The doom and gloom unofficially set in back on June 29th in Calgary and an overtime loss to the Stampeders.
A couple of subsequent wins seemed to hold off the Grim Reaper for a spell but two more losses after that had so many across the Canadian Football League already scribbling the obituary for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and their reign atop the West Division.
Yeah, let’s talk about that…
The Blue Bombers are now 4-6 following consecutive decisions over the B.C. Lions and with that have breathed new life into their 2024 season while reminding everyone across the land their veteran core still punches like a savvy fighter and the young charges rounding out the roster are talented, eager and have got game.
Now two points out of second, three points out of first and having secured the season series with both the Lions and Calgary Stampeders, these Blue Bombers look nothing like the crew that stumbled in an 0-4 start.
“The chemistry in here is blossoming,” said receiver Nic Demski, who posted a 100-yard game and scored a TD, afterward in a raucous visitors dressing room at B.C. Place. “As many familiar faces as we had come back to this team, we still had a lot of younger guys that came in — not just first year guys to the league, but new players from other teams. It’s a younger team in that sense.
“We still have our veteran core but for everybody to gel together it does take a little bit of time. We’ve done a good job lately of getting better every week but it’s no lie, we’ve got a run to go on here.”
True enough. Any squad still two games under .500 has got to keep the chest-thumping to a minimum. But with the Blue Bombers defence establishing itself as a force, with the offence showing signs of life and the special teams doing their thing, the warts on this football team aren’t as prominent as they were in the stumble through the first month/six weeks.
“One of the things that has been consistent is that at 0-4 and whatever the record kept on moving to we never felt that way in the building — they always enjoyed coming to work and getting it done together,” said head coach Mike O’Shea. “So, as long as that kept showing up, I knew we were in a good spot and we figured out how to play better.
“We really didn’t play very well in the first four or five games. Like, we were not good. Now we’re playing a lot better.”
“You don’t have any other choice — you come to work, and you work. We have the culture that we’re not going to let guys hang their heads or quit — if you’re going to quit, just leave. So, I appreciate everybody coming to work and trying to get better but it’s the expectation.
“The expectation is obviously to win every game. You start the season the way we did, we’re not happy about it. We’ve won two in a row now and we’ve got to keep stringing wins together. We’re not happy with where we’re at at the moment… obviously we’re happy about tonight, but we’ve got to just keep playing good football.”
The Blue Bombers host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats this Friday and then ready for their annual Labour Day Classic/Banjo Bowl showdown with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Having lost 19-9 in Regina last month, Winnipeg would need to sweep that doubleheader to secure another season series. As defensive end Willie Jefferson said Sunday: “We dug ourselves into that hole at the beginning of the season and it’s on us to dig ourselves out.”
“I mentioned this to you earlier this season: every year is its own journey with its own trials. No year is the same,” said safety Brandon Alexander. “We’ve got new people, and you’ve got to be able to withstand whatever storms come along. We had storms in ’17, ’18, ’19, ’21, ’22 and ’23… and 2020 was COVID. And now we had this storm this year. All you do is keep plugging away and I’m proud of our guys for being able to go out there, continue to communicate and have fun with one another.
“Nothing has changed since the beginning of the season. Everybody is in the meeting rooms talking to each other. Now we’re taking advantage of our opportunities. You don’t have to do anything spectacular on this team, just do your job.”
The back-to-back wins over the Lions means the Blue Bombers have gone from having one foot in the grave to now having one foot on the gravel. There’s still a ton of digging to do, but this current scenario certainly feels light years from 0-4.
“Whole different team,” said running back Brady Oliveira. “We faced so much adversity early on and maybe that’s exactly what we needed. We learned so much early on — this football team learned so much and individually you learn so much going through those hard times, those trials and tribulations and going 0-4 and really being critical with yourself. Why is this happening? How can I give more? How can I do more for my teammates? We all had those internal talks with ourselves and had those talks as a family.
“You’ve got to face adversity head on. You’ve got to embrace it and embrace the hard times. That’s how you get over adversity. That’s how you get over hurdles and barriers. This group never wavered. We came every single day and took it head on no matter what was going on and what happened the week before and really embraced the grind, embraced the struggle and now we’re here. We need to keep on learning, keep on getting better and keep growing and keep this thing rolling.”
