11°c A few clouds
18°c Sunny
Blue Bomber Report Record: 6–12–0
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Eskimos won't be pushovers: LaPolice
Buck Pierce
Related Items
-
Articles
THE Winnipeg Blue Bombers held their final full practice Wednesday in advance of their game Friday night in Edmonton against the Eskimos.
Edmonton lost 17-1 in a miserable effort last weekend against the Saskatchewan Roughriders and there appears to be an expectation among the public that Winnipeg, although owning a worse record at 0-2 than the 1-1 Eskimos, should handily defeat Edmonton on the road.
But Bombers head coach Paul LaPolice said Wednesday the broader evidence suggests the Eskimos are a better team than the loss to the Riders might indicate.
"I just know that Saskatchewan put up a ton of points (in beating Hamilton) in Week 1 and in Week 2 they barely moved the ball," said LaPolice.
"And certainly Edmonton Week 1 moved the ball pretty well and made some good plays (in a win over Toronto). Each team has to show up and we'll have our work cut out for us.
"And we're 0-2 right now. We need to play a complete game."
Bombers QB Buck Pierce says the secret to the success of the offence this week will be dealing with a formidable Edmonton front four and making the most of first down.
"For us, it's take your shots when you can, but be patient and stay out of the bad situations," said Pierce.
"If we're good on first down, I really like our chances."
-- -- --
While the Bombers offence appears to be unchanged from last week against Montreal, injuries to SAM Brandon Stewart and halfback Alex Suber means the Bombers starting defence for Edmonton will see multiple personnel and positional changes.
The secondary will see Jovon Johnson and Deon Beasley at the corners, Johnny Sears and Darrell Pasco at halfback and Ian Logan at safety. The linebackers will be Jonathan Hefney at SAM, Pierre-Luc Labbe in the middle and Dustin Doe at weak-side.
The starting front-four is the only part of the defence that looks like it will return intact from last week -- ends Jason Vega and Alex Hall and tackles Bryant Turner and Brandon Collier.
Cousin to the Minister of Defence
"The best part was playing for the (Cleveland) Browns in Philadelphia (last year in the pre-season). They have his picture up there in the stadium and I even scored that game. That was special."
-- Bombers wide receiver Chris Matthews talking about his cousin, the late NFL hall of fame defensive end Reggie White
Out of the Blue
"I was sitting at home and I got a call and saw it was a Winnipeg number. I figured it might be the Bombers because I didn't know anyone else who'd be calling me from Winnipeg."
-- Bombers non-import RB Nathan Riva, who the Bombers signed Monday as a backup and special teams player, and is expected to dress in Edmonton on Friday, just four days after joining the team.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition July 12, 2012 D3
More Bomber Report
- Back to Top
- Return to Bomber Report
More Bomber Report
(1 of 5 articles for this week)
Big Blue will have one helluva punter
05/21/2013 1:00 AM 0
Poll
Most Popular Bomber Report
- Big Blue will have one helluva punter
- New Blue stadium lives up to the hype; now it's up to you
- Argos release ex-Bomber Brink
- Goodbye phone call upended QB's plans
- Bombers training camp opens June 2
- Man with no plan tries again
- Bombers load camp roster with two DBs, LB, receiver
- Buck's No. 1, aims to prove durability
- Bombers handing off opening-day ball to fans
- CFL gains when draft picks go south
- New Blue stadium lives up to the hype; now it's up to you
- Argos release ex-Bomber Brink
- Big Blue will have one helluva punter
- Bombers training camp opens June 2
- Blue sign draft picks Fitzgerald, Pavlopoulos
- Bombers pick Fitzgerald, Pavlopoulos
- Bombers handing off opening-day ball to fans
- CFL gains when draft picks go south
- Bombers load camp roster with two DBs, LB, receiver
- Man with no plan tries again
- Bombers detail parking plan for new stadium
- Bomber boozers will change or they 'won't be here': GM Mack
- Hall turning heads at Bomber mini-camp
- Bombers are watching you
- CFL draft pick Mulumba would be proud to be a Bomber
- Bomber security to wave wands this season
- New Blue stadium lives up to the hype; now it's up to you
- Bomber GM silent on Tebow's CFL prospects
- Bombers boast record season-ticket sales
- Packers prospect a risky pick
- Bombers detail parking plan for new stadium
- Bombers tackle parking issue
- Game ball to tour communities before grand opening of new Bomber stadium
- Hall, Clement go to school
- Blue Bombers board of directors accepting nominations
- Bomber security to wave wands this season
- Bombers handing off opening-day ball to fans
- New Blue stadium lives up to the hype; now it's up to you
- If it was up to me, I would have kept Brink and Elliott
- Going all-in on Buck a risky gamble for Bombers
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.