Rematch makes for must-see TV

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This article was published 23/08/2017 (2965 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MONTREAL — It’s been a while since a matchup between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Montreal Alouettes was considered must see TV. What makes considering tonight’s game at Molson Stadium a marquee matchup even stranger is the two teams appear headed in opposite directions.

The Bombers have won four straight games to keep pace in a competitive West Division, their record now at an impressive 6-2. The Alouettes, who are coming off a 38-6 drubbing at the hands of the Toronto Argonauts last week, are 3-5 and have yet to win in consecutive games, though they’re still in second place in a weak East Division.

But what they’ve done lately does little to erase what happened the last time these two teams met. Less than a month ago, Winnipeg authored what seemed like an impossible comeback, scoring two touchdowns — sandwiched between a successful onside kick — in the final 95 seconds to leave Investors Group Field with a 41-40 victory.

“They played us tough the first game and we had to play all the way to the end to claw out a victory,” said Bombers quarterback Matt Nichols. “We’ve been preaching all week that it’s a tough place to play, against one of the more physical teams in the league. We know it’s going to be a battle.”

With that, here are five storylines to keep an eye on in tonight’s rematch…

 

GONE STREAKIN’

Nichols wasn’t fooling around when he said his Bombers had to claw back against Montreal, needing every last second to do so. Winnipeg trailed by 12 points in the final minute and a half of that July 27 game and it would take some quick thinking — and huddles — by a hurry-up offence to gut out a win on the final play.

Since then, the Bombers haven’t lost, beating the Ottawa Redblacks, Hamilton Tiger-Cats and, most recently, the CFL’s best, the now 7-1 Edmonton Eskimos. Though they still haven’t climbed to the top of the standings, many around the league view the Bombers as the hottest team going right now.

“I definitely think we rallied after that (game),” admitted Bombers running back Andrew Harris, who rushed for the game-clinching touchdown. “When your backs are against the wall and we see the fight that we showed, it filters throughout the team.”

But if the Bombers are to extend their winning streak to five games, they’ll have to do so against an Alouettes club that is considered among the most physical teams in the CFL. That intensity should only pick up for a club that is not only reeling from an embarrassing loss to Toronto but also harbouring a healthy dose of hard feelings from that tough loss a month ago.

“I’ve been a part of some heartbreaking losses in this league and that one is right up there,” Alouettes quarterback Darian Durant said. “You just have to learn from it and move on.”

And there’s no better closure than redemption.

 

BLUE AND GOLDEN

Of all that has gone right for the Bombers, the most dominating performances this season have come from Nichols and Harris. Both were named CFL top performers for Week 9 after putting up career numbers against the Eskimos.

The win over Edmonton improved Nichols to 16-5 as a starter, dating back to last season when he took over for Drew Willy (now with Montreal) in Week 6. He tied a career-high 390 passing yards against the Eskimos and connected on a season-best 80 per cent of his throws (32 for 40).

Nichols had just one 300-yard passing game in his first four matches this season, but has three in his last four, averaging 334 yards and no interceptions during that stretch. In fact, he’s gone 160 passing attempts without throwing a pick, which is only seven off his personal best he set last year. He’s on pace to finish with a club record 5,431 passing yards.

As for Harris, he’s started to push his way into the conversation for league MVP. The 30-year-old is coming off a historic game last week, when he finished with more than 100 yards both in the air and on the ground. He carried the ball 11 times for 105 yards and had eight receptions for another 120, making him just the ninth player since 1995 to reach the 100-100 milestone in a game. He’s also the first Bomber to do it since Charles Roberts in 2002.

What’s even more impressive is Harris finds himself on pace to do what no other player in CFL history has achieved: record 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving in the same season. He’s nearly halfway there: with 10 games left in the regular season, Harris has racked up 495 yards on the ground and 459 yards catching the ball.

 

DURANT CAN’T… MOST NIGHTS

Durant made headlines during the off-season over his very public departure from Saskatchewan. The 35-year-old played a decade in Regina, winning a Grey Cup with the Roughriders in 2007 as the third-stringer and, more notably, in 2013 as the starter.

