has to throw to survive. The edge here goes to Toronto, and it's not close. This has the look of a game Ottawa can hang around in for a half before its issues — penalties, red-zone execution, a shaky run game — catch up with it again.
Key Players
- Jake Maier (Ottawa Redblacks, QB) — He's a career 3-3 against Toronto and on pace for 23 touchdowns and Ottawa's first 5,000-yard passing season since 2018, proof this Ottawa team's problems aren't at quarterback.
- Chad Kelly (Toronto Argonauts, QB) — Career 4-1 versus Ottawa with three touchdown passes in three straight games, and he needs just 39 yards for his second career 4,000-yard season.
- Damonte Coxie (Toronto Argonauts, WR) — Toronto's top target has 11 catches for 256 yards over his last two games and leads the Argos with 62 receptions for 1,043 yards on the year.
- Keelan White (Ottawa Redblacks, SB) — He's hauled in at least six catches in seven straight games and is coming off his first 100-yard receiving game, a rare bright spot in a rough stretch.
- Ayden Eberhardt (Ottawa Redblacks, SB) — Scored twice last week against BC, his first multi-touchdown game since joining Ottawa and just the third of his career.
Keys to the Game
- Ottawa has to find a run game — minus-3 yards on the ground last week simply can't happen again against a Toronto front that's rested and healthy.
- The Redblacks need to actually finish drives; sitting at 48 percent touchdown efficiency in the red zone despite leading the league in red-zone snaps is squandering opportunities they won't get many more of.
- Discipline matters — Ottawa's coach has already called out the self-inflicted penalties that have buried this team, and against a Toronto offense clicking with Kelly, there's no margin for extra yardage on flags.
Injury Report
| Player | Team | Status |
|---|---|---|
| AJ Allen | Ottawa Redblacks | Available |
| Marcus Barnes | Ottawa Redblacks | Out |
| Michael Brodrique | Ottawa Redblacks | Available |
| Sam Carson | Ottawa Redblacks | Available |
| Brian Cole II | Ottawa Redblacks | Doubtful |
| Jessie Evans | Ottawa Redblacks | Out |
| Adrian Frye | Ottawa Redblacks | Available |
| Aidan John | Ottawa Redblacks | Doubtful |
| Cleyon Laing | Ottawa Redblacks | Available |
| CJ Reavis | Ottawa Redblacks | Out |
| Jevoni Robinson | Ottawa Redblacks | Available |
| Luiji Vilain | Ottawa Redblacks | Available |
Depth Chart
Ottawa Redblacks starters by position, built from the Ottawa Redblacks depth-chart data provided. This table is for the Ottawa Redblacks ONLY — projected and subject to game-week changes.
| Position | Ottawa Redblacks |
|---|---|
| QB | Jake Maier, McLeod Bethel-Thompson, Bryson Barnes |
| RB | Greg Bell, Daniel Adeboboye |
| FB | Anthony Gosselin, Jevoni Robinson, Emeric Boutin |
| SB | Justin Hardy, Keelan White, Ayden Eberhardt |
| WR | Cade McDonald, Kalil Pimpleton, Nick Mardner |
| LT | Dino Boyd |
| LG | Drew Desjarlais |
| C | Sean McEwen, Alassane Diouf |
| RG | Samuel Carson |
| RT | Julian Pearl |
| DE | Amani Bledsoe, Sione Teuhema, Luiji Vilain |
| DT | Jelani Stafford, Blessman Ta'ala, Cleyon Laing, Isaiah Mack |
| WLB | Kyahva Tezino, AJ Allen, Lucas Cormier |
| MLB | Michael Brodrique, Aaron Casey, Nyles Morgan |
| SLB | Benny Sapp III |
| CB | Christian Matthew, Eric Cumberbatch, King Ambers |
| HB | Adrian Frye, Travian Blaylock |
| S | Scott Hutter, Alonzo Addae |
| K/P | Brett Lauther, Noah Gettman |
| LS | Lucus Spencer |
| RET | Kalil Pimpleton, Cade McDonald |
Score Prediction
Ottawa Redblacks 26 - Toronto Argonauts 36. Maier and White give Ottawa enough to move the ball and cover some yardage, but the same story that's plagued this team all year — a broken run game, red-zone letdowns, and untimely penalties — shows up again against a Toronto team that knows how to close out a game at home. Kelly and Coxie do enough through the air to keep the Argos comfortably ahead, and Ottawa falls to 0-12.
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Who takes this one? Drop your prediction in the comments.