Spread the blame around

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This article was published 30/10/2014 (4051 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

So, if the Winnipeg Blue Bombers gave up a franchise-record number of sacks in 2014 — and, at 70 and counting, they did — does it logically follow then that the offensive line is also the worst in franchise history?

Not so fast, says veteran left tackle Glenn January.

“There are so many things that go into an offence that I really think it’s unfair to point at one group and say, ‘That’s the cause of the problem.’

“If you go back and look at the film, I think there’s enough blame to go around for all of us.”

Sure, no doubt. But 70 sacks? January remained defiant Wednesday.

“The style of offence we run, there’s a lot of emphasis on moving the ball down the field and running a lot of empty sets.

“And that’s also part of the reason Drew Willy is No. 2 in the league in passing right now. We run an offence that puts the offensive linemen in one-on-one situations a lot more than other teams, so I don’t think you can just look at the number of sacks and get a true picture of the situation we were handed this year.”

January’s longtime linemate, centre Steve Morley, said most fans don’t realize CFL teams that have been celebrated for their offensive-line play — the Saskatchewan Roughriders, most notably — tend to be the teams that use maximum-protection schemes most often.

How often? Morley said he sat down Friday to watch the Calgary Stampeders-Roughriders game in hopes he could learn something about blocking the ferocious Stamps pass rush in advance of his club playing in Calgary this Saturday in what will be Winnipeg’s final game of the season. Morley said he quickly learned he was wasting his Friday night trying to derive lessons from watching what Saskatchewan was doing.

“It was the fourth quarter and I was like, ‘Wow, they haven’t run one drop-back pass. They slid every protection so far.’

“That’s the exact opposite of the offence we’re running here.”

Now, you’d expect January and Morley, as the longest-serving members of the Bombers offensive-line, to strenuously defend their work. And we’d love to tell you what the other Bombers O-line mainstay — left guard Chris Greaves — thinks about the situation, but he just kept repeating the same mantra Wednesday that all he does is what he’s told. Over and over and over again.

What was interesting is Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea essentially agreed with Morley and January that the blame for his team’s pass-protection problems in 2014 went much deeper than the five men on the O-line.

“Seventy sacks is a lot of sacks,” said O’Shea, “…but it is much more complex than that — than just pointing your finger at one element of the offence. There are sacks that happen every game for a variety of reasons…

‘We run an offence that puts the the offensive linemen in one-on-one situations a lot more than other teams, so I don’t think you can just look at the number of sacks and get a true picture of the situation we were handed this year’

— Glenn January

“There are elements to the offence that are extremely detailed that you need to follow.”

On top of all of that, it also bears reminding the right side of the offensive line has effectively been a revolving door all season with a steady stream of players auditioning at both the guard and tackle positions.

The latest — and final — incarnation has rookie non-import Matthias Goossen playing at right guard and import Jace Daniels at right tackle. That was the same combination the Bombers used last weekend against the B.C. Lions.

How’d that work out? Winnipeg gave up a franchise record 10 sacks in what was a must-win game at home that officially knocked the Bombers out of playoff contention.

Quarterback Drew Willy conceded a lot of the blame last week rested on his shoulders on a night he was uncharacteristically indecisive and frequently hung on to the ball too long.

Of the mainstay O-line triumvirate of January, Greaves and Morley, only January is set to become a free agent this off-season. He says he’d love to be back in Blue and Gold for what would be his seventh season.

“I’ve made Winnipeg my home. It’s been fantastic for me the last six years. And I’d like to eventually leave here as a winner.”

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