The Canadian Football League (CFL) Eastern Division is expected to be tightly contested between three of the four teams. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have been dubbed the favorites by oddsmakers at +180 odds but the Toronto Argonauts and Montreal Alouettes are only slight underdogs at +200. Only the Hamilton Tiger Cats, at +750 odds are not expected to have a chance at winning the division title.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers (+180) : With only one week until the season opens, the Bombers are well set with a capable starting quarterback, the best group of receivers in the league, a solid offensive line and good defense. The biggest question mark facing the team is its inability to find a quality back-up to starting quarterback Kevin Glenn. The Blue Bombers have brought in former Texas Tech gunslinger Kliff Kingsbury to compete with former Boise State quarterback Ryan Dinwiddie and Justin Holland for the back-up job. At the moment the job appears to be Dinwiddie’s job to lose. While at Boise State, Dinwiddie had the highest completion average in NCAA Division-one football.
Toronto Argonauts (+200) : Rookie running back Jamel White made the final cut to 46 players and has a good chance to be the starter. With the departure of Ricky Williams, White is a welcome replacement. With a few days until the season opener, Argos coach Mike Clemons still hasn’t decided who will be under center for Thursday’s home opener against British Columbia. With Eric Crouch on the injured list, that leaves Damon Allen, Michael Bishop and Mike McMahon vying for the starting job. Although Clemons is mum on the starter, don’t be surprised if it is McMahon taking the first snap.
Montreal Alouettes (+200) : The Alouettes started 2006 like a ball of fire going 7-0 but had to hang on after a six game losing skid in the second half of the season to finish 10-8. After a 25-14 loss in the Grey Cup game, coach Jim Popp realized he needed to revamp the offense for the team to be competitive in 2007. With the help of offensive coordinator Marcel Bellefeuille, Popp has created an offense to boost the running game. The changes should take some of the pressure off of 10 year veteran quarterback Anthony Calvillo. This offense according to Calvillo will be must less predictable. In addition Popp has entered over 70 new plays into the offensive system utilizing the tail back and fullback.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats (+750) : Unlike a few other teams in the CFL Eastern Division, the Tiger-Cats have plenty of quality signal callers. Timmy Chang signed with the Tiger Cats in March after trying to make it with an NFL team. Chang played his college football under former NFL Coach June Jones where he led a wide-open offense. In his collegiate career, Chang set NCAA career records in passing yards, completions, attempts, total offense and interceptions. It is expected Chang will thrive in the wide open play of the CFL. In Hamilton’s pre-season opener, Chang threw for 239 yards and two touchdowns in the Tiger-Cats pre-season 35-23 victory over Eastern Division Favorite Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Coach Charlie Taafe said Chang played very well. With the great performance, Chang still has much to prove and must beat out projected hopefuls Richie Williams and Ian Butler. If Change isn’t the starter on Thursday, don’t expect him to be out of the lineup long.
