Bombers’ best is yet to come

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This article was published 19/06/2023 (836 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s been nearly four decades since the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have scored this many points to start a year.

The 1987 edition of the club — led by quarterback Tom Clements, running back Willard Reaves, and wide receiver James Murphy — put up a whopping 89 points through the first two games. No blue and gold squad since has come closer to that mark than this year’s group that has 87 points to its name to go along with a 2-0 record.

The Bombers opened the 2023 campaign with a 42-31 home victory against Hamilton and followed it up with a 45-27 win on Friday at Mosaic Stadium against Saskatchewan.

“I think we can get significantly better,” said quarterback Zach Collaros after Monday’s practice at IG Field. “It’s early in the season and I think I can play a whole lot better. I got away with an interception there in the fourth quarter, I missed decisions on where to go with the football, and have held onto the ball for too long.”

“There’s games where you feel like it was a perfect game (but) there’s always things you can nitpick. But yeah, we have a lot of room to grow.”

That’s not exactly what opposing defensive co-ordinators want to hear. Collaros has done a masterful job thus far of utilizing all his weapons and currently owns a 72 per cent completion percentage with 647 yards and five touchdown passes. He even ran for 17 yards and a touchdown in Regina on Friday. While the majority of CFL teams are getting used to a new face under centre this season, Collaros, 34, still has most of the same faces at receiver and O-line from his first year in Winnipeg in 2019.

He’s also in his third year with offensive co-ordinator Buck Pierce — a luxury not many quarterbacks have in the world of professional football.

“I don’t think I’ve had an OC for more than two years in a row. I think Tommy (Condell) and I in Hamilton might have been two years. But other than that, it feels really good to not have to prepare and learn the new verbiage and stuff like that,” said Collaros. “And obviously with receivers, the timing is there. Understanding the way that Woli (Drew Wolitarsky) gets in and out of a cut as opposed to Rasheed (Bailey), those are little intricate things that take some time to learn.”

Despite trailing the Bombers by 40 points, the B.C. Lions — who visit IG Field on Thursday night in a Week 3 tilt — are second in the CFL in scoring in their 2-0 start.

Toronto and Montreal have both only played one game thus far.

The 2022 Bombers started off the season with back-to-back games against the lowly Ottawa Redblacks and scored just 19 points in both of those meetings. Winnipeg didn’t put 40-plus points on the scoreboard until its fifth game when they outduelled the Lions 43-22 at BC Place.

Despite being the No. 1 ranked offence, the Bombers only scored 40 or more points three times last year.

“I don’t think it was this smooth as an offence (at the beginning of the year in previous seasons), but at the same time, we’re so hard on each other as a group that we just know there are some things to still fix which is kind of the best part about looking at it because you obviously never want to be complacent and you never want to think you’re perfect out there,” said receiver Nic Demski.

“We definitely come together as a group and still look at things to fix, but at the same time, we’ve had a hot start. But especially in this league with how many games there are, it’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish so we need to stay consistent with it.”

Demski is currently fourth in receiving yards with 169 on 11 grabs. Teammate Dalton Schoen owns the top spot in the CFL with 205 thanks to a 145-yard game against the Riders. It’s scary to think about what this unit is doing without star receiver Kenny Lawler — who’s currently suspended and expected to be out until at least Week 4 — taking a single snap.

“I have so much respect for Kenny. That’s my brother, I’ve won two championships with him. We’ve hung out on the field just as much as we do off the field, that’s my guy,” said Demski.

“I know what he can do when he puts his pads on between the lines. I do think this offence can be better with him out here, but at the same time, we have a lot of guys making plays now and Kenny knows that, too. Kenny’s proud of all of us right now and he’s itching to get back out here so he can make some plays with us as well.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31