Red, black and Blue in Ottawa: Bombers have lots of work to do

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/06/2016 (3401 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA – The CFL pre-season is supposed to be about fine-tuning, working out the kinks for when the real games begin. Unfairly or not, for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, who have won just 12 games in the last two seasons, it was always going to mean a bit more.

If last week’s 36-13 pre-season opener win against the Montreal Alouettes suggested a tale of better times to come, then the encore performance in Ottawa on Monday told a much different story.

The Bombers lost 18-14 to the Redblacks in front of a crowd of 17,947 at TD Place; a score that suggested a much closer game than was seen through four quarters. Perhaps most troubling was that the Bombers first-team was once again beat up by their opponent, outplayed by a team that looked primed for the regular season after just their first game.

“When you don’t win it stinks,” said head coach Mike O’Shea, “even if it’s a pre-season game it doesn’t feel good. It wasn’t good enough.”

Bombers offence struggles again

It was a particularly tough night for Drew Willy and the first-team offence, which accounted for just seven points in just over two quarters of play. Willy, who went three-for-six for 52 yards last week against the Als, did little to suggest the Bombers have started to hit stride under new offensive coordinator Paul LaPolice.

“It’s our job to put points on the board and at the end of the day that’s all that matters,” said Willy. “It comes down to the players and us making the right plays mentally and physically and we got to do better at that.”

By halftime, the team had rallied for just three first downs – one of which came after a Redblacks offside penalty – compared to Ottawa’s 15. Willy ended the night throwing 11-for-15, for 87 yards, a flattering number when you consider 18 of those yards came in a meaningless drive to start the second half against a Redblacks second-team defence.

An old man’s game

The Bombers first-team defence didn’t fare much better.

Henry Burris, the 41-year-old wonder, created headaches for the secondary all night. Burris, the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player last season, finished the night 13-for-21 for 158 yards and one touchdown – a strike to Brad Sinopoli from 15 yards out.

“We didn’t know what they were going to run, we were kind of just reacting so we should have a much better product come the regular season,” said linebacker Kahlil Bass. “We’ve got some wrinkles that we need to get ironed out but we’ll be ready to go.”

Who stood out?

As for the player’s still fighting for a job, it was the final game for many to prove themselves worthy of a spot on the roster.

Last week, it was running back Timothy Flanders and receiver Fred Williams. This week, it was Quincy McDuffie, who flashed both his legs in the return game and his hands as a receiver.

McDuffie, who spent parts of the last two seasons fighting for a job in Hamilton, finished the night with four kick returns for 112 yards, including a 59-yard dash in the first quarter. He also accounted for the Bombers lone touchdown, connecting with quarterback Matt Nichols from five-yards out.

“He looked good out there,” said O’Shea.

McDuffie was a little more reserved after the game with his evaluation

“I’d say I did well but I know it’s all a business decision,” said McDuffie. “We’ll see how everything plays out once the final cuts come around and we’ll go from there.”

The Bombers will face their first cuts later tonight when they’re forced to trim the roster down to 65. It will be a long day of looking over tape, and decisions that are never fun for a head coach.

“To explain to a guy that he’s not going to be on our team anymore,” said O’Shea. “Yeah, it’s going to be difficult.”

Final thoughts

Asked just how comfortable he is to start the regular season against the Montreal Alouettes June 24 at Investors Group Field, O’Shea offered up this little doozy.

“Hopefully you never get comfortable,” he said, “because when you get comfortable you get punched in the face.”

Extra points

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– The Bombers have added an extra pair of eyes to their scouting team, adding Winnipeg native Craig Smith as a national scout. Smith replaces Drew Morris, who took a job with the NFL’s New York Jets, bringing more than two decades of the experience with him, most recently as Director of Player Personnel for the Saskatchewan Roughers where Smith spent the last six seasons.

– Sergio Castillo continued his strong pre-season. After hitting four of five field goals in the first pre-season he went two-for-three against the Redblacks, hitting from 48 and 46.

– Bombers linebacker Kahlil Bass is known for his heavy hitting, but on Monday is was hit quick feet that were on full display. After a blocked field goal attempt by the Bombers, Bass scooped up the ball and ran it back close to 40 yards. Joked “I used to play running back in high school,” he said, grinning.

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.catwitter: @jeffkhamilton

Jeff Hamilton
Multimedia producer

Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University’s journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff.

Every piece of reporting Jeff 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.