Game against Ticats no gimme

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This article was published 05/10/2017 (2928 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers will be chasing a fourth straight victory — and ninth in their last 10 games — when they host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats at Investors Group Field tonight. The Bombers (10-3) are coming off a 28-19 win over the Edmonton Eskimos on the road last week and are within striking distance of earning a home playoff game.

To get there, they’ll have to beat a Ticats team that, despite boasting one of the CFL’s worst records at 3-10, looks rejuvenated over the past month and remains in the race for a playoff spot in the East Division.

“This is a league where everyone knows you’re going to play a good football team every week and I don’t think there’s anyone taking anyone lightly, no matter what record a team has or what the situation is,” said Bombers quarterback Matt Nichols following Thursday’s walk-through at IGF. “Regardless of the situation, guys are always playing for something.

With that, here are five storylines to ponder heading into tonight’s game:

TWO IS THE MAGIC NUMBER

Winnipeg needs just two wins in their last five regular-season games to clinch a home playoff berth, which would be the first at IGF since the team moved from Canad Inns Stadium in 2013.

It’s possible a home post-season game could come even earlier; a win this weekend and losses by the Saskatchewan Roughriders, B.C. Lions and Eskimos would also result in the Bombers earning a playoff game on home turf. A victory over Hamilton and losses by Saskatchewan and Edmonton this weekend is enough to simply punch the Bombers’ ticket into the playoffs.

While all good news for Bombers fans, don’t expect the same degree of jubilation from head coach Mike O’Shea, who has no interest in such talk.

“I couldn’t tell you the scenarios, nor do I care about them,” said O’Shea. “I care about winning this game, focusing on what’s going to allow us to win. None of that other information is going to help us win or allow us to win the game, so it’s irrelevant.”

Still, a chance to host a playoff game would be the ideal route for the Bombers, assuming the Calgary Stampeders, at 12-1-1, take top spot in the West Division. While IGF has been a tough place to win for the home team in past seasons, the Bombers appear to have broken the curse, winning five of six games at IGF in 2017.

NO EASY GAMES

To borrow a sentiment from Free Press sports editor Steve Lyons in this week’s instalment of “Say What?!”, the Bombers are almost to the point where it’s expected they will do something to win, rather than that old expectation of waiting for them to do something to lose.

While Lyons was referring to Chris Randle’s 37-yard interception touchdown late in last week’s narrow victory over the Eskimos, that same expectation the Bombers should leave tonight with a victory is only strengthened this week. But while it seemed like a forgone conclusion a month ago, with the Ticats opening the season with eight straight losses, recent history suggests a much steeper challenge for Winnipeg.

After a quarterback change in mid-August to Jeremiah Masoli and the instalment of a new head coach in June Jones shortly thereafter, Hamilton is 3-2 in its last five games, all of which have all been tightly contested affairs. Throw in the fact Hamilton is reeling from a loss to the Toronto Argonauts last week, where they led by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, and that another defeat against the Bombers would put their playoff chances on life support, and what you have is a team fighting for their lives.

“They know what’s on the line. I’m not saying they didn’t know that before but you can just tell that in their play and their record has been reflecting that the past five games,” said Randle.

“Just every game has been close — every single one — and their offensive style has changed since the last time we played them, just as far as the space in between receivers. The quarterback is different from the last time we played them as well, and their defence has been flying around, too. They’re playing all phases of the game a notch higher than when we played them last.”

MEDLOCK KICKING HIMSELF

It was a side of Justin Medlock never seen before in these parts, and a far cry from the usually quiet but confident persona the Bombers’ kicker is known for.

Medlock has been arguably the Bombers’ most consistent player since joining the team last season, but an uncharacteristic outing against the Eskimos last week, where Medlock missed all three of his field-goal attempts and shanked another on a one-point conversion, resulted in an equally abnormal encounter with media following the game and again early this week.

In what can be best described as a serious session of self-reflection, Medlock lamented to reporters about his recent struggles, to the point he seemed to question his own future with the team.

“You take a bit of reflection and think to yourself, ‘Man, 25 minutes of a game, that dictated a lot of your season.’ From a future standpoint, it kinda sucks and you think about that,” Medlock told reporters.

The performance, which included misses from 50, 40 and 32 yards, not only affected the confidence of Medlock, but also his place as the league’s most accurate kicker. The 33-year-old has converted on just four of his last eight field-goal attempts, dropping his career-long success rate to 86.2 per cent and allowing for Calgary’s Rene Parades to slip into the lead at 86.8.

It’s hard to think Medlock will continue his stretch of mediocrity, given how dedicated he is to his craft. He also has the full confidence of his head coach that it won’t be long before he’s back to his old self.

“I’ve been around him long enough to know he’s professional, I know how talented he is and I know what an off game looks like,” said O’Shea. “One game doesn’t make Justin Medlock… a good pro is always hard on himself, always really hard on himself.”

ADAMS MUST-SEE TV

It’s no secret the Bombers’ success this season is in big part because of such a prolific offence each week. Winnipeg has averaged the most points (30.5) per game and has scored the most touchdowns (39, tied with Calgary) and is second in net offence (5,144 yards) and first downs (334). But while quarterback Matt Nichols and running back Andrew Harris have garnered much of the spotlight this year — and for good reason — a third player has not-so-quietly emerged as a shining star.

Receiver Darvin Adams is in his third year with the Bombers but it’s what he’s been able to do this season that has cemented him a spot among the league’s most exciting players. He reeled in a one-handed touchdown against Edmonton last week, following up a 75-yard score in a win over the Ottawa Redblacks that earned him league recognition as one of three top performers in Week 14.

While the hype has certainly grown around Adams, a big part of his personal success has been his ability to stay healthy this season after missing 10 games in 2016 with a broken collarbone.

“We’ve been getting that from him since we’ve had him here,” said O’Shea. “It’s just the number of games he’s been able to play this year is different. This is what he expects, this is what his teammates expect and he’s fun to watch, isn’t he?”

Adams, 27, has eclipsed the 1,000-yard receiving mark for the first time in his professional career, something he wasn’t able to achieve in his collegiate career at Auburn University. He did come close in 2009, catching 60 balls for 997 yards and 10 touchdowns with the Tigers. He has 1,006 yards on 67 receptions this year and his seven touchdowns are tied for the team lead with Clarence Denmark.

RIDING THE HOT HANDS

Along with Adams, there are two other players worthy of keeping a close eye on tonight.

Harris continues his quest to become the first ever player in CFL history to reach 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving in a single season. In fact, only one player has ever had 800-plus yards in both categories, with Robert Drummond finishing with 1,034 rushing yards and 840 receiving yard as a member of the Toronto Argonauts in 1997.

With 793 yards rushing and 718 yards receiving this season, Harris is on pace to eclipse the rushing mark but is six yards short to reach 1,000 yards through the air. A big game against a weak Hamilton defence could be enough to get him back on track to make history and inevitably earn strong consideration for the league’s most outstanding player.

The other player is Randle, who with last week’s pick-six has two touchdowns this season. His other was a scoop-and-run fumble recovery in a win over Ottawa earlier in the year. For someone who makes as many plays as he does, it should be interesting to see what he has up his sleeve this week.

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