Week 9 in the CFL begins on Tuesday night as the Edmonton Elks travel to the nation's capital to face off against the Ottawa Redblacks.
The Redblacks have been far and away the worst team in the league and CFL betting lines reflect that, with Ottawa opening as a 6-point home underdog against the only franchise they have beaten since August of 2019.
Here are our best free Elks vs. Redblacks picks and predictions for Tuesday, September 28, with kickoff at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Elks vs Redblacks odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
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Elks vs Redblacks picks
Picks made on 9/27/2021 at 12:25 p.m. ET
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.
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Elks vs Redblacks game info
• Location: TD Place Stadium, Ottawa, ON
• Date: Tuesday, September 28, 2021
• Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
• TV: TSN
Elks at Redblacks betting preview
Weather
Key injuries
Elks: Trevor Harris QB (Questionable), Kwaku Boateng DE (Probable), Mathieu Betts DE (Doubtful), Armanti Edwards WR (Out), Colin Kelly OT (Questionable).
Redblacks: Dominique Davis QB (Out), Matt Nichols QB (Doubtful), DeVonte Dedmon WR (Probable), Nolan MacMillan OT (Questionable), Sherrod Baltimore DB (Out), Abdul Kanneh DB (Out), Stansley Maponga Sr. DL (Out).
Find our latest CFL injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Redblacks are 2-14 ATS in their last 16 games overall. Find more CFL betting trends for Elks vs. Redblacks.
Elks vs Redblacks predictions
Edmonton -6 (-105)
The Redblacks are fresh off a 24-7 loss to the Tiger-Cats last Wednesday and now sit at the bottom of the standings with a 1-5 record. Their only victory came against the Elks on the road in Week 1 when they pulled off an ugly 16-12 win — despite being outgained by 316 yards and having almost 12 fewer minutes of possession.
The Elks are just 2-4 this season but despite that mediocre record, they are averaging the second-most yards per game in the league on offense (396.2) while allowing the fewest (298.2 ypg) on defense.
Edmonton is coming off a bye and before that break, they lost by 15 points against the Grey Cup favorite Blue Bombers. They were missing star quarterback Trevor Harris in that contest but he could be back under center Tuesday after coming off the IL early and being a full participant in practice on Saturday and Sunday.
Even if the Elks end up sitting Harris, and backup Taylor Cornelius starts for the second game in a row, their quarterback situation is still better than Ottawa's. Offseason acquisition Matt Nichols was awful to begin the year and hasn't practiced this week due to a shoulder/neck injury, while Dominique Davis — who started their last three games — is on the six-game IL with a hamstring injury. That means the Redblacks will likely turn to rookie third and fourth stringers Caleb Evans and Taryn Christion.
Last week we backed the Redblacks as 8.5-point underdogs, largely because they were coming off a bye week while the Ti-Cats had only four days off since their most recent game. Well, that didn't matter as the Redblacks lost by 17 points and dropped to just 2-14 ATS in their previous 16 contests.
Now the situation is reversed, with Ottawa coming off a short week and Edmonton fresh off a bye — and the Elks likely won't overlook their opponents considering the results of that Week 1 matchup. Back the Elks to win and cover against the hapless Redblacks.
Under 44.5 (-108)
Ottawa has been terrible on defense, allowing a league-high 29.8 points per game on 389.5 yards per game. That said, they might be even worse on the other side of the ball as they also rank dead-last with 14.5 points and 280.2 yards per contest. While Davis was brutal last, week he actually sparked the Redblacks offense in his first two starts, helping Ottawa roll up more than 400 yards of offense against Montreal and BC.
Now that Davis is sidelined, Ottawa will have to choose between two rookie passers who don't have a single professional snap to their names. And those rookies have no weapons at the skill positions and will be playing behind an offensive line that allows a league-high 3.33 sacks per game.
The Elks have allowed a league-low 211 passing yards per game and their pass rush will get a boost with the return of end Kwaku Boateng. They should be able to put the clamps on Ottawa's offense — regardless of who is playing under center.
As for Edmonton's offense, while it has been rolling up massive amounts of yardage the Elks have struggled to finish drives and rank just eighth in the league with 19.3 ppg. Take the Under.
Elks vs Redblacks betting card
- Edmonton -6 (-105)
- Under 44.5 (-108)
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