Bombers ‘D’ comes up short

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This article was published 18/09/2022 (1121 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

HAMILTON — It hasn’t been often this season the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have found themselves outside the winner’s circle, with Saturday’s defeat to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats just the second loss in 14 games this year.

But there’s a noticeable difference between this loss and falling to the Montreal Alouettes in Week 10.

Against the Als, the Bombers were running on fumes, playing a 10th straight game, and yet were still in a prime position to win. Had it not been for a pair of shanked field goals by Marc Liegghio, the Bombers would have remained undefeated; instead, the missteps ultimately sealed a 20-17 overtime win for Montreal.

That wasn’t the case against the Tiger-Cats. Hamilton pulled away in the second quarter and despite a valiant effort by Winnipeg’s offence to keep it close, the Tiger-Cats were able to fight off the brief comeback attempt en route to a convincing 48-31 victory.

It was far from the performances we’ve become accustomed to seeing from the Bombers, who dropped to 12-2 and are still atop the West Division. Meanwhile, the Tiger-Cats kept their playoff hopes alive in the lowly East, the win improving Hamilton to 4-9 — two points back of the 5-7 Alouettes in second.

The Bombers now head out on the bye week, before returning in Week 16 to play a third and final game against the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Sept. 30 at IG Field. Before we look too far ahead, let’s take a look back at the loss in the latest edition of 5 Takeaways.

1) On the surface, the Bombers final numbers on offence were pretty impressive.

They put up 31 points and 472 total yards, which was 48 more yards than the Tiger-Cats. Quarterback Zach Collaros threw for 342 passing yards — a 2022 single-game high — and a pair of touchdowns, while the Bombers run game combined for 130 rushing yards.

But the devil is in the details and while usually those statistics would be good enough to earn a win, there were a few errors that proved costly. The offence turned the ball over three times, with Collaros throwing two interceptions and committing a fumble that was recovered by the Tiger-Cats and returned 22 yards for a touchdown.

The turnovers led to a 14-point swing in favour of Hamilton. There’s a reason why coaches and players preach the importance of ball protection and Saturday was a prime example of why.

2) It’s worth expanding on the offence, including some of the individual efforts, as there were a few players that stood out despite the end result.

Receiver Dalton Schoen has pretty much cemented his bid for CFL rookie of the year. Schoen reeled in six catches, half of which were second-down conversions and two travelled more than 30 yards, for a game-high 158 yards.

Brendan O’Leary-Orange, playing a greater role with the absence of Drew Wolitarsky, had six catches for 72 yards, while Rasheed Bailey and Nic Demski recorded touchdowns. Demski extended his TD streak to four games, with five scores over that stretch.

The offence battled back early in the fourth, bringing the Bombers to within 10 points, 41-31, before the wheels eventually fell off. The only other knock I would have would be settling for field goals; four times the Bombers moved the ball inside the Tiger-Cats 30-yard line only to settle for three points rather than seven.

3) The Bombers defence has been the heart and soul of the club over the past few years, but there’s no denying it was a rough day at the office. They rarely get dominated, though Saturday stands as the exception.

The Tiger-Cats earned points on seven of their 11 total drives, including their first five. Two drives that they didn’t score on were possessions right before halftime and the final series of the game, both of which ended with Hamilton taking a knee to drain the clock.

Quarterback Dane Evans, who has struggled mightily this season as the team’s starter and was returning from a shoulder injury that kept him out of action a week earlier, torched the Bombers defence with a career-high five passing touchdowns and 327 yards through the air. Evans had nothing but time and space in the pocket — the Bombers didn’t record a single sack — and he made them pay, carving up a Winnipeg secondary that has been hit hard by the injury bug.

Not even the return of safety Brandon Alexander following a 10-month rehab from a knee injury was enough to create a spark. And while it was clear Hamilton game-planned to take full advantage of a field-side duo of first-year defensive backs Jamal Parker and Evan Holm, veteran Winston Rose and all-star Deatrick Nichols were also exposed at times.

4) What has come to define the Bombers defence is their ability to deliver at the game’s most crucial moments. That didn’t happen Saturday.

After the offence put together back-to-back touchdown drives to cut Hamilton’s lead to 10 points with more than nine minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Winnipeg desperately needed a stop from its defence. Instead, the Tiger-Cats answered back with a 14-play, 90-yard touchdown drive that drained the clock from 9:17 to 1:57 — a total of seven minutes and 20 seconds.

Evans went four-for-four passing for 38 yards on the drive, including a six-yard strike to David Ungerer in the end zone. What was even more impressive was the Tiger-Cats ran the ball 10 times for 52 yards, forcing Winnipeg to burn both its timeouts along the way. The 51 yards on the ground accounted for more than half of Hamilton’s 98 rushing yards.

Injuries to defensive backs Demerio Houston and Nick Taylor and linebackers Kyrie Wilson and Malik Clements are clearly starting to take its toll. Houston and Clements are furthest along in their rehab, and their return should help bring some stability back to the group.

5) So, what does it all mean?

Given the Bombers dominance this season, it would be foolish to view Saturday as anything more than a second loss in a long and gruelling season. The Bombers got beat and the Tiger-Cats deserve a lot of credit for how they played.

That’s not to let Winnipeg off the hook. What should be the focus now is how the Bombers respond when they return next week to prepare for the Roughriders — another desperate team in need of wins.

If they lay another egg, then there should be cause for concern. Winnipeg faced the same situation after the loss to Montreal, only to return from the bye week refreshed and ready to work, earning a win over the Calgary Stampeders, followed by back-to-back victories over Saskatchewan.

If they can do that again this time, Saturday’s loss to the Tiger-Cats will be barely worth another mention.

Jeff.Hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton