Daniel Crump/CFL.ca
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers and BC Lions are starting to separate themselves in the West Division. With both teams moving to 4-1 over the weekend, the Lions and Bombers have put themselves in a different tier compared to the rest of their division.
Before diving any deeper, I do want to acknowledge Saskatchewan as well. The Riders improved to 3-1 with a 12-11 win over Edmonton on Thursday and have shown some encouraging signs. To this point, though, I haven’t seen Sask play quite to the same level as the other two teams in question. But they’re very much trending in the right direction.
Now back to the big two, who have both sustained humbling losses this season. Week 3 saw Winnipeg beat handily by BC at IG Field. One week later it was the Lions humbled on the road in Toronto in a game many were hyping as a potential Grey Cup preview. And you know what? Both have bounced back admirably, as high-end teams do.
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Since their only loss, the Bombers have put together a pair of solid, complete wins over Montreal and Calgary. The most recent of those came Friday night against the Stampeders to the tune of 24-11. After falling into a 10-1 first-quarter hole, Winnipeg took over in the final 45 minutes and showed more of the traits that make the team who they are.
Zach Collaros was virtually mistake-free at quarterback and threw for 231 yards and two touchdowns. Tailback Brady Oliveira continues to cement himself as one of the league’s best with another 73 rushing yards to go along with 37 more through the air.
It was Greg McRae’s turn to lead the way at receiver, finishing with 73 yards and a touchdown. He also added an electric 102-yard missed field goal return that fell just short of going to the house. With Dalton Schoen, Drew Wolitarsky, Rasheed Bailey and Nic Demski also in the mix, you never can quite pinpoint who’s going to be THE guy each week. Oh, and Kenny Lawler has yet to suit up.
Then there’s this defence that has come back with a vengeance since Week 3. It’s hard to believe, but Willie Jefferson might look even more dominant than we’ve ever seen him, which is saying a lot. The future hall of famer tacked on two more sacks to his total in the win over Calgary, while Adam Bighill led the way with seven tackles.
And after their tough 45-24 loss to the Argos the week prior, BC also got things back on track to wrap up the weekend. Most importantly, Vernon Adams Jr. put his ugly outing in that same game behind him in a hurry. After throwing six interceptions in the loss to Toronto, Adams looked far more like himself in racking up 283 passing yards and a touchdown as BC took a 35-19 win over Montreal.
This Lions offence is stacked. Dominique Rhymes, Lucky Whitehead, Keon Hatcher, and Jevon Cottoy make up a ridiculously talented receiving group. And who’s this Shaun Shivers character? Signed just a couple weeks ago, Shivers debuted with a bang; he finished the win with 63 rushing yards and a touchdown to go along with 73 more receiving yards, 68 of which came on one play.
BC boasts playmakers all over the field on defence. Bo Lokombo has been dominant all season long and his partner at linebacker Ben Hladik is rounding into form, too. The latter had six tackles and a sack on Sunday while Lokombo added seven more tackles to his impressive season.
Mathieu Betts has arrived and is here to stay. The explosive rush end, now in his second season with the Lions, added two more sacks against the Alouettes to bring his league leading total to a staggering nine. And with the likes of Garry Peters and T.J. Lee leading the way in the backfield, the Lions are as deep as anyone at DB.
BC and Winnipeg hook up for the second of three meetings in Week 8. With the way these two are playing, you can circle that one on your calendar right now.
Absolutely devastating
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I had to leave the room when I saw Jeremiah Masoli exit Ottawa’s 21-13 loss to Hamilton on Saturday night. Exactly 365 days after having his season ended in 2022, Masoli was finally back in action and was finally able to play his former team. It was honestly devastating to see him leave the game in the second quarter after sustaining a non-contact injury.
More than anything, I hope we get news this week that things looked worse than they actually are. Much has been made of Masoli’s return to game action, mainly because of how much painstaking work went into it. The CFL is better with a healthy Masoli under centre, so seeing what happened was tough to swallow.
To make matters worse, we learned last week Tyrie Adams is done for the season with a torn ACL, which he sustained in his first CFL start the week prior. That’s why Dustin Crum was forced into action against the Ticats. I thought the rookie showed some flashes, especially with his mobility, so I’ll be interested to see how things evolve.
Ottawa still has Nick Arbuckle on the roster, but his struggles earlier this season paved the way for Adams to get his opportunity. As such, it’ll be curious to see if general manager Shawn Burke looks to make an external move at quarterback if Masoli is out for any extended period of time. For instance, Dane Evans is sitting number two on the depth chart in BC…
