A win and they’re in Five storylines to watch Friday as the Blue Bombers try to secure a spot in the CFL post-season by defeating the Calgary Stampeders By: Jeff Hamilton Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Thursday, Oct. 25, 2018

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This article was published 24/10/2018 (2157 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers understand the massive opportunity that awaits them. They also have a firm grasp that beating the CFL’s most dominant club won’t be easy, even if the timing couldn’t be better.

Banged up on both sides of the ball, the first-place Calgary Stampeders limp into Winnipeg to face a red-hot Bombers team that has been unbeatable the last month, riding a four-game win streak and refreshed from a bye week.

A victory over the Stampeders, who have suffered losses the last two weeks but still own a sparkling 12-4 record, would secure a playoff berth for the Blue and Gold and make next week’s regular-season finale in Edmonton meaningless.

“Obviously that would be a nice thing. But if you start thinking that way it takes your focus and energy off what needs to happen this week. You know all the scenarios but you attack this week like it’s a playoff football game, a game that we need to go out and play well and a game that we need to win,” Bombers quarterback Matt Nichols said after practice Thursday. “If we go out and play good, clean football we can beat anyone and if we don’t go out and do that then we can lose to anyone.”

With that, here are five storylines to keep an eye on in Friday’s game.

PLENTY TO PLAY FOR

It’s simple for the Bombers: win and you’re in.

In fact, a tie would even be enough to secure the Bombers a playoff berth. A loss, however, and Winnipeg will have to travel to enemy territory and face an Eskimos team that is surely still reeling from a 30-3 beat down the Bombers delivered them in Week 16.

Much has been made about the Bombers controlling their own destiny and how ideal of a spot that is for a club that was 5-7 and out of the playoff picture a couple a few weeks back.

But as tough a challenge as it might be for the Bombers to secure a playoff spot in the West, I’d argue that if they can’t earn a win over the next two games then they don’t deserve a shot to compete for the Grey Cup.

“That’s exactly how I feel and I think how this team feels. You don’t want to limp into the playoffs having people winning other games that help you limp across the line,” Nichols said. “For us, controlling your own destiny is a great thing because if you don’t win one of these next two then you don’t deserve to be there.”

Calgary won’t be a pushover. Despite clinching their place in the postseason party weeks ago, they still have plenty to play for, needing to lock down top spot in the West. The Saskatchewan Roughriders (11-6) are close on their heels and own the tiebreaker in the event both teams finish with identical records, making it somewhat of a must-win game for the Stampeders.

WANTED: HEALTHY RECEIVERS

There is no doubt Calgary is eyeing a first-round bye, something they will desperately need in order to heal up some of their injured players.

Just how bad is Calgary beat up? It’s hard to imagine that any team would be able to survive what the Stampeders have gone through, especially on offence, where they have lost four of their top-five receivers.

Kamar Jorden and Reggie Begelton have been ruled out for the season; DaVaris Daniels and Marken Michel are doubtful to return in 2018. Those four receivers have accounted for much of the Stampeders offence this year, combining for 161 receptions for 2,614 yards and 19 touchdowns.

“All teams get hit hard with injuries at certain points and that’s why you watch some teams dip at certain times. Unfortunately for us it his us all at one position so we were having trouble finding guys that we felt could keep the level of play up,” Stampeders coach Dave Dickenson said. “I thought we took a step forward last week so we’ll have to take two steps forward to get a win.”

Still, the Stampeders have a pretty strong backup plan in place, a group that includes Eric Rogers, Lemar Durant, Juwan Brescacin, Markeith Ambles and Chris Matthews. Matthews, a former standout with the Bombers, signed nearly three weeks ago after spending the past four years in the NFL.

Calgary will have its hands full against a Bombers defence that has been near impossible to beat over the past month. Winnipeg has allowed just five offensive touchdowns against in its last five games, including a 31-0 shutout against the same Roughriders club that defeated the Stampeders last week.

“We know that a big part of the game is on us as a defence and we embrace that challenge,” Bombers linebacker Jovan Santos-Knox said. “Guys are focused and dialled in because this feels like playoff football, and we don’t want to go home, we just want to keep this thing going.”

BO FOR M.O.P.

Indeed, injuries are tough to manage for any team but it helps when you have one of the league’s best quarterbacks at the controls. Calgary’s Bo Levi Mitchell has been nothing short of incredible this year and is the front-runner to win the CFL’s most outstanding player award.

