Who says Blue can’t bye a break?

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/08/2010 (5831 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

They’ve had their fair share of off weeks already this CFL season, so another week off seems about right.

While most set a course for various hometowns across the continent, a handful of Winnipeg Blue Bombers arrived at Richardson International Airport Friday, less than 24 hours after a 39-17 loss to the Montreal Alouettes at Molson Stadium. On tap for the club is the bye week, a much-needed respite for a team that is showing disturbing signs of regressing as the season wears towards autumn.

With a 2-6 record thanks to this four-game losing streak, though, some players might find it difficult to relax during the time away from the field.

"There’s always someone out there trying to take your job away — whether it’s a guy on your team or someone who was just released from an NFL camp," offered Bombers right tackle Kelly Butler, one of a few players staying in Winnipeg during the break. "That’s the nature of the business. You can’t be complacent at any part of the season but at the same time, you can’t always be looking over your shoulder.

"Given how things have played out and what our record is, I’m not sure where a lot of us stand right now."

Added linebacker Courtney Smith: "For me, it’s not really a (rest) week; it’s an improvement week. Every time you hop on the field you’re worried about your job — that’s not just concerning the first (eight) games."

Butler, Smith and the rest of the Bombers will find out exactly what their status is when the players return to work Aug. 29, the first day of preparations for back-to-back meetings against the Saskatchewan Roughriders. The breather might give the players a chance to rest and re-evaluate their own performance through the first eight weeks, but it will also give head coach Paul LaPolice and GM Joe Mack a chance to step back and examine the workings of a club they put together.

With just two home wins, turnover could be on the horizon. The magnitude of those changes, and where those moves will be, remains to be seen.

"It’s early to say," LaPolice said of roster decisions. "I’ve seen the film both offensively and defensively on the plane home… we’ll talk about it as a staff, and we’ll talk with Mr. Mack. If we have to make change, we will."

The challenge for LaPolice now is figuring out how deep the cutting — if there is any — should be. He’ll take a couple days off during the bye-week to get away from the playbook, but wouldn’t commit to any drastic moves at this point. Eight games is enough rope for players to secure their position (or hang themselves), but what the coach and general manager have to guard against is getting into a similar negative renovation project that’s currently underway in Edmonton.

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This bye week could be the turning point of the season for the Bombers. Or it could be a continuation of this slow descent towards lowered expectations.

"I’ll take each day and make sure I evaluate everything — offence, defence, and special teams," LaPolice said. "I want to make sure I turn every stone and look at things, and see how we can fix this."

Areas of immediate concern for LaPolice include turnovers, where three fumbles in the first half of Thursday’s loss helped put the club into a hole early, and dropped passes, with WR Adarius Bowman serving as the poster boy for those errors. Two more drops behind coverage from the talented receiver in the first half left LaPolice in disbelief on the sidelines Thursday.

"For right now," a frustrated LaPolice said, on whether he’ll stick with Bowman. "We’ll have conversations."

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca