Preview: Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Calgary Stampeders
Saturday, September 24, 2016 4:00 PM
Bombers, Stamps put streaks on the line in Western duel
CALGARY — When two teams with a combined record of 18-5-1 meet up, you know it’s going to be a good football game.
Such will be the case on Saturday afternoon in Calgary, where the 10-1-1 Stamps will host the 8-4 Winnipeg Blue Bombers at McMahon Stadium.
The Bombers are 1-13 in their last 14 trips to McMahon, but are also on their best run in recent memory: Winnipeg’s last loss came on July 21, and Mike O’Shea’s team has maneuvered itself into the mix near the top of the West Division.
Of course, the Stampeders are on a run of their own: Bo Levi Mitchell and co. haven’t dropped points since an early-July tie in Ottawa, and Calgary is yet to lose at McMahon in 2016.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are en fuego right now. On fire.
Even in the absence of star running back Andrew Harris, Winnipeg was able to brush aside the Toronto Argos last week to extend its winning streak to seven.
“As players, we always move on to the next week fairly quickly,” receiver Weston Dressler told BlueBombers.com. “For us, we’re trying to approach it like we have for the past 12 games now — we’ve done a good job the last few weeks on staying focused on the present and what’s in front of us.”
It appears the Bombers will once again be without Harris, their dual-threat back, after Timothy Flanders took first-team reps at practice this week.
“All these guys, you develop a little trust with them and give them every opportunity you can, said Head Coach Mike O’Shea. “You give them the most amount of time you can for them to be able to compete on game day, and I’ve got no problem with that.
“These guys have been through training camp, they know the system and you’ve certainly got to give them that opportunity.”
Another spot of concern for Winnipeg ahead of its trip to Cowtown is the absence of leading linebacker Ian Wild, whose 69 total tackles lead the Bombers. Wild will not dress on Saturday, and his presence will be missed in the second-tier of the Winnipeg defence.
Going up against a premier quarterback in Bo Levi Mitchell will be a difficult challenge for Winnipeg’s defence, which has established itself as a big-play, high-turnover unit.
“He’s certainly competitive,” O’Shea said of Mitchell. “He’s been in the system for quite some time (and) gets good protection. He gets rid of the ball quickly (and) they say he’s got unbelievable vision in terms of seeing the field.”
The Bomber defence has been nothing short of superb this season, ranking first in interceptions (22) and second in points allowed (268) and forced fumbles (15). As far as individuals go, the Bombers have the league’s two top ball hawks in their secondary in Maurice Leggett (league-best six INTs) and the recently-acquired TJ Heath (five INTs).
“It’s going to come down to who’s more disciplined,” Leggett said of Saturday’s game. “It’s going to be a hard-fought battle — win or lose, we’re confident and we feel like we’re not respected at all.”
The Calgary Stampeders are certainly respected around the CFL by this point.
Dave Dickenson’s football team is coming off a dominant 48-23 win against Ottawa at home last week, becoming the first team to clinch a playoff spot in the process.
“I think the guys in the locker room saw this (success) coming. We believe in ourselves, in the guys around us, and our talent,” Stamps quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell told Stampeders.com. “We’re happy with where we are, but not satisfied with it.”
As for facing the red-hot Matt Nichols-led Bombers, Mitchell understands Winnipeg’s path to success.
“They’re kind of tailoring the offence to Matt now, and once you do that with a quarterback, that’s when you get comfortable and start putting up points,” said Mitchell. “We have to make sure we go out and treat this team with the respect they deserve.”
Veteran Calgary defensive lineman Charleston Hughes remains confident heading into Saturday’s game against Winnipeg.
“We’re going to get to Nichols a lot this game, I’m not too worried about that,” said Hughes, who leads the league in sacks (10) at age 32. “I’m experienced in this league — I know how to beat certain things and what teams throw at me. There’s nothing I haven’t faced in this league.”
The Stamps were able to effectively shut down the Bombers in their two prior meetings this season — 36-22 and 33-18 Calgary wins — but know Winnipeg is a much different team since their last matchup in Week 5.
“It’s getting to be that time,” said Head Coach Dave Dickenson this week. “It’s Fall, which is football season in my opinion (and) it’s been a bit of a grind, so we’re hoping to get that energy and crowd behind us.”
The Stamps will hope to find their run game early on Saturday with league-leading running back Jerome Messam. The Toronto-native Messam leads the league in rush yards (739) and touchdowns (8).