Mitchell is third in passing yards, with 4,572, but his 33 touchdowns leads the league – an impressive stat given he’s had to work with rotating receivers group.

“What I notice from him is his pre-snap awareness. I always try to study the quarterback and see their movements and mechanics and some quarterbacks just look at the side that they’re going to prepare for,” said Bombers corner Chris Randle.

“With Bo, when I study him and I watch him I think he does a good job of scanning the entire field, scanning all his options and then understanding leverages of those players. Regardless of what route he has he knows how to throw away from a defender, which is putting him in that elite status and I think that’s what’s bumped his game up more so because he’s doing it with guys he hasn’t had much time to get the timing down.”

Mitchell also said he’s the healthiest he’s ever been at this point in the season, which is scary news for the Bombers. After all, he played with an injured throwing shoulder all of last season and still led the Stampeders to the Grey Cup. He had off-season surgery to repair the injury and looks forward to adding to his perfect 6-0 record at Investors Group Field.

“I definitely have the confidence in this building, but it’s always different each year,” Mitchell said. “You know, how you’re playing right now at the moment, how the other team is playing. So just looking forward, honestly, to a rebound game.”

NICHOLS SET UP TO BREAK STAMPS SLUMP

What might be harder to replace are the injuries on defence. Calgary will be without four starters from a week ago, as linebacker Jameer Thurman, defensive linemen James Vaughters and Derek Wiggan and corner Tre Roberson will all be sidelined.

Even with a healthy lineup, the Stampeders are coming off their worst performance of the season against Saskatchewan, surrendering a season-worst 469 yards of net offence to the Roughriders.

“It was just uncharacteristic and it’s one bad game. Every team has them, every side of the ball has them, every part of the team has them and the fact it came to our defence all-together in one game was kind of a shellshock to us,” said Stampeders linebacker Alex Singleton, who leads the CFL in defensive tackles, with 107. “It happened so you got to learn from it but also you got to let it go because if you don’t let it go then it’s going to happen two weeks in a row.”

Singleton said it’s been a tough week for the group, but he remains confident in the next guys up. But he also noted the importance of communication and that new bodies might make that part of the game a challenge, which could perhaps make it the perfect time for a breakout performance for Nichols and the Bombers offence.

Nichols has had a lot of success since taking over as the starter for the Bombers early into the 2016 season, boasting a 31-19 record with the Blue and Gold. He’s 37-26 over his career, but of the nine teams in the CFL it’s only Calgary that he has yet to beat.

He’s 0-8 against the Stampeders, which is something you would think would eat away at Nichols, who is as competitive as they come.

“Every scenario has been completely different. I can think of three games right away that one minor thing changes and all of a sudden that record is 3-5 and it’s no big deal,” Nichols said. “To me, it’s not something I ever think about.”

SOMETHING TO PROVE

It’s not often the Stampeders are considered underdogs. But the odds makers have made them exactly that, placing the Bombers as 3.5-point favourites to win Friday.

If the pressure wasn’t big enough for Winnipeg, the fact they are supposed to win this one might take it to a whole new level. But the players insist they have blocked out all outside noise and have a ton of respect for their opponent.

“They’re a great football team regardless of what the favourites are and what people are talking about, they’re a good football team and they’ve been great for a lot of years, especially this year,” Bombers running back Andrew Harris said. “We respect them a lot, no matter what the last two games or three games they’ve been going through. We were in the same position a month ago and we found a way to come back and we’re coming in on a four-game win streak, so it can definitely switch and change.”

The Bombers say they have already felt their share of pressure over the last month, playing what has felt like playoff football the last four games.

“The only thing we can control is each and every down, each and every play and when we are doing our best we win,” said Santos-Knox. “We control our destiny and so we’re very comfortable knowing that.”

As for the Stampeders, being a rare underdog should provide some added motivation. At the very least Calgary feels they have something to prove to themselves in getting out of their current two-game slide.

“I saw the power rankings as well and I wouldn’t put us at the top of those rankings right now. Power rankings are who is playing the best football right now and we have lost our last two games,” Mitchell said. “I hope it’s a shock to our own guys and it makes us want to fight just a little bit more and that’s what I’m excited to see.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton

Jeff Hamilton
Multimedia producer

After a slew of injuries playing hockey that included breaks to the wrist, arm, and collar bone; a tear of the medial collateral ligament in both knees; as well as a collapsed lung, Jeff figured it was a good idea to take his interest in sports off the ice and in to the classroom.

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