Hamilton Tiger Cats at Winnipeg Blue Bombers 8/5/21 - CFL Picks & Predictions

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats visit IG Field on Thursday to play the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the opening game of the 2021 CFL regular season for both teams. Hamilton is expected to have an explosive offense led by quarterback Jeremiah Masoli. Returning wide receiver Brandon Banks and the addition of Bralon Addison as well as DeVier Posey gives Masoli an array of aerial weapons at his disposal. 

Hamilton’s running attack will be led by Don Jackson and the Ti-Cats have Sean Thomas Erlington back after recovering from a knee injury. On defense, Rico Murray and Delvin Breaux both are done playing, creating a big vacuum but Ja’Gared Davis returns to anchor the defensive line and Ciante Evans is back to lead a tough secondary. Simoni Lawrence will lead the linebacker corps and is expected once again to be a stalwart against both the run and pass.

Kyle Walters returns as the head coach for Winnipeg and has led the Blue Bombers to 10 or more victories and a trip to the postseason in each of the past four seasons. The Blue Bombers won the Grey Cup in 2019 for the 11th time and have nearly all their key pieces returning. Zach Collaros will start at quarterback after winning each of his four starts in 2019. Andrew Harris returns as the No. 1 running back after rushing for over 1,300 yards in 2019 to lead the CFL. Darvin Adams is the top receiver for Winnipeg in a run-first offense.

On defense, Winnipeg lost a few of its key players but Kyrie Wilson is back. Wilson had 63 tackles in 2019. Defensive lineman Willie Jefferson was a key contributor, including making three sacks and forcing two fumbles in the Grey Cup win, while posting 12 quarterback sacks during the regular season. Adam Bighill will be the anchor at middle linebacker for Winnipeg alongside Wilson and Mercy Maston, Jackson Jeffcoat will be a big part of the interior line and in the secondary Josh Johnson joins the Blue Bombers from Edmonton while Brandon Alexander is Winnipeg's key at safety.