Bomber rookie glad to be back on the field at training camp

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This article was published 14/06/2015 (4007 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

By Scott Billeck

After being teased with some light work the day before, Addison Richards got his first full taste of Winnipeg Blue Bombers training camp Sunday morning. And he sure was giddy to be back on the field.

Not since May 30 in rookie camp had the Bombers’ 2015 second-round draft pick seen any meaningful reps. But he looked no worse for wear after missing the first two weeks of main camp with what he categorized as a lower body ailment.

“Excited to be back out and running around,” Richards said. “You can only do so much watching from the sideline reading coverage. Once you’re out there against veteran guys on defence, it’s way better for me to get better as a player and to get better at the offence as a whole.”

Head coach Mike O’Shea lauded Richards last week for his penchant to arrive to the office early and stay late. And while his injury may have turned him into a full-time bookworm studying the playbook, in his mind it hasn’t set him back on the field.

“I don’t think so. Certainly getting the timing down with the quarterbacks, running the routes as opposed to watching the routes is something that I have to catch up a little bit,” he said. “Football is football, so it won’t take me much time to get back into the groove.”

Richards exhibited a little rust on a blown play between him and quarterback Robert Marve but otherwise looked sharp as he hauled in a couple passes for big gains.

Richards said he expects to be in the lineup come Friday night in Winnipeg’s second and final preseason game test against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. And while it will be good for the Bombers’ brass to see him all week in practice, the game action is where it counts most.

“We need to evaluate him,” O’Shea said.

Infirmary inflation

Overall, Mike O’Shea has good things to say two weeks into to training camp. Except for the injuries. He isn’t happy about his bloated infirmary.

“We’re asking guys to put forth a great physical effort and it’s taking its toll,” O’Shea said. “It’s always frustrating to have a number of guys go down but it’s not easy, that’s for sure.”

Over a dozen players have picked up knocks since main camp started, with long-snapper Chad Rempel the latest absentee Sunday morning due to a visit with the doctor.

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Teague Sherman soldiered on with a noticeable limp throughout Sunday’s practice, while Bryant Turner could be seen on the sidelines with ice strapped to his left knee.

With cuts looming in the moonlight on late Sunday night, O’Shea said the injuries haven’t helped him or his coaching staff in the evaluation department.

“The unfortunate reality is if guys remain injured they can’t show us what they need to show us,” he said. “As a player, you’re putting yourself at a little more risk in that regard.”

Scott Billeck
Reporter

Scott Billeck is a general assignment reporter for the Free Press. A Creative Communications graduate from Red River College, Scott has more than a decade’s worth of experience covering hockey, football and global pandemics. He joined the Free Press in 2024.  Read more about Scott.

Every piece of reporting Scott produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.