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News July 22, 2026

48-Hour Primer | Week 8 vs. Calgary

Brady Oliveira is currently third in the CFL in rushing with 423 yards; photo by Smart Rosales

@EdTaitWFC

It’s not a complicated situation, so let’s spell it out in simple terms: the members of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers offensive unit are completely cool with kicker Sergio Castillo trotting out at the end of every drive. Good dude, popular teammate, absolutely stupendous at his job.

Yet, if we drill down a little further on that, what they would like is for Castillo be hoofing converts at the conclusion of each possession, not field goals.

And so here we are as the Blue Bombers — now 4-2 and on a three-win heater — set to open the second third of their 18-game season with Friday’s home date against the Calgary Stampeders with their next three at home and a real opportunity to find some footing in the Canadian Football League’s West Division battle royale.

Still, what has become apparent through the first six games is this offence so loaded with offensive firepower has too often stalled out deep in enemy territory. Case in point, Castillo is second in the CFL with 18 field goals — first is Brett Lauther of the winless Ottawa RedBlacks — while the offence is eighth in the league in offensive points at 24.3.

“We’re moving the ball, we’re executing on offence, we’re just not scoring enough touchdowns right now. Way too many field goals,” said running back Brady Oliveira after Wednesday’s closed-to-the-media practice. “At the end of the day it’s going to look different every single game and some games it may come down to that. But we can make it a whole lot easier on our team if offensively we can go out there and turn those three points into six, get a lead on teams and play our style of football.

“We have the talent, we have the guys, we just have to find a way to finish.”

In many ways, that’s how this entire football team is right now across the board — ecstatic to be 4-2 right now, yet completely aware of how spotty some of the performances have been through the first third of the season. It could he said Sunday’s wacky 36-34 overtime win was a snapshot of what has unfolded throughout the year, what with the team getting the result despite a sloppy performance that saw them rally from a 26-9 fourth quarter deficit before the offence and defence began throwing and landing combinations in the late rounds in their rally.

“That last game… when it was finally time for us to get the job done and find a way, we found a way,” Oliveira said. “I thought offensively we were absolutely lethal in that. We were dynamic, we were finishing drives and getting into the end zone. We came back from down 17 and in overtime were dialled on those two-point plays in the shootout.”

A couple of offensive concerns, beyond the turning field goals into touchdowns thing:

-Winnipeg has just four pass completions this season of more than 30 yards, which is worst in the league and;

-Oliveira’s touches against Ottawa were just 11, including 10 rushes for 48 yards and one catch for four. He ranks third in the CFL in rushing with 423 yards — Calgary’s Dedrick Mills is first at 524, with Edmonton’s Justin Rankin at 522. Granted, the circumstances dictated the Blue Bombers needed to air it out in attempting the rally in Ottawa, but the slow starts have severely impacted the attack from grinding it out and playing the bully-ball brand of football which has been their trademark over the years.

“We always say this and it’s true — it’s going to look different every single week when we try to win a football game,” Oliveira said. “But what is our DNA here? What is our bread and butter? What do the guys do well? When we play our style, it truly wears on teams and they don’t want to play a team like that in the fourth quarter. Then you go into the next week, and your opponents know it’s going to be a long game for them when they’re playing the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

“I just don’t know if we’ve done enough of that yet this year. Again, we’ve won three straight and that’s amazing, but as this season goes on I do think personally — and I know I’m the running back — but if you have a good ground game and you’re moving people up front, good things happen.”

OUCH REPORT: Today’s injury report includes some decent news with WR Kevens Clercious, DB Ethan Ball, LB Lane Novak and DT Tanner Schmekel, all Canadians and all on the six-game injured list, were full participants. The depth chart for Friday’s game against Calgary will be released Thursday morning.

COMINGS/GOINGS: The Blue Bombers also thinned out their practice roster on Wednesday with the release of OL Micah Mazzccua, WR Christian Frederickson and DB Kaylin Moore.

THE COACH SAYS: Head coach Mike O’Shea visited with the media following practice on Wednesday. Here is the video evidence:

ICYMI: The Blue Bombers announced the 1988 and 1990 Grey Cup championship teams will be inducted into the club’s hall of fame later this year. Here’s our story after a chat with Mike Riley, who was the head coach of those clubs and was himself inducted into the Winnipeg Football Club’s shrine in 2007.

Mike Riley: “Those things that are so important to you, you tend to remember them.”