Blue will only get better

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This article was published 15/08/2023 (812 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are right where many predicted they would be at the midway mark of the CFL regular season.

At 7-2, the Bombers are in a familiar spot atop the West Division standings, tied with the B.C. Lions, who delivered them their first loss in 30-6 drubbing back in Week 3. The club’s other defeat came a few weeks later in an epic and rare fourth-quarter collapse against the Ottawa Redblacks, who erased a 19-point deficit in the final frame before pulling out a victory in overtime.

But while most clubs would be happy with seven wins compared to just two losses, the overwhelming consensus among those on the Blue and Gold is there’s still areas in need of improvement. In talking with players and coaches following Tuesday’s practice, there was a clear feeling that even though there are plenty of positives to draw upon, the best is yet to come.

“Room to get better,” Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said when asked for his midseason assessment. “A lot of fun so far; a great group of guys.”

That even includes the Bombers’ offence, a unit that is led by reigning two-time most outstanding player, quarterback Zach Collaros, and is ranked first in several of the league’s statistical categories. With Collaros currently sidelined with a minor neck issue, the club has kept rolling with No. 2 Dru Brown, who entered early into last week’s game against the Edmonton Elks and helped mount a game-winning comeback after falling behind 22-0.

Winnipeg’s offence is averaging the most net offensive yards (399.7) and offensive points (29.7) per game, as well as registering the most first downs (192) and offensive touchdowns (30). It also leads the CFL in the most pass completions of 30-plus yards (23), completion percentage (69.2) and passer efficiency rating (120.4).

“We were good at times but not as consistent as we wanted to be,” Bombers offensive co-ordinator Buck Pierce told the Free Press. “We don’t look at the stats and all those kinds of things. We look at ways we can do our job and be successful, stay on the field and put points on the scoreboard.”

When asked where he felt the offence could be more consistent, Pierce wasn’t looking to single out any one aspect of his team’s attack. The Bombers reap the benefit of having the league’s top player running the offence, as well as weapons all around Collaros, whether that’s running back Brady Oliveira, who currently leads the league with 703 rushing yards, or a stellar group of receivers that includes the likes of Kenny Lawler, Dalton Schoen and Nic Demski.

And that’s without mentioning the strong play of the offensive line. The O-line has long been the pulse of the offence, and while they’ve had some uncharacteristically off-nights this season, it has come into its own over the last few weeks and is playing some of its best football.

“When you look at the games we’ve been successful in, we’re getting multiple first downs and staying on the football field — we are dictating the flow and the pace of the game,” Pierce said. “It’s when we’re doing that, when we’re getting a lot of plays and not finding ourselves consistently behind the sticks that we’re at our best and you’ve seen that in games we’ve played well.”

The Bombers’ defence, while not nearly as statistically dominant as the offence, has also been no slouch this season.

While the defence isn’t ranked first in many categories across the CFL, they have been stingy on the scoreboard, allowing the second fewest points against, at just under 18 per game. And while it has struggled against the run — ranking 5th in rushing yards against per game (100) and ninth in average yards per rush against (six) — the defence has been among the best at limiting the passing plays, with an opponent’s average pass travelling just seven yards and the overall pass efficiency rating against being a mere 77.9.

“Can we play better football? Yes. Will we play better football? Yes,” said Bombers defensive co-ordinator Richie Hall. “But I’m not going to disregard the play that they’ve had the last nine weeks. It’s been good, but our expectations are to be better than what we’ve shown.”

Hall also noted there were areas in need of more consistency, pointing specifically to some of the explosion plays his group has given up. One doesn’t have to look too far back to identify some of those plays; in last week’s win over the Elks, the Bombers gave up a 65-yard rushing TD on the game’s opening play, as well as a 70-yard receiving score early in the third quarter.

The Bombers DC has been happy with the number of takeaways the defence has generated, registering 26, one behind the league-leading Ottawa Redblacks. But he also feels like there could be more, something he referred to as “missed opportunities.”

“Each week we chart these, regarding opportunities that we’ve had to make (but didn’t),” Hall said. “There have been times where we’ve had upwards of 10 opportunities that we’ve missed. You’re not going to make every one, but you got to win your fair share.”

Winnipeg’s special teams have been solid, especially the place-kicking game, as Sergio Castillo has made all but one of his 20 field-goal attempts. Jamieson Sheahan is still learning on the job, in the midst of his first pro season, but has been getting better each week. The loss of dynamic returner Janarion Grant has also been felt, but credit to Greg McCrae for also improving from game to game.

“Always putting in the work and fun to be around,” O’Shea said about what he’s enjoyed about this year’s team. “They’ll continue working and continue to get better.”

Jeff.Hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton