Menu
August 9, 2018

Game Preview | HAM vs WPG


GAME 8 | HAMILTON TIGER-CATS (3-4) at WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS (4-3)

THE 4-1-1

Kickoff: 7:30 p.m., Friday; Investors Group Field
TV: TSN, RDS, ESPN+
Radio: CJOB
Vegas line: The Bombers are favoured by 5 points.
Streaks: Hamilton: 1W: Winnipeg: 2W
Home/Road: The Bombers are 2-1 at home; Hamilton is 2-2 on the road.
Series (since 1961): The Bombers lead 63-55 and are 36-23 all-time vs. the Ticats in Winnipeg.
Recent history: Winnipeg has lost two straight against the Tiger-Cats, falling 31-17 in Hamilton on June 29th and 30-13 last October 6th here. In that last game, Matt Nichols exited at halftime with the Bombers trailing 16-10 with a hand injury.

3 STORYLINES

1. MORE OF THE SAME, D

Somewhat lost in all the discussion about the Bombers impressive offensive production and the return of Matt Nichols over the last few weeks has been the work on the defensive side of the ball.

In the last four games, the Bombers have surrendered just 61 offensive points while allowing only one passing TD and picking off eight passes. And yet much of the discussion this week – yes, yours truly is guilty too – has been how the Tiger-Cats rolled over the Bombers in their game in Hamilton at the end of June, putting up 31 points while cranking out 480 yards of offence.

But what’s worth noting is the Bombers held a 10-7 lead in the second quarter and out-scored the Ticats 7-0 in the fourth. It was what happened in between – a stretch in which Hamilton was seemingly unstoppable while going on a 24-zip run – that was disturbing for the Bombers, both defensively and offensively.

The analogy defensive coordinator Richie Hall used earlier in the week was the Bombers defence was purring along and then it was like water had been poured in the tank and the engine started sputtering.

We didn’t have any consistency in that game where we played at a high level consistently,” said Hall. “There were a lot of things in that game that we executed well, but we didn’t do it on a consistent level where it made a difference. It just comes back to fundamental football: take care of your responsibilities… they ran the ball for over 100 yards against us, but there was probably four or five times where we missed a tackle, where we had him, but we didn’t.

“It comes back to doing those things… getting off blocks… the Xs and Os, I’m always going to say, are over-rated. It’s executing your responsibilities at a high level, at a high-energy level.”

The Ticats run-and-shoot offence is unique to the CFL in that it relies so much on timing between quarterback Jeremiah Masoli and his outstanding corps of receivers – a group further augmented by the addition of burner Chris Williams from Montreal in the Johnny Manziel trade.

It is, essentially, a read-and-react attack that can flummox a defence.

“That’s exactly what it is,” said Bombers linebacker Chandler Fenner. “As they’re running the routes they have to not only run downfield, but evaluate how we’re moving. So, the more that we can blur those reads the better it will be for the defence because then we get the quarterback and his receivers on different pages.

“Throwing that timing off will affect how he throws the ball and where he throws the ball. So this type of game, to me, is more fun because of the strategy involved within the play. Every down is different.”

2. MORE OF THE SAME, O

There has been a steady progression in the Bombers offence since Matt Nichols returned – save for that second half in Vancouver in which the club gave up a 17-0 intermission lead in a 20-17 loss to the B.C. Lions. True, some of these numbers have come against Lions and Toronto Argonauts defences that rank seventh and eighth, respectively. Of course, the Bombers have had a significant role in dropping those rankings, too.

What the last game against the Argos showcased for the Bombers offence was a balance on offence and an ability to counterpunch. Toronto attempted to limit the effectiveness of Andrew Harris by using another linebacker in their front seven instead of the traditional ‘Dime’ back. While that strategy worked – Harris was held to just 28 yards rushing on 10 carries after a career-best 161 the week before – the Bombers countered by having six different players rush the ball for a total of 92 yards along the ground while seven players pulled in passes for 274 through the air.

And among the biggest benefactors was Nic Demski, who has already set career highs this season in receptions and carries.

“We’ve got amazing balance on offence,” said Demski. “We’ve got playmakers left, right and centre and if you shut one player down or try and take something away from our offence, we’ve got lots in the tank. We’ve got great receivers, a great O-line, a great running back, a great quarterback, so… we’ve got lots of options.

