Mishmash of Bombers post ‘W’

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This article was published 01/06/2019 (2320 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It was exactly the kind of game one would expect to see early in the CFL pre-season. And if you were here Friday night at IG Field, or watched it online over a scratchy live-stream broadcast because the game wasn’t televised, you got a taste of what it looks like when two inflated rosters battle it out for four gruelling quarters.

With both sides running a bench nearly double the size permitted once the regular season begins, the game was more an exercise in patience than excellence. In what was mostly a sloppy affair, broken up by the odd standout play, it was the Bombers slugging out a 20-3 win over the visiting Edmonton Eskimos in front of an announced crowd of 19,273.

The Bombers dressed 83 players in total, with a mix of regulars — including much of what should be the team’s starting defence — and roster hopefuls. The Eskimos, who were playing in their second and final exhibition game, had most of their key players sidelined. In fact, Edmonton was without any of its starters on defence, and fewer than half — three offensive linemen and two receivers— on offence.

Both teams recycled through a trio of quarterbacks. With starter Matt Nichols ruled out for the Bombers, it was No. 2 Chris Streveler who got the start, with Bryan Bennett and Sean McGuire splitting much of the final three quarters. The Bombers also dressed an untested offensive line, with the starting front-five having a combined total of 57 games of CFL experience — 54 of those coming from centre Michael Couture, with only two of those bonafide starts.

“It’s unbelievable to get to go out there and just get some series and get a rhythm,” Bennett, who finished 8-for-15 for a game-high 122 passing yards and one touchdown. “No matter how long you play the game every time you step on the field it’s experience that you get and once you get that experience no one can take it away. It’s invaluable reps and I’m just happy to get them.”

Edmonton went with Logan Kilgore to begin the game, and though he impressed with accurate throws early on it meant little on the scoreboard. He finished 10-for-19 for 109 yards, while Danny O’Brien and Jeremiah Briscoe combined for 11-of-22 passing for 80 yards.

Neither side seemed to find its groove in this one, though the sheer number of players requiring a chance to play could explain why it seemed to crawl along. The Bombers finished with 292 net yards of offence, compared to the Eskimos’ 207, and won the turnover battle four to one.

“In these games there’s always going to be room for improvement and lots of opportunity to coach,” Bombers bench boss Mike O’Shea said. “The big thing is whether those guys are going to take those points and put them into the next practice. The effort was still good but I think we can ramp it up a bit more.”

Winnipeg took the lead with the first of two field goals from Justin Medlock, who connected from 46 yards to put the Bombers up 3-0 six minutes into the game. The kick was set up by a 26-yard run from Streveler, who scampered up the middle on a second-and-six in what proved to be his best play of the evening.

Streveler, who was a perfect 10-for-10 passing in his pre-season debut last year, finished two-for-six for 15 yards, and rushed twice for 36. McGuire, who played much of the second and fourth quarters, was 6-for-10 for 69 yards.

The Eskimos threatened late in the first frame but fell short — the first of a few blunders for Edmonton on the night. Facing a first-and-goal on the Bombers’ one-yard line, Kilgore fumbled, making it the second time in as many weeks that he’s lost the ball on the opponent’s doorstep.

But this time he wouldn’t recover it.

The giveaway stalled momentum on what was looking like an impressive drive by the Eskimos, one that included three straight runs from Alex Taylor, a Winnipeg native and St. Paul’s High School graduate who played his college football at Western University.

The lead was extended to 8-0 when Edmonton conceded a safety with fewer than three minutes remaining in the half, and would have stayed that way had Mike Jones, the Bombers rookie defensive back who is also in contention for return duties, not fumbled a punt return with just seconds left on the clock.

A strong defensive effort by the Bombers — a major theme in this one — stalled what could have been a momentum-changing drive, leaving the Eskimos to settle for a 19-yard field goal by Sean Whyte that cut the lead to 8-3 at the break.

The third quarter offered little refuge from the sluggish play of the first half. The Bombers increased their lead to 10-3 with another safety, and then added a third field goal, off the foot of kicker Gabriel Amavizca Ortiz — one of three “global” players in Winnipeg’s lineup.

Just when it looked like the Eskimos might make another push to keep it close, they tripped over themselves again.

Eskimos receiver Shai Ross, a Winnipeg native and former U of M Bison drafted by the Eskimos is May, moved Edmonton to the Winnipeg 15-yard line with an impressive 75-yard kick-off return. Three plays and a first down later, Edmonton was in prime position to make it a one-score game, facing first-and-goal on Winnipeg’s four-yard line.

But once again it was a strong stand by the defence, which included a stuffed run attempt and two pass knockdowns by defensive backs Joe Este and Malik Boyton, that ultimately led to a turnover on downs, keeping the Bombers in the driver’s seat.

After another sleepy start to the fourth quarter, the crowd was finally given something to cheer about, when Dylan Schrot, another local product and former Bison, reeled in a 48-yard touchdown off the arm of Bryan Bennett. Bennett, who finished with a game-high 122 passing yards on 8-for-15 passing, delivered the strike in stride to Schrot, who went untouched to the end zone, sealing the game for the Bombers.

“I’m lost for words right now – I can’t even describe it,” Schrot said after the game. “It was my first CFL catch and something I remember for the rest of my life.”

Winnipeg wraps up the pre-season schedule next week in Regina against the Saskatchewan Roughriders Thursday night.

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

twitter: @jeffkhamilton