It’s a family matter for Bombers’ D

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This article was published 25/06/2018 (2636 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers defence did everything they could to spoil Drew Willy’s first start against his former team.

The Montreal Alouettes were only able to muster up 10 points on 168 total yards of offence, as the Bombers’ defence dominated from start to finish in Friday night’s contest in Montreal.

Bombers defensive end Tristian Okpalaugo was in Willy’s face all night, finishing the night with two sacks and four tackles.

“I mean, what wasn’t working?” said Okpalaugo when asked what was working against Montreal. “We just had a really good game plan and everything fell into place, honestly.”

It was a completely different story from Week 1, when the Edmonton Eskimos — led by arguably the best quarterback in the league, Mike Reilly — had nearly 500 yards of offence on their way to a 33-30 win over the Blue and Gold.

You could point to the obvious talent difference between Edmonton and Montreal for the improvement in the Bombers’ defensive play, but linebacker Adam Bighill said it doesn’t matter who their Week 2 opponent was — it doesn’t take away from the fact it was an impressive performance by himself and his teammates.

“They didn’t go into the game to lose,” said Bighill on whether or not it’s fair to discredit the blowout victory due to Montreal’s recent struggles. “Every team in the CFL can beat you at any moment, it’s just how well you prepare and execute that day. Obviously they didn’t play anywhere to the capability that they can with the players they have, especially with the receivers they have. But at the same time, it’s a testament to us and our game plan and how well we executed our stuff and applied the pressure.”

After the game, Okpalaugo, Bighill and the rest of the defence crammed into the small locker room at Molson Stadium for a group photo. Bighill, who is in his first season with the club, said he can already feel a special bond among his teammates and expects it to continue to translate to on-field success.

“Guys are generally happy for people when they make plays. Some guys maybe just want to make plays and are bummed that they didn’t, where I feel around here, everybody is excited when someone makes a play, it doesn’t matter who it is,” said Bighill, who spent last season with the New Orleans Saints. “It’s important to have and that’s what makes it different as we’re enjoying everybody’s success. We are enjoying everybody’s success and as a whole, that should make us better on defence as we’re all in.”

Okpalaugo credits the organization for bringing in players that “set their egos aside and be a team” and said his teammates feel like “brothers” due to their relationships on and off the field. Okpalaugo is in his second season with the team. He played in 2014 and 2015 with the Toronto Argonauts before joining the Arizona Cardinals in 2016. The Bombers signed a former Argos teammate of Okpalaugo’s last week in quarterback Mitchell Gale. Okpalaugo checked in with Gale on the weekend, asking him what his first impression is of the organization and Gale’s answer didn’t disappoint.

“(Gale) was like, ‘It’s probably one of the best teams I’ve been on family wise. You really get that family feeling as soon as you walk through the door.’ And Mitchell has only been here a week,” said Okpalaugo, who had six sacks in 12 games for the Bombers a season ago.

Okpalaugo said he doesn’t know what has led to the team’s camaraderie, but if he did, he’d spread the word — for a price.

“I wish I knew, ‘cause I’d write a book and sell it to coaches,” Okpalaugo joked. “Listen, ‘this is what you need to do to have your team be cohesive and have that family bond.’”

INJURY UPDATE: Bombers defensive back Anthony Gaitor will miss Friday night’s game in Hamilton versus the Tiger-Cats with a lower-body injury. Offensive lineman Pat Neufeld is questionable for Friday, while head coach Mike O’Shea said running back Andrew Harris should be available to play.

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @TaylorAllen31