You probably haven’t noticed but the 2017 Canadian Football League season has kicked off. We are now into Week 3 of the CFL season and it's time to take notice of a trend that seems to pop up every year north of the border.
Underdogs once again are off to a red hot start in the CFL. Week 3 is now underway and pups are currently a 8-1 against the spread so far this season.
That makes it the third consecutive year that underdogs went a perfect 4-0 ATS in the first week of the CFL season, but don't worry eager football bettors, the dogs don’t start barking there.
In 2015, underdogs started the year a perfect 8-0 ATS (the same as this season) and were 11-2-1 ATS (84.6 percent) through the season’s first four weeks. While last season, teams getting the points went 11-4-1 ATS between Weeks 1 and 4.
That means over the past two-plus years, underdogs are an unfathomable 30-7-2 ATS in the first four weeks of the season. That equates to an 81.1 percent cash rate. Whoa.
The trend seems to suggest that sportsbooks, just like you and me, maybe don't pay the most attention to the CFL during the early part of the season. Plus, with so much roster turnover year-to-year the teams can be hard to gauge. Heck, a team under .500 won the Grey Cup last year. So the time to act is now.
The BC Lions become the only team to win as a favorite this season by opening Week 3 on Thursday night with a 23-16 win over the Montreal Alouettes as three-point road chalk. Does this mean the trend is about to turn, or are we in for more underdogs cashing in the remaining three games on the Week 3 schedule?
Week 3 continues Friday night with the Toronto Argonauts visiting the defending Grey Cup champions, the Ottawa RedBlacks, on Friday Night Football. The home RedBlacks are currently listed as four-point favorites.
While the talent level is nowhere near as high, the balls and field
are a little bigger and there are only three downs, cash is still green
no matter what the league. And that is exactly what CFL underdogs are
producing early in the season.
CFL
bettors keeping a close eye on these trends and for those who may not know as much about the Canadian game should checkout our CFL Scores and Matchups page for all the information you need before making
your CFL bets.
