|
Good morning, folks.
Hope you all had a lovely weekend.
The rain let up and the sun came out in Winnipeg just in time for the Bombers game on Saturday. Meantime in Toronto, the Blue and Gold got caught in a storm — deluged by a determined Argonauts team at a hot and humid BMO Field.
Advertisement
After two stellar efforts to start the 2021 season, you might describe Winnipeg’s performance on Saturday as all wet.
OK, sorry, no more weather cliches.
Perhaps the dominance the defending Grey Cup champs displayed in Games 1 and 2 of season had them thinking they could just show up in the Big Smoke and roll over their hosts. From the start of the game, the Bombers were not prepared for the Argos, who were clearly seeking to avenge the loss they suffered in Winnipeg eight days earlier. The Boatmen stormed — OK, just one more — out of the gate to a 13-0 lead and eventually hung on to secure a 30-23 victory.
There were a variety of interesting moments in the game: most notable to me was the fact that despite playing so poorly, the Bombers were actually still in the game late in the fourth quarter and even had a chance to win in the final minutes.
Let’s start there and work back:
I had been texting our crack football writer Jeff Hamilton for most of the game: I’m sure he loves being bothered by his boss all afternoon with a question or comment about one thing or another, right? I did ask him once if I was bugging him. Of course he said no. What else is he going to say, right?
At game’s end, Jeff sent me a text saying: “This has been a good Steve Says segment. Working title: Because Steve Said So.”
Good idea, grasshopper.
So here we go, folks. Jeff does a terrific job with his 5 Takeaways after every Bombers game. But just in case that didn’t sate your appetite, here’s a few more observations from my perch.
Because Steve Said So:
• I don’t care how good your defence is; when you score late in the game to narrow the deficit to a TD or less, I’d always go for the onside kick. After Zach Collaros connected with Rashad Bailey for a major to narrow the score to 30-23 with a little over two minutes to go, Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea elected to kick the ball deep, hoping for a quick stop to get the ball back and perhaps set up a game-tying TD drive. Instead, after receiving the kick the Argos marched to the Winnipeg 36 and ran out the clock. The Bombers never got the ball again. I know onside kicks are iffy — historically they are successful only about 20 percent of the time — but I like the idea of trying to pounce on a team that’s perhaps reeling from just being scored on. Just need a bobble by a nervous return team;
Toronto Argonauts D.J. Foster (29) avoids a tackle by Winnipeg Blue Bombers defensive back DeAundre Alford (45) during the first half. (Cole Burston / The Canadian Press)
• The Bombers need two Americans added to their game day roster — one to run the ball and one to kick it. Unless Andrew Harris is good to go versus the Stampeders on Sunday, I would abandon the Brady Oliveira experiment and insert an import back. Oliveira might be the future, but I don’t think he’s the present. Hey, it took Harris a few years to get his legs under him in the league. One of my texts to Jeff asked him where Timothy Flanders is: he’s the starter in Ottawa. Oh. Winnipeg does have an American — Devonte Williams — on its practice roster. I presume he’s here for a reason. Meantime, field goal kicker Tyler Crapigna is brutal — and not in a good way. The 37-yard attempt he made in the third quarter was literally one of the worst kicks I’ve ever seen. Had he made that chip shot, the Bombers would have narrowed the gap to 22-17. Instead, the Argos took possession at their own 35, up 22-15, and four plays later scored a TD to make it 29-15. Paging Justin Medlock;
• Were you like me, wondering how the heck the Argos ended up receiving the kickoff to start the game and also the second half? Apparently, after winning the pre-game coin toss, O’Shea deferred to the Argos, hoping to capitalize on field position and gain the wind advantage in the fourth quarter. O’Shea used to make questionable decisions like this, trying to outsmart the opposition, in his first few seasons. Clearly, he’s had too much time to think over the last 20 months;
• Kate Beirness, Jim Barker and Davis Sanchez are terrible. They have no chemistry and Barker and Sanchez can barely string sentences together. Milt Stegall and Matt Dunigan are still very good, but having them wade in remotely is really effecting the TSN telecast. Paging Jock Climie. And who the heck is Dustin Neilson? At one point, the play-by-play guy for Saturday’s game said the Bombers were down an even 15. Say What?!
What about you — did you watch the game or when the sun came out, did you head for the great outdoors? I should have gone for a bike ride at halftime.
Mike McIntyre and I are playing in a couple of golf tournaments over the next couple of days and we will be doing our podcast from Pine Ridge on Wednesday. I’ll report back to you on our games and provide a link to Jetecetera on Friday.
Do we still need more rain? Asking for a friend.
Have a great week, folks.
As always, you can reach me by replying to this mailing or by sending me an email here.
|
