Defence not dominant either

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This article was published 29/06/2023 (815 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Don’t forget about defence. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers offence has dominated most of the discussion since Thursday night’s 30-6 loss to the B.C. Lions when they failed to find the end zone.

But the defenders in Blue and Gold, especially the secondary, didn’t fare much better.

“The game started at 7:30 and we might’ve showed up at 7:40. That’s what it seemed like. We were just always late,” is how Bombers defensive co-ordinator Richie Hall put it after Wednesday’s practice at IG Field.

Through three weeks of play, the Bombers are surrendering 29.3 points per game. Last season the unit was holding teams to just 14.3 points after their first three contests.

“I think our defence has been high and low. We’ve played well at times and we haven’t played well at times,” said Hall. “In order to be to the standards that we have set for ourselves, you got to be consistent. You look at us the last number of years we’ve been consistent.”

Lions quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. was without two of his best receivers in Dominique Rhymes and Keon Hatcher but the pass game still flourished. Adams connected on 20-0f-29 attempts for 237 yards and two touchdowns.

One week earlier, Saskatchewan Roughriders pivot Trevor Harris threw for 413 yards and three touchdowns against Winnipeg.

The Bombers are currently sixth in the league against the pass.

“We’ve given up too many plays to our liking, in the secondary especially,” said Bombers defensive backs coach Jordan Younger. “And we want to improve on it.”

“We’re growing. We’re in the same boat as everybody else in the sense that everybody’s still in that phase where they’re trying to identify what they’re good at, identify what they’re not good at, and trying to move the pieces accordingly. We’re still trying to figure that out.”

The Bombers made an interesting move in the middle of the game when they decided to sit veteran American dimeback Alden Darby, Jr. and replace him with third-year Canadian Redha Kramdi.

Kramdi continued to work with the starters on Wednesday.

“(Darby) was just struggling a little bit. When you go back to the overall game, we just weren’t clicking. All of us, defensive coaches, defensive personnel, we just weren’t there for whatever reason,” said Hall.

Cornerback Demerio Houston missed the Lions game to fly home to Charlotte, N.C., to be with his wife for the birth of their twins. He’s back with the team now, and it’s a good thing, as fellow corner Desmond Lawrence is now sidelined. Lawrence hasn’t practised this week and was walking gingerly on Wednesday with a full sleeve on his right leg.

Defensive backs Winston Rose and Jamal Parker have been in sick bay all season and both remain on the six-game injured list.

“The CFL season is long with 18 games. Last year when I came in, I remember (safety Brandon Alexander) telling all the rookies and young guys that everybody’s gonna get a chance to play,” said second-year DB Evan Holm.

“I wasn’t sure if he was being serious, but everybody does get a chance to play because it’s a long season, we’re running around a lot and anything can happen. It’s just next man up, we trust who’s in the room, they’re in there for a reason. It would be nice to get some of those guys back, though.”

With Lawrence likely unavailable for Saturday’s game in Montreal against the Alouettes, you can expect to see rookie Abu Daramy-Swaray make his second start.

Daramy-Swaray filled in for Houston last week and committed a 36-yard pass penalty on B.C.’s opening drive.

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“I think it kind of opened my eyes real quick getting that deep shot. Usually, I don’t panic the way I did during a game, but that comes with reps. But that was my ‘Welcome to the league’ moment,” said Daramy-Swaray.

The Bombers signed American defensive back Tyrique McGhee to the practice roster on Tuesday. McGhee was with the team in training camp but was released after getting injured. The former Georgia Bulldog spent 2020 on the Los Angeles Rams’ practice squad.

“It’s still a work in progress, but the guys are working,” said head coach Mike O’Shea on the secondary. “That first drive against B.C. I think there were some plays to be made and with a couple more games experience I think they would have made those plays. We have confidence in the depth of the group. They’re a good group.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31

Taylor Allen
Reporter

Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.

Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.