Slippery Marve best QB for Blue’s awful O-line

By: Paul Wiecek Posted: 1:00 AM CDT Monday, Oct. 20, 2014

If you're going to force your quarterback to play behind an offensive line that has him running for his life all the time, perhaps it's not the worst idea to play a quarterback who is adept at running for his life.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/10/2014 (4061 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If you’re going to force your quarterback to play behind an offensive line that has him running for his life all the time, perhaps it’s not the worst idea to play a quarterback who is adept at running for his life.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers third-stringer Robert Marve did a lot of things right in a 33-23 loss to the Calgary Stampeders Saturday night in an emergency relief appearance for Marve in place of second-stringer Brian Brohm, who started the game in relief of first-stringer Drew Willy.

In a quarter and a bit of work, Marve displayed the strongest arm on the Bombers staff and showed poise and control in leading his team on a pair of touchdown drives that got the Bombers to within a field goal late in the fourth quarter.

JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Files
Robert Marve — JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Files Robert Marve

But perhaps most impressive was the speed and agility Marve showed when he scrambled, usually out of necessity more than design.

Marve racked up 36 yards on five carries — including a 12-yarder — and finished the night as the third-leading rusher despite playing barely a quarter.

All of which caused former Bombers defensive tackle Doug Brown to observe on his Twitter account that perhaps Marve is the solution for a Bombers team that has yielded a league-worst 60 sacks.

“Marve has the kind of mobility you need,” Brown observed, “to operate effectively behind this offensive line.”

Marve was asked following the game about the “extra gear” he seemed to provide the Bombers offence. “I wish that gear had another gear to that one,” said Marve. “I wish we had a little bit more in the fourth quarter left for us to keep it moving. I felt like the offensive line was playing very solid. They made me feel really comfortable.”

“ô “ô “ô

Such were the trials and tribulations for the Bombers Saturday as they lost their seventh straight that even one of the few bright spots for the team this season — rookie kicker/punter Lirim Hajrullahu — struggled uncharacteristically.

Hajrullahu — who coming into Saturday had missed just three field goals in 34 attempts this season — missed from 37 yards in the third quarter in a miscue that looked like it might loom large as the Bombers trailed 26-23 late in the fourth quarter.

A late Calgary touchdown drive made the point moot, but Hajrullahu was still beating himself up about the miss in the locker-room after the game.

“I felt like there was a strong wind coming from the right to the left and I felt like I could play it,” Hajrullahu explained. “But I shouldn’t have even considered it.”

Hajrullahu also struggled punting in the windy conditions, shanking a couple in the first half, but recovering to finish the night with a respectable 42.2-yard average on six punts.

He finished the night 2-for-3 for field-goal attempts and remains the most accurate placekicker in the CFL this season. He also remains on pace to set both a new franchise record for field-goal accuracy and a new accuracy record for rookie kickers in the CFL.

Interestingly, Hajrullahu’s troubles came the same day as McMaster University kicker Tyler Crapigna broke the single-season OUA field-goal record of 22 Hajrullahu tied last season while doing the place-kicking duties at Western.

Hajrullahu shared the old record with McMaster’s Michael Ray until Crapigna broke it.

* * *

With Saturday’s loss, the Bombers have now lost 10 in a row to the Stampeders… Winnipeg must still travel to Calgary to face the Stamps on Nov. 1 in what will be the Bombers final regular-season game. Winnipeg hasn’t won in Calgary since 2002… Winnipeg had 155 yards rushing against Calgary, their highest total this season… Winnipeg must win this Saturday at home against the B.C. Lions to keep their faint playoff hopes alive. The clubs are 1-1 against each other this season, but B.C. will be rested — they had a bye on the weekend.

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @PaulWiecek