The switch has officially been flipped for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from bye week mode — rest, recover, research — to grind time with just five sleeps until Saturday’s Western Final against the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
And while a few days off doesn’t heal all wounds, it does sharpen the focus and the intensity.
“We’re playing football. Who could ask for anything else?” said Blue Bombers receiver Kenny Lawler after Monday’s practice. “My toe is hurting, my hamstring’s sore, my hip is tight. But, man, it’s playoff football. There are five other teams that could be playing but we’re not them.
“We’re playing right now for a big opportunity so I ain’t really worried about my toe, my legs, my hamstrings. I’m just worried about being out here giving it all to my guys and just going 1-0 each play, each quarter and just doing whatever it takes to get to that Grey Cup.”
The Blue Bombers are making their sixth consecutive Western Final appearance and hosting their fourth straight in what will be another sold-out crowd at Princess Auto Stadium.
SATURDAY’S WESTERN FINAL IS SOLD OUT!!
TAILGATE OPENS AT 2:00 PM! COME WATCH THE EASTERN FINAL WITH FRIENDS ‼️ #ForTheW pic.twitter.com/wcyc29ORYu
— y – Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) November 4, 2024
That legacy — and the chance to win a third title in five years — is hardly part of the conversation in the Blue Bombers clubhouse. That’s a big picture take for down the road for the vets who have been a part of the recent run.
But there’s also too many fresh faces who have yet to suit up in a playoff game for this club, too.
And so what this weekend is about — and, potentially the week after — is to continue to battle for the right here, right now moment.
“If you play the game, what do you do it for? You want to win,” said Lawler. “And when it comes to that why do we want to win — I want to win for my brothers.
“We work all week for this. I want to win for the city — they come out and show us much love. I want to win for my family — when we win, we get more money. There’s a bunch of reasons why, but the biggest reason is our brothers. That’s why we go out every day and work. We put in extra time before 9 o’clock, we put in extra time after practice. Whatever it takes but that’s what we’re doing it for.”
The home side has opened as a 4 1/2-point favourite against a Riders team that is rolling, having gone 4-1 in their last five with the lone loss coming to Calgary after the Blue Bombers had clinched first in the regular-season finale and Saskatchewan then opting to rest several key veterans.
The respect for the Riders in these parts is deep-rooted, with the Blue Bombers having won two of three meetings but their two victories coming by a combined total of seven points.
“I was expecting to play them in the West Final,” said running back Brady Oliveira. “They’re a great team. Trevor Harris is playing great football right now; they’ve got a good run game. And on defence they just play very sound. They’ve got a great D-line, great linebackers.”
Added quarterback Zach Collaros on the Riders defence, which finished third in points allowed behind the Blue Bombers and Montreal Alouettes and posted a league-best turnover differential of +26:
“They’re very fast. They’re very, very good up front and they can get to the quarterback just bringing four the entire game. They do a great job in their zone drops and mixing in what kind of zones they’re playing. They have tremendous speed, so they can drop deep and still be able to recover and make tackles and react to the 20-22-yard throws that teams try to hit against them because of the depth of the backers and their team speed.
“They’re fast. They play very physical; they do a really good job of pursuing the football and I’m sure that’s something they would talk about as to why they’ve been able to generate so many turnovers this year.”
OUCH UPDATE: Both LB Kyrie Wilson and S Brandon Alexander were practice participants on Monday, although WR Drew Wolitarsky was not. Also back in full gear was DT Jamal Woods, who was nicked up in the regular-season finale win in Montreal.
FOURTH RING APPEARANCE: As mentioned above and in this piece from the weekend, these two sides will be meeting for the fourth time this season on Saturday.
Here’s Blue Bombers coach Mike O’Shea when asked about the challenges that might come with facing a team four times in one season:
“I don’t know if you ask anybody that they would say there’s challenges to it — I would never focus on that. Certainly, we know each other well, it just so happens the team we’re seeing for a fourth time is also part of probably the best rivalry going. For the fans, that certainly adds more to it, but I think the coaches enjoy… I mean, at this time of year you’re poring everything into the prep and you’ve got a bit more time.
“At this time of year everybody knows each other fairly well. It’s going to be a hard-fought battle, and everybody understands the consequences of this game.”
THE FORECAST: Environment Canada is calling for a mix of sun and cloud and a high of 8C on Saturday with an overnight low of -2.
“It’s the Western Final. People will be ready to go,” said Collaros. “It doesn’t matter what the weather is.”