Alouettes vs Tiger-Cats Week 8 Picks and Predictions: Hamilton's Trending in the Right Direction

While Hamilton is coming off a loss last week in Vancouver, their defense is looking sharp and QB Dane Evans is starting to heat up. Against a weak Als' defense, we're backing Hamilton at home in this week's CFL betting picks.

Jul 28, 2022 • 11:29 ET • 4 min read

Week 8 in the CFL kicks off on Thursday night with a battle between the Montreal Alouettes and Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Both of these teams have gotten off to extremely disappointing starts to the year but are still in playoff contention due to a pathetic East Division.

CFL betting lines for this contest opened with the Tabbies as 2.5-point home favorites as they look for their second win in their last three games. Here are our best free Alouettes vs. Tiger-Cats picks and predictions for July 28. 

Alouettes vs Tiger-Cats odds

This odds widget represents the best odds available for each betting market from regulated sportsbooks.

This line hit the board with the Tiger-Cats at -2.5 and the Over/Under at 49.5. Early money has come in on the Ticats shifting their odds to -3 at most books. 

Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right until kickoff and be sure to check out the full CFL odds before betting to ensure you get the best number.

Alouettes vs Tiger-Cats Week 8 predictions

Predictions made on 7/26/2022 at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.

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Alouettes vs Tiger-Cats game info

Location: Tim Hortons Field, Hamilton, ON
Date: Thursday, July 28, 2022
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: TSN

Alouettes at Tiger-Cats betting preview

Weather

Key injuries

Alouettes: Vernon Adams Jr. QB (Questionable), William Stanback RB (Out), Chris Ackie LB (Out), Greg Reid DB (Out).
Tiger-Cats: Simoni Lawrence LB (Out), Papi White WR (Out), Chris Van Zeyl OT (Out), Kyle Saxelid OL (Out).
Find our latest CFL injury reports.

Betting trend to know

The Under is 14-6 in the Tiger-Cats' last 20 games. Find more CFL betting trends for Alouettes vs. Tiger-Cats.

Alouettes vs Tiger-Cats picks and predictions

Our side and total predictions are based upon our analysis of the line and total in this game. Our best bet is our favorite pick across all markets.

Spread analysis

The Tiger-Cats have just one win this season, which was a razor close 25-23 victory against the winless Redblacks in Week 6. They followed up on that with a 17-12 loss to the Lions last week, where they at least managed to cover the spread for the first time all year. 

It was actually a very impressive performance for the Ticats. They headed to the West Coast on just four days of rest and managed to outgain the Lions 414-337 in total yardage, with quarterback Dane Evans playing his cleanest game of the year (his lone turnover came on a desperation throw on the final play of the game).

The Alouettes are 2-4 on the season and are fresh off a 40-33 win against the Redblacks last Thursday. Quarterback Trevor Harris completed 80.6% of his passes for 341 yards and a pair of scores. The veteran gunslinger was able to make up for an Als' secondary that surrendered 344 yards through the air. 

Montreal's defense hasn't been able to get stops when it has needed to and has now given up more than 30 points in three straight games. They could have a tough time containing Evans, who is second in the league with 286.7 passing yards per game.

The Achilles heel for Evans and this Ticats' offense has been turnovers. Still, Evans has generally done a better job of holding onto the ball over the last two seasons and Montreal's defense doesn't generate many takeaways, so expect some positive regression in that area. 

Another area where Hamilton's offense has struggled has been their ability to convert on second downs. However, the Als are dead-last in the league in opponent second-down conversion rate (53.1%) while the Ticats defense leads the league in second-down conversion rate (40.7%). 

The Ticats' defense has been very solid, and many of the scores they have given up have been due to poor field position after turnovers from their offense. I like Hamilton's chances of slowing down the Als offense much more than I like Montreal's ability to limit Evans & Co.

Prediction: Tiger-Cats -2.5 (-115 at bet365)

Over/Under analysis

The Alouettes' last two games have seen more than 60 points on the board, but the Ticats have a much better defensive unit than the Redblacks or Elks. 

The Ticats shut down Nathan Rourke and a very explosive BC offense last week, so they should be up to the task of mauling Montreal. Keep in mind that they lead the league in two and outs forced but also are last in the league with offensive two and outs. That should mean plenty of punting for both sides as these teams jockey for field position. 

Neither side attacks downfield that often with Evans having an average pass depth of 9.8 yards per attempt and Harris close behind at 9.6, both below the league average of 10.4. 

Another reason I like the Under is the weather on Thursday, with winds expected to swirl at approximately 26 km/h (16 mph), making both QBs even less likely to throw it deep.

Prediction: Under 50 (-105 at BetRegal)

Best bet

Tim White has emerged as Hamilton's best receiver this season leading the team with 34 catches for 411 yards after posting 774 yards in 13 games as a rookie last year.

The slotback is coming off a subpar performance against the Lions where he had just 44 yards on four receptions but his 10 targets in that contest suggest he's likely to bounce back. White had racked up at least 70 receiving yards in each of his previous four games, averaging 90 ypg over that span. 

With the Over/Under on his receiving yards set at 61.5 and the Alouettes vulnerable at defensive halfback, I'm hammering the Over.

Pick: Tim White Over 61.5 receiving yards (-110 at FanDuel)

CFL parlays

Did you know that if you parlayed this week’s CFL Alouettes vs. Tiger-Cats picks, you could win $59.68 on a $10 bet?

Use our CFL parlay calculator to create your own parlays and see their potential payouts.

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