Hold your hearses, Blue not dead yet

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This article was published 23/10/2015 (3724 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A public service announcement, courtesy of a humble agent assigned to update the goings on of a certain football team that resides on Chancellor Matheson Road in south Winnipeg:

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers, contrary to some reports, are not deader than dead. They do in fact still very much have a pulse, even at 5-11. And — get this — they will decide whether they make the CFL playoffs next month.

So pass the word.

The Bombers wrapped up final preparations for Saturday’s final home date of the season against the Ottawa Redblacks singing from the same songbook they’ve had open all week. Take care of their own business in their final two games — they have the bye next week before wrapping up against Toronto at whatever stadium the Argonauts can find to call home Nov. 6 — and their chances of securing the lone playoff spot remaining stay alive. They didn’t get any help from Hamilton or Toronto last night in wins by B.C. and Montreal, but they still have a pulse.

No acts of God, no human sacrifices or minor miracles required.

“Let’s be real, at the end of the day if you’re in there, you don’t care how you got in,” said defensive end Jamaal Westerman. “Who lost, who won, what had to happen… it doesn’t matter what happened, you’re in.”

That’s all true and it’s been a common theme this week in Bomberland. Teams with losing records often qualify for the Grey Cup derby and some even make noise when the real games begin.

So, despite the trials and tribulations of a team that is without starting quarterback in Drew Willy, minus its best tailback in Paris Cotton and without its deadliest defender in Chris Randle, there is still hope.

“It’s crunch time for us,” said defensive end Greg Peach. “I love these pressure situations. They’re fun. It’s the fourth quarter, the game’s on the line and you’ve got to go make a play… that’s what you train for, that’s what you live for.

“I’ve been in this situation a couple of other times where you’ve got to win the last game to get in. When you do get in the slate’s clean for everyone. That’s how we feel. Our main mission is to just get in because then everyone is 0-0.”

There’s a juicy sidebar to all this, too. Getting into the playoffs doesn’t just extend the season a couple of weeks for the Bombers, it might — might being the operative word here — help breathe some life into a franchise that has fallen and can’t get up.

A win today doesn’t just push the club closer to ending to a three-year playoff drought, it could help spike Grey Cup ticket sales. But there’s something even bigger at play. With the Jets back on the ice, and the Manitoba Moose returning as a cheaper hockey alternative, with this country swept up in Toronto Blue Jays fever and the NFL in full swing, the Bombers are in danger of losing even more relevance in their own market.

That’s both scary and sad.

That’s hardly something Bombers coach Mike O’Shea will use in his pre-game speech. After all, spitting out ‘We need this to prevent the erosion of our brand in the marketplace’ likely won’t get the squad all geeked up before coming out of the tunnel.

So the message was the same on the eve of this one as it was dating back to the opener.

“We play for the fans, absolutely,” said cornerback Matt Bucknor.

“But we also play for each other and we don’t want to let each other down. That’s a big motivator.

“We have an opportunity, despite what’s happened earlier this year, to really take advantage of something here and get into the playoffs. That’s been our goal since Day 1. We’re fortunate. A cat has nine lives, right? For us to be where we are it seems like we’ve got a few extra lives.

“This is a huge opportunity for us. And where better to take advantage of that than at home in front of our fans?”

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPEdTait