Bombers Notebook: Looking back on calls made on Friday

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This article was published 17/10/2015 (3729 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — So why, in a league in which the defence has to line up one yard away from the ball on the line of scrimmage, would you ever hand off three yards deep in your backfield on a 3rd and 1?

Because, says Winnipeg Blue Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea, it was the right thing to do at the time — even if the result proved to be a disaster. “Why didn’t we hand it off? Because it was a full yard and that’s what Cameron Marshall is here for,” O’Shea said here Friday night following his team’s 27-24 loss to the Ottawa Redblacks,

Here was the situation; After recovering a fumble on the opening kickoff, the Bombers found themselves two plays later in 3rd and 1 from the Ottawa 18-yard line.

Instead of simply plunging forward on a QB sneak, the Bombers instead handed off to running back Marshall, who went nowhere.

Ottawa got the ball back on downs and whatever opportunity the Bombers had to author a quick start in a hostile stadium went up in flames as the Redblacks promptly pounded out a withering 92-yard, 14-play TD drive that gave them a lead they would never surrender for the rest of the night.

Still, O’Shea remained unapologetic for the play call. “We just had a slip in the backfield. We missed a block up front and a guy came scott-free.”

O’Shea also insisted the miscue — and ensuing momentum swing — wasn’t decisive. “That early? I don’t think so.”

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With the Bombers cutting fourth string QB Tajh Boyd on Friday for what O’Shea cryptically termed “off-field issues,” the larger issue of when injured starting QB Drew Willy might start practicing again came up again Friday night.

O’Shea said Willy is “moving around better” but still not yet running and is unlikely to practice the coming week in advance of the Bombers hosting Ottawa next Saturday. “But I don’t like to limit people. We’ll see in three days what he looks like. But he’s not running right now.”

And about those off-field issues with Boyd? “I’m not going to get into it.”

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Bombers linebacker Khalil Bass added to his team-leading tally of defensive tackles in a big way on Friday, registering a dozen to bring his season total to 86.

Bass was third in the league in defensive tackles as of Saturday.

Bombers defensive end Jamaal Westerman also added to his league-leading sack total, hauling down Redblacks QB Henry Burris to bump his sack total to 15 for the year.

Linebacker Tony Burnett also had a big game for the Bombers on defence, recording a sack, a forced fumble, a defensive tackle and a special teams tackle.

And Bombers defensive back Demond Washington also recorded 10 tackles Friday night, although that had more to do with the Redblacks receivers turning the Bombers secondary into a track meet than anything particularly special that Washington did.

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The Bombers held an Ottawa defense that leads the league in sacks to just one on Friday. That performance came just two weeks after the Winnipeg O-line shut out an Edmonton defense that was second in the league in sacks at the time.

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Alas, both those performances by a much maligned Bombers offensive line came in losing efforts and no one is exactly doing any celebrating.

Right tackle Patrick Neufeld said inexplicably slow starts in each of the last three games are killing his team. “I don’t know what it is but it’s repeating itself and it’s what’s losing us games. We’re not putting up points and we’re not taking advantage of opportunities in the first half.

“At some point, we just have to buckle down and fix it. We have to.”

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @PaulWiecek