When it became clear Saskatchewan was no longer interested in his services, Durant, who was on an expiring contract, had his rights dealt to Montreal, where he inked a three-year deal worth $1.25 million. So far, Durant hasn’t lived up to his paycheque, ranking in the bottom half in passing yards (seventh – 2,070), completion percentage (sixth — 68.4), and touchdowns (seventh — 10).

He’s also tied for the league-worst in interceptions, with eight, his most recent coming against the Argonauts last week in the second series of the game. That pick deflated what was an otherwise promising drive that began deep in the Alouettes’ end. Durant wouldn’t recover from the play, finishing his night against Toronto with just 93 passing yards. Only twice has he eclipsed 300 yards this season.

“It’s important for Darian to overcome, if there’s anything negative that’s happening to him, to overcome that and move forward,” said Alouettes coach Jacques Chapdelaine. “Systematically, our offence probably needs to be a lot more consistent early in the game and that will help a long way.”

That will mean working it around his receivers group, including Nik Lewis, the 5-10, 240-pounder on the brink of history. Lewis passed former Alouette receiver Ben Cahoon last week for second all-time in CFL receptions and is now just nine shy of Geroy Simon for top spot with 1,029.

 

BOUNCE-BACK GAME FOR D

Indeed, Durant has struggled this season outside the odd game. One of those strong performances, however, came against the Bombers. While the Alouettes’ defence ultimately self-destructed the last time they met, the offence pushed around a Bombers’ defence that seemed to have few answers for most of the night.

Durant completed 27 of 35 passes for 358 yards and two touchdowns. His lone interception came on Montreal’s opening drive, but he was able to rebound from it despite the Bombers’ offence turning back up field for a touchdown. And it wasn’t the only the air attack that was rolling; Montreal, which has led the league in rushing all season, put up an eye-popping 183 rushing yards. More than half of that came on the Alouettes’ final drive, at a time when the Bombers — and everyone else at IGF — knew they were running the ball.

“There are reasons for each one of those yards and the players have seen them,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea. “I don’t think that we are putting anymore emphasis on one phase or another or one part of their offence or another. It’s something you have to do, is stop the run.”

Toronto was able to limit Montreal’s run game last week by scoring early and often, racking up enough points to force the Alouettes to throw the ball. Though there’s one distinct difference from that game to this one, and it’s Montreal seems to play better at home. The Alouettes are winless on the road, but boast a 3-1 mark at Molson Stadium, including a win over the Calgary Stampeders.

“You got to keep things in perspective, that it wasn’t their stellar performance last week and you suspect they’re not going to have that happen two weeks in a row,” said Bombers defensive co-ordinator Richie Hall. “They’re looking for redemption because they didn’t finish the way they wanted to (against us) and they didn’t play very well last week. We got to come out ready.”

 

SEPARATE FROM THE PACK

The Bombers are among the healthiest teams in the league. While receiver Weston Dressler and linebacker Ian Wild are nearing a return to practice, defensive back Brandon Alexander and defensive end Tristan Okpalaugo, one of the Bombers high-profile off-season signings, are set to make their return this week. Alexander will replace Roc Carmichael at field-side corner and Okpalaugo will back up Jackson Jeffcoat.

Needless to say, the West is a tough division. The Bombers have never been more confident in themselves than they are right now, or playing at such a high a level as they have the past month.

With Montreal and a home-and-home with the Roughriders up next on the schedule before a bye week, it’s crucial Winnipeg run the table in the next three if they want to keep pace with Edmonton and the Calgary Stampeders (6-1-1). The Bombers are at a point in their evolution where they need to beat the teams they’re expected to win against. With the same amount of wins as both Montreal and Saskatchewan combined, it’s time they separate themselves from the pack, or at least stake a claim at the top.

“It’s a long season and after this one we’ll be halfway through and that tells you there’s a lot of football left to be played,” said Nichols. “You just want to try and continue to play good football and rack up the wins to try and put yourself in a position to be where you want to be.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton