Bombers back to business

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This article was published 18/09/2017 (2936 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Travis Bond had a look of grim determination on Monday as he returned to work after a Week 13 bye.

His Winnipeg Blue Bombers are 8-3 and two points clear (with one game in hand) of the third-place Edmonton Eskimos in the CFL’s West Division — but never mind that.

The 356-pound offensive lineman wasn’t ready to concede anything, not even top spot in the West to the 10-1-1 Calgary Stampeders.

“We didn’t make it feel like a bye week,” said Bond, who has made 23 consecutive starts at guard since Week 6 of the 2016 season.

“As we came in today, we didn’t say, ‘Welcome back.’ None of that. We just said, ‘We gotta go back to work,’ so with that being said, we came in with the mindset, keep it rolling. Don’t think of it as coming back, just keep that train rolling.”

And so, the business of football continued during Monday’s workout at Investors Group Field.

The Blue Bombers closed out Week 12 with a resounding 48-28 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the annual Banjo Bowl, but there were concerns on the injury front coming out of that game.

All-star safety Taylor Loffler was a late scratch and did not play against the Roughriders due to an undisclosed ailment, while linebacker Kyle Knox, who has excelled as a replacement for the injured Ian Wild after Week 3, also missed the game with a lower-body issue.

“It was a tweak, you know,” said Knox, who is sixth on the squad with 30 defensive tackles.

“Eleven games straight, I was getting a little damage, so I was grateful for the coaches to give me a chance to rest and recover, especially with the bye week coming up after that.”

Loffler leads Winnipeg with 46 tackles and plays a particularly punishing style. He was back working with the first-team defence on Monday.

“I just had some things going on,” explained Loffler. “I’m just happy we had the bye week when we did and I’m able to get back and be healthy now.”

A lingering concern was Canadian defensive end Jamaal Westerman, who was a spectator Monday.

Head coach Mike O’Shea did not specify his injury but said Westerman had not been ruled out for Friday’s game against the visiting Ottawa Redblacks.

Westerman, second in the CFL with seven sacks, would be a big concern for the Redblacks, who are expected to start third-string quarterback Ryan Lindley with No. 1 QB Trevor Harris (shoulder) and No. 2 Drew Tate (shoulder) both on the shelf.

Lindley, 28, is in his first year in the CFL, but the Blue Bombers aren’t anticipating any surprises.

“Each quarterback that goes in is going to run their system,” said O’Shea.

“I’m sure there’s some things that every quarterback on every team will like a little bit better than others. And their offensive co-ordinators probably use that more, depending on each guy. But systems are systems. I believe he’s going to go in and run their offence.

The Redblacks released linebacker Khalil Bass last week after first demoting the former Blue Bomber to backup duty. It seems Bass, a marquee free-agent signing for Ottawa in the off-season, won’t be landing in Winnipeg any time soon.

“We like our guys,” said O’Shea, when asked about Winnipeg’s possible interest in Bass.

“Our guys are doing a good job for us and Khalil was a good player for us. He signed in Ottawa and I’m not sure what’s transpired there, obviously, but as of right now, I think our guys are good football players.”

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @sawa14