“We can run the ball well, obviously, so a lot of teams are going to scheme to stop the run. But then we’ve got good receivers, good protection and a great quarterback behind that run game. When you attack a defence and they have no idea how to stop it, that makes it a lot of fun.”

3. SPECIAL FORCES

It says something about the confidence the Bombers have in their special teams when the club runs a reverse on the opening kickoff, with Tyneil Cooper lateralling to Daniel Petermann in a play that resulted in a 55-yard return, set Winnipeg’s offence up for their first possession at the Toronto 48-yard line and established a tone for the game.

That was followed later by a fourth-quarter punt block by Mike Miller that was recovered by Ian Wild and returned 18 yards for a touchdown. In short, the Bombers special teams continue to morph into a unit that can not only flip the field, but add points on its own.

“Special teams brings a twist to a game,” said return man Kevin Fogg. “Special teams is an aspect that if you can dominate, it can flip the field or get the ball back. All the players on special teams take complete ownership of it and we’re just trying to make sure we’re very detailed.

“We have some great coaches putting together some great plans, so it’s always good, always fun.”

As for that opening kickoff reverse…

“I’ve never been a part of something like that,” added Fogg with a grin. “It’s always fun. Sometimes when we’re on the sidelines we don’t know what the call is going to be, but we practice that stuff and so when it’s called and it works it’s like, ‘Cool.’”

THE QBS

  • Winnipeg’s Matt Nichols is 32-22 in his career as a starter; 24-10 since taking over from Drew Willy in July of 2016 and 3-1 lifetime vs. Hamilton.
  • Hamilton’s Jeremiah Masoli is 13-13 as a starter in his career and 2-2 lifetime against the Bombers.

ROSTER SHUFFLE

The Bombers are making two changes to their 46-man roster. Added are LBs Chandler Fenner and Shayne Gauthier, while LB Frederic Plesius and FB John Rush are off this week.

3 BOMBERS TO WATCH

#45 Jovan Santos-Knox, LB: The second-year Bomber continues to improve seemingly with every snap. He is coming off a game in which he registered three sacks and 10 total tackles en route to being named a CFL Top Performer of the Week. Santos-Knox is second on the Bombers in tackles to Adam Bighill with 39 and fifth overall, trailing Alex Singleton of Calgary (45), Montreal’s Chris Ackie (43), Bighill (42) and Edmonton’s J.C. Sherritt (40).

#36 Marcus Sayles, DB: Sayles made his CFL debut in the loss to Hamilton at the end of June, picking off his first pass but also being replaced by Tyniel Cooper later in the game. Bombers coaches love his playmaking ability and this could be another trial by fire.

#66 Stanley Bryant, OT: The CFL’s reigning Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman is quietly having another stellar season. He’ll be lining up against Ticat ends Justin Capicotti, Adrian Tracy, Julian Howsare and old friend Jamaal Westerman.

X FACTOR

#10 Nic Demski, SB: Had two TDs in his last game – one along the ground, one through the air – as part of a night in which he had eight touches totalling 116 yards. His 28 receptions and 16 carries this season are already career highs.

CRITICAL NUMBER

71: Points generated off turnovers by the Bombers this season, second only to Calgary’s 72. Winnipeg’s 22 forced turnovers ranks second to the Stampeders, who have turned the ball over 25 times.

MISCELLANEOUS

  • A win by the Bombers would even head coach Mike O’Shea’s career win-loss record at 40-40. The Bombers were 13-28 through his first 41 games as head coach, but since then are 26-12 for a .684 win percentage.
  • Hamilton’s 28-0 lead after the first quarter last week in Montreal was the largest by any road team in CFL history and tied an all-time first-quarter lead record shared by three other teams.
  • Weston Dressler has caught a pass in 119 consecutive games, the eighth-longest streak in CFL history (Craig Ellis is seventh at 120).
  • Ticats quarterback Jeremiah Masoli has eclipsed the 300-yard passing mark in 11 of his last 12 games.
  • Bombers RB Andrew Harris needs 94 yards rushing to become the 14th player in the CFL to eclipse the 7,000-yard mark. With 89 rushing yards he would move past Earl Lunsford into 14th place on the league’s all-time rushing list.
  • Ticats receiver Jalen Saunders has a whopping 304 yards receiving (154 and 150) in his last two games while teammate Brandon Banks has broken the 100-yard receiving mark in five of his last six games.
  • The Bombers have out-scored their opposition 93-30 in the first half of their last four games.