Buck getting run for money

Pierce projected as starter, but LaPolice raving about mobile Jyles

By: Ed Tait Posted: 1:00 AM CDT Tuesday, Jun. 22, 2010

Waiting for some semblance of a team to emerge from a Canadian Football League training camp can be a little like trying to find the 3-D image in one of those fuzzy pictures.

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Waiting for some semblance of a team to emerge from a Canadian Football League training camp can be a little like trying to find the 3-D image in one of those fuzzy pictures.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/06/2010 (5646 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Waiting for some semblance of a team to emerge from a Canadian Football League training camp can be a little like trying to find the 3-D image in one of those fuzzy pictures.

Sometimes the thing just instantly pops out at you. And, occasionally, you really don’t get a feel for a club until the first few weeks of the regular season are in the books. And so it is with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, under new management, with a swack of new players and still with a number of unanswered questions.

Here is the latest from the mouth of head coach Paul LaPolice on some key issues after the pre-season ended Sunday with a 38-20 loss in Hamilton that left the Bomb Squad with a 1-1 record.

JOHN WOODS / THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Quarterback Steven Jyles made some good throws in his two pre-season appearances and has made coach Paul LaPolice take notice of his competitive spirit. — JOHN WOODS / THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES Quarterback Steven Jyles made some good throws in his two pre-season appearances and has made coach Paul LaPolice take notice of his competitive spirit.

— ON THE KICK-RETURN GAME…

At issue: Much-hyped return man Travis Shelton struggled against the Ticats, finishing with four punt returns for minus-9 yards. Hey, you don’t have to be a math whiz to see how ugly those numbers are. Question now is, do the Bombers risk putting cornerback Jovon Johnson back there, seeing as he clearly remains their best option?

LaPolice: "The biggest thing is (the returners) have got to be able to catch the football and if they’re not, if we’ve got people we don’t trust catching the football, then Jovon will do it. And it’s not like Jovon is just going to catch the football, Jovon’s one of the most-explosive returners in the league. There’s give and take with that, but we’re fully ready to have him return (punts) and have somebody else do kickoffs. It helps because you can put another athlete on the field because you don’t use a (designated import) spot for a returner. But there is liability in also using one of your best secondary players returning kicks. Hey, in this business there’s a lot of liability."

— ON THE EVER-EVOLVING O-LINE…

At issue: The Bombers continued to move people all over the line in Sunday’s game and will begin nailing down their starting five at Wednesday’s practice.

LaPolice: "We’re trying to get better so we’re moving people to all different spots and trying to see what the best match-up is. We’ll move people to different spots and if people are struggling we can put them at different places. Luke Fritz played centre, tackle, guard (Sunday) and he’s able to go in a number of different spots and that’s great flexibility to have. He looked very good (at centre)."

— ON WHO STARTS AT QB…

At issue: It seems all but a given that Buck Pierce will be No. 1, even though the offence struggled to move the ball against the Ticats with him at the controls on Sunday. Pierce was solid the week previous, albeit against Montreal reserves. LaPolice said the starter will be named sometime within the next week, but continues to rave about Steven Jyles.

LaPolice: "(Jyles) has mobility. He understands the game, the game slowed down for him and he made some really good throws. That’s what we brought him here for: to be somebody who could compete for the starting job and I think he’s done that."

— ON THE RECEIVERS’ DROPITIS, PARTICULARLY ADARIUS BOWMAN…

At issue: Receiver coach Chris Wiesehan hammers home ball security and the fundamentals every day at practice, but the pass-catching corps has been brutally inconsistent in the pre-season. Bowman had two more drops on Sunday.

LaPolice: "It’s hard in the CFL to drop the ball and not move the chains. We got to get (Bowman) through the problems of catching the football and we’ll have to get competition there and play somebody else if it persists too long. But I’m sure he’ll recover from it and be fine. It’s just reps (in practice) and looking it into your hands, being focused and concentrating. He’s got the tools. He breaks tackles, he’s physical, he runs by people… when he gets six yards of separation and catches the ball it’s going to be a big play. He jumps away from people. He’s just got to be better and he will."

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca