Bombers’ rookies ready to take on all comers

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This article was published 04/07/2017 (3020 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Roc Carmichael and Brandon Alexander are in this together. They’re CFL rookies and roomies, sit side by side in the Winnipeg Blue Bombers locker room and face each other on the pages of the club’s new media guide.

Carmichael, the club’s new starting defensive halfback, and Alexander, a new man on the corner, will also be under intense pressure this season if Saturday’s 43-40, double overtime win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders was any indication.

Roughriders quarterback Kevin Glenn appeared to be looking directly in the duo’s direction when he probed for vulnerability in the Winnipeg defence. Naturally, he was looking at the new guys and with some success — Nic Demski and Caleb Holley both got behind Carmichael for touchdown catches while Duron Carter eluded a Carmichael-Alexander double team for a 36-yard reception.

“Oh yeah, we’re expecting to get targeted this whole season,” said Carmichael following practice at Investors Group Field Tuesday afternoon. “Nobody knows who we are. Even if we make a good play, they’re still going to come back next week and try it again. We’ll be ready this time.”

Carmichael and Alexander were busy Saturday, making seven and five tackles, respectively, trailing only cornerback Chris Randle, who finished with a team-leading eight.

“I can remember vividly being picked on by (Saskatchewan’s) Weston Dressler and (Chris) Getzlaf my rookie year and I got beat for a touchdown,” said Randle, now in his sixth season in the league. “In those situations, all you can do is have a quick memory and go out and be ready to play again because it’s not gonna stop. It won’t stop til you get the respect you deserve and you prove you’re capable of stopping it.”

Alexander isn’t wavering in his belief in himself.

“I think I handled it pretty well,” said Alexander. “Before the game, the guys told me they would be targeting us because we’re newcomers. I know I could’ve did better — a couple of plays I could’ve been in a different location… but for the most part, I thought I did OK, but there’s always room for improvement.”

Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea wasn’t buying into the targeting narrative.

“Both have the skill and the athleticism to play in this league,” said O’Shea. “They’re only going to get better. I don’t think they were picked on or anything like that.”

Both newcomers spoke about the speed of the action they are trying to adapt to, transitioning from defensive team duties to special teams and back again.

“It’s a very long game — you can’t get frustrated and anything can happen,” said Alexander, a 23-year-old out of the University of Central Florida. “You can’t get frustrated because it’s all about the next play…

“You can be on defence and then on the sidelines for literally 10 seconds and the defence is right back on the field. It’s crazy how quick the turnaround is, so you can not (hang) you head.”

What did Carmichael learn?

“Woo, there’s a lot of speed out there and a lot of field,” said the 28-year-old Virginia Tech product. “I definitely was aware of it but catching the live reps was definitely a great experience. It was way faster than pre-season. Shoot, the special teams comes up quick, way quicker than I’m used to. I gotta get used to that as well….

“You can take a deep breath and get scored on.”

Carmichael is making a number of adjustments on the fly. He started training camp slotted in as the dime linebacker after an injury sidelined veteran Maurice Leggett. With Leggett’s return to the lineup, Carmichael was shifted to halfback. All of this comes since his last NFL stint with the Arizona Cardinals in 2015.

Two years out of football is not an excuse for Carmichael.

“Being away from the game, you realize how much you love about it,” he said. “When you’re tired out there in (training) camp and you want to go home and you want to eat cookies and stuff like that. But once it’s gone it’s gone, you know you miss it because it’s pretty much what I’ve done my whole life.”

He chooses to believe the Winnipeg coaching staff has faith in his ability to play multiple positions. Carmichael played 19 games in the NFL.

“I have been moving around a lot but I look at it as the coaches have confidence in me to be able to do that,” said Carmichael. “I would love to accept that role and have to be ready for that role.”

O’Shea said he will have no trouble putting Carmichael back in his starting lineup in Friday’s home opener against the Calgary Stampeders.

“He’s playing a pretty tough position and he’s new at it,” said O’Shea of Carmichael. “He’s playing a position where there’s all sorts of guys running right at him with a head start, which takes a little time to get used to. On certain plays, there coulda been more help from the guys around him to make sure they can execute the coverage better. What we’ve seen from Roc in training camp and how he’s able to cover, his work ethic, his tenatiousness, we’re going to give him some time here to see what he can really do.”

Randle expects the Stampeders to pick up where the Roughriders left off.

“I think that would be a smart thing to do,” said Randle. “Absolutely, I think that was there game plan and they tried it and I think we were ready for it as well. Like I said, they threw that first punch and as long as we throw the last one, we’ll be all right.”

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14