A win and a shutout for Bombers
Four first downs, 102 yards of net offence, and zero points.
Those are the type of numbers the B.C. Lions can produce in a single drive, or at the very least, a quarter.
But in a full 60 minutes against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Thursday night, that’s all the Lions and their No. 1-ranked offence could muster. The Blue and Gold stifled the Leos from the opening kickoff to the final whistle in a 25-0 beatdown at Princess Auto Stadium.
Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ Tanner Cadwallader (47) intercepts the pass intended for B.C. Lions’ Justin McInnis (18) during second half CFL action in Winnipeg Thursday. (John Woods / The Canadian Press)
The last time Winnipeg held an opponent to a franchise record of four first downs was back in 1952 when they accomplished the feat against the Saskatchewan Roughriders. B.C. owns the league mark of three first downs allowed and they pulled it off twice: once in 1959, and again in 1975.
“I don’t know if words can put into context how impressive that is,” said Bombers linebacker Adam Bighill.
It’s the first time the Bombers shut out an opponent since Oct. 23, 2021 when they blanked Michael Reilly and the Lions 45-0.
“Obviously, I won’t lie to you, it feels very good,” said dime back Redha Kramdi.
“Not because it was B.C., but because of no points, four first downs… It’s amazing. You don’t see that a lot in the CFL… I wouldn’t go as far as saying we made a statement, because in this building, we always knew what we were capable of doing and we just had to show it.”
Vernon Adams Jr. — the league’s top passer who entered the night on pace to become just the fifth player to pass for 6,000 yards in a season — was bullied into a brutal statline of 8-for-17 for 74 yards and an interception. Adams Jr. left the game with 12:31 left in the fourth quarter with a knee injury, and his replacement Jacob Dolegala completed one pass for 12 yards down the stretch.
The Lions – who are now 5-3 – were averaging 29.4 points and 406.6 yards of net offence per game.
“Maybe they took us lightly, I don’t know,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea. “I thought our pass rush got after it pretty damn good.”
Bighill, along with defensive ends Willie Jefferson and TyJuan Garbutt, and DT Devin Adams all had sacks. Corner back Tyrell Ford picked off Adams Jr. in the first quarter. The Canadian leads the Bombers with three interceptions.
“We disrupted their rhythm early. Vernon, I think, just didn’t see the things he wanted to see right away and we got him off his spot and we made it tough on him,” said Bighill.
“I thought we had a lot of great pressure up front tonight closing the pocket, making him feel uncomfortable. And if you look at the back-end coverage, there wasn’t a lot open, either. Vernon had really tight windows he had to look at all night and the rush squeezed on him enough that he didn’t take advantage of maybe some of the things that were out there.”
It’s incredible the Bombers were able to have such a performance considering they played on a short week – they lost a 16-14 overtime heartbreaker in Toronto last Saturday —whereas B.C. was coming off a bye.
CFL teams are now 6-2 this season after their weeks off.
“I think we got our butts beat, is what I think happened, from start to finish,” said Lions head coach Rick Campbell.
“We could not get anything going and you don’t see that too often in the CFL, so I’ll credit them. (The Bombers) had a really good game plan and they played well, and we had a bad, bad day at the office, I’ll tell you that.”
There were concerns surrounding the team’s secondary in training camp with two first-year starters at corner in Ford and Terrell Bonds, but now, this area is being talked about as potentially the best pass defence in the three-down circuit. They’re holding opponents to 226.8 yards through the air per game which is second only to the Montreal Alouettes (223.1).
“We’re a tight group. We love each other, we got each other’s back, and we don’t point fingers,” said Kramdi. “We just fix problems.”
It’s a defence that has had a lot of problems this year. The D-line was decimated by injuries at the beginning of the season and standout linebacker Kyrie Wilson was recently placed on the six-game injured list. The Blue and Gold offence also hasn’t done them any favours as their last place attack has kept them on the field for long stretches and yet, this defence has kept them in several games they didn’t deserve to be in.
They have now allowed just one touchdown in their last three games.
“It reflects the culture the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have. Everyone just buys in,” said Kramdi.
“Whoever’s on the field, whoever’s starting or dressing that week, or even if you’re on the practice roster, everyone in that locker room buys in and does the necessary work to be ready when their name is called. It’s a testament to the organization and the culture that people before us and the people here now have installed.”
Many had written the Bombers off when they sat at 2-6. While Thursday only bumped them up to 3-6, it was the type of showing that can turn a season around and will certainly have many in Bomberland believing once again.
“The season’s not over yet,” said Jefferson.
“We just here to play football, to play Winnipeg football. When you come here, you gotta play your A-game.”
X: @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.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Credit: A win and a shutout for Bombers