And what follows is a deeper dive on the Blue Bombers fourth win of the season in this week’s edition of UPON FURTHER REVIEW…
LEADING OFF AND FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO RE-LIVE THE ‘W’, THE VIDEO EVIDENCE…
wouldn’t call these lowlights. #ForTheW pic.twitter.com/QxEPPSFyhg
— Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) August 19, 2024
THREE NUMBERS THAT STOOD OUT… after another look at the game’s statistical package, which can be found here:
1 Some numbers to consider as we toss out for debate if this current defence is reminiscent of the ‘Dark Side’ unit of 2021…
Winnipeg’s offensive points allowed total has dropped to 19.1, second-best in the CFL to Montreal’s 18.9. Over the last two games with B.C. — which three weeks ago was the league’s most-dynamic offence — the Blue Bombers surrendered a grand total of 11 points, with the lone TD coming with just two seconds remaining on Sunday.
The combined passing numbers for Nathan Rourke and Vernon Adams, Jr. over the last two games against B.C. — 16-of-42 for 200 yards with no TDs and three picks. With that, Winnipeg is now yielding 222.7 passing yards per game, lowest in the CFL, and surrendered nine passing TDs — tied with Montreal and Ottawa for tops in the league.
“This is what we hoped for and worked towards,” said O’Shea of the defensive unit. “They’ve done a good job together and we’ve got some guys back healthy, and a lot of guys got very good reps early on, so that will hold us in a good spot. And I would bet to a man they want some plays back that they could have been better at — you certainly don’t want to give up points at the end like that.”
2 The Blue Bombers forced three turnovers on Sunday — interceptions by Tyrell Ford and Deatrick Nichols and a turnover on downs — while having two of their own, to finish +1 in the takeaway/giveaway differential. Six times in their last nine games the Blue Bombers have finished ahead in this critical category, although their overall number of -6 still ranks second last in the CFL.
3 So much buzz about Rourke’s return it was, in hindsight, going to be so very difficult for him to meet those expectations after parachuting into the Lions. He finished 8-of-25 for 126 yards with the two interceptions and just did not look comfortable all night. Some of that is on him, of course, but it says here in the aftermath not enough folks tipped their hats to the Blue Bombers defence and the role they played in his struggles.
“We just wanted to show him that we weren’t worried about him, individually,” said Jefferson. “They were going to have to beat us with their ‘A’ game. Him being there for a short time and not knowing all the plays and getting tossed into the fire, it was on him to play his game, and he didn’t really have a good game against us. Maybe he’ll get better as time goes on, but this week wasn’t his week.”
KENNY LAWLER’S RETURN… gave the Blue Bombers offence that veteran big-play threat the offence has been thin on with Dalton Schoen and #89 himself out for much of the first half of the season. He finished with four catches for 54 yards, but it’s no coincidence his presence also helped Demski post his first 100-yard receiving game of ’24.
“It’s his energy. Kenny’s a big personality and you feel him just when he’s on the field,” said Demski. “It’s important to have that familiarity out there and know that he’s a big-play target. It added confidence and a spark.”
Lawler was soaking up the scene in the Blue Bombers locker room afterward while also admitting he’s got some things to clean up in his game.
“It meant everything to be back,” he said. “There’s no place like home and that’s back on the field with my teammates. It was a blessing and an honour just to be back out there with my guys. In the end, I’m not going to remember the catches I had in this game. All I’ll remember is coming here and getting a hard-fought win with the guys in this locker room and how big this could play into our future.
“I’ll look at the film, but I definitely felt a bit rusty. I didn’t play up to my best and that’s me being the ultimate competitor. Guys were coming up to me saying, ‘Great game, great game’ but I feel otherwise. I had a lot of opportunities out there. I had a false start on a damn third and one so I know where I can improve in my game. Everything is controllable and so I was glad I was able to knock the rust off.”
AND, FINALLY… Oliveira’s fourth-quarter bulldozing 25-yard run that helped lead to a field goal offered up a snapshot of the power of momentum. The run ended right in front of the Blue Bombers bench, leading to an emotional reaction from his teammates — and his coach, who stepped on to the field to hug the gifted running back.
“That was a great feeling between me and Osh,” said Oliveira. “Obviously, celebrating right after with my teammates and getting excited, jumping up. And then seeing Osh running onto the field… we just gave each other a massive hug. We didn’t really say much to each other, it was just a big hug.
“Feeling his energy, he felt my energy, that sideline felt energy, my teammates on the field felt that energy and we were rolling. I love these guys.”