Yeehaw! It’s the Banjo Bowl

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This article was published 06/09/2019 (2242 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s often said in the CFL that the “real” season doesn’t begin until after Labour Day.

After the September long weekend, so the theory goes, is when teams begin to really establish themselves.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers arrive at this juncture leading the West Division with an 8-3 record. They hope to still be there after they meet the Saskatchewan Roughriders this afternoon in the annual Banjo Bowl at IG Field.

The Roughriders’ 19-17 victory against the Bombers last week improved them to 7-3, and another win over the Bombers would move Saskatchewan into first place, not to mention claiming the three-game season series (the two clubs play again in Regina on Oct. 5).

With that, here are five storylines heading into Saturday’s game:

PUT IT ON THE D

The Bombers were minutes away from victory last week before the Roughriders orchestrated an 11-play, 87-yard drive that ended with a game-winning 26-yard field goal.

Afterwards, the defence took blame for the loss, even though the unit kept the Bombers in the game in the first place. The way in which they squeezed out the win wasn’t lost on the Roughriders, who had plenty of praise for Winnipeg’s defence.

“I think they’ve got one of the best defences in the league. They did a great job of stopping us, especially in the second half,” Roughriders quarterback Cody Fajardo said Friday.

“But what I told the guys after the game was, ‘We were great when we had to be great.’ When the game was on the line, our offence really pulled together. We made a lot of plays, so we know we can do it. That gave us a lot of confidence going into this game, but we still know what they’ve got on the other side of the ball.”

The defence had five sacks on Fajardo, snapped his four-game streak without an interception by picking him off twice, and limited Saskatchewan to nine points in the final three quarters.

The Bombers D will need a similar effort to win the Banjo Bowl against a team that has won seven straight.

BOMBERS TESTED AT RECEIVER

When the Bombers released receiver Chris Matthews, head coach Mike O’Shea said the main reason was the team’s depth at the position. He noted the return of Darvin Adams after a three-game absence, as well as the emergence of first-year starter Kenny Lawler. Matthews hadn’t impressed, and his size — 6-5, 235 pounds — wasn’t being utilized.

Either way, when you have a quality receiver you keep him. Otherwise, you’re left with the challenge facing the Bombers, who are scrambling to fill their lineup after injuries to receivers Lucky Whitehead and Nic Demski.

Whitehead has been added to the one-game injured list, while Demski, who didn’t practise this week, is on the depth chart but isn’t expected to play.

One week after cutting Matthews, the Bombers’ depth at the receiver position is being severely tested.

“I’m very comfortable,” O’Shea said, seemingly unfazed by his predicament.

“You quite often see another quarterback have a good rapport, a good understanding with another receiver because they practise with them a lot, throw them a lot of balls.”

O’Shea was referring to Rasheed Bailey and Daniel Petermann, who have been working with No. 2 quarterback Chris Streveler and the second-team offence all year and will be making their first starts this season.

DIAMOND(S) IN THE ROUGH?

The Bombers drafted Petermann with the 26th overall selection in 2018 and the McMaster University product progressed well under offensive co-ordinator Paul LaPolice’s offence in his first CFL campaign. Petermann has proven again this year to be a reliable catcher and has impressed with his strength, often gaining extra yards. He has earned the respect of O’Shea.

Bailey is lesser known around these parts. The 26-year-old made a major splash in Florida during the Bombers mini-camp in April, and was also a standout in training camp. But the numbers game at receiver has left him on the outside looking in — until now.

Bailey has spent almost the entire season on the practice roster, dressing for just one game but not getting in. Now that he’s listed as a starter, he’ll be expected to play a sizeable roll. His hope is more people will take notice, and he’s looking to put on a show.

“You see all the questions, you hear all the buzz around our team… we ready, we’re coming and they don’t know about this guy,” said Bailey. “But tomorrow we all going to find out what No. 88 is all about and I’m excited.”

This will be Bailey’s first professional start. He graduated from Delaware Valley University, a Division III school in the eastern U.S., in 2015. He went undrafted to the NFL, but spent time with five teams, most recently with the Carolina Panthers last year.

DECISIONS, DECISIONS

It’s become evident through the last two games that Streveler is not going to beat opposing defences with his arm, at least not yet. He has attempted just 41 passes — completing 23 — for 250 yards and one touchdown through the last eight quarters. Though he’s had a couple balls dropped, he’s also been off the mark just as much.

Where Streveler makes his biggest impact is with his legs. He’s rushed 25 times over the last two weeks, totalling 160 yards — an average of 6.4 yards per carry. But with Whitehead and Demski — two other viable threats in the run game beyond running back Johnny Augustine — both sidelined, he’s going to be in tough this week to rack up the rushing numbers.

Where Streveler can — and, arguably, must — make improvements is with his decision-making. He had two costly interceptions last week, including one that stalled a drive deep in the Roughriders’ end. He said Friday he wished to have those plays back, noting the importance of maintaining momentum in all three phases of the game.

“Decision-making is a very important part about playing the quarterback position — you’re making decisions at all times. Just the more experience you get you make better decisions,” he said. “I would like to think we try to make the best decisions we can at all times, not only at the quarterback but the offence as a whole.”

Playing clean football is always a high priority. But given what we saw last week, and how banged up the Bombers offence is, there’s little room for error today.

SNAPPING BY COMMITTEE

Winnipeg will also be without long-snapper Chad Rempel for awhile after he was placed on the six-game injured list with a suspected concussion.

Rempel was injured in the second quarter in Regina after Roughriders defensive lineman Lavar Edwards hit him just after he snapped the ball back to punter Justin Medlock. The fallout of the hit was drastic, as Rempel’s head bounced off the turf following contact, and he was immediately removed from the game.

It’s a position not often talked about, but one that could potentially cause the Bombers major issues as they search for a reliable replacement.

“It’s a huge part of special teams. Obviously you don’t want a ball to go over your head and give up seven points,” Medlock said. “But just in general, you need guys who can protect and get on the same rhythm with the kicker, making sure we’re on the same page. I’ve always said it always starts with the snap.”

The Bombers have brought in Maxime Latour, a 26-year-old out of Sherbrooke with no CFL experience. Winnipeg is likely to use a committee of sorts, with linebacker Thomas Miles, who subbed for Rempel in Regina, also available for duty.

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @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.

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