The Good Bad and the Ugly

[Jesse]

Lucky is what he is. I just can't believe we haven't upgraded our return game yet this year. Whether it be the blocking scheme or the returner. Lucky has been the best for us this year but not really saying a lot...

We've never been able to find a replacement for Janarion. Our return game has always been terrible when he's missed time.

Again, terrible decision to let him walk.

[Waffler]

Lucky is what he is. I just can't believe we haven't upgraded our return game yet this year. Whether it be the blocking scheme or the returner. Lucky has been the best for us this year but not really saying a lot...

It hasn't mattered who we put back there, RARELY is there anywhere to run to.

[blue_gold_84]

We've never been able to find a replacement for Janarion. Our return game has always been terrible when he's missed time.

Again, terrible decision to let him walk.

The Bombers should try and get him back for 2025, IMO. Return game is basically non-existent without Grant.

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

Lucky is what he is. I just can't believe we haven't upgraded our return game yet this year. Whether it be the blocking scheme or the returner. Lucky has been the best for us this year but not really saying a lot...

If you watch Lucky return you'll see he loses all momentum when he changes direction, instead of flowing left or right it's almost like he comes to a stop before he changes direction.  Maybe he's indecisive, lacks vision or has no RB skills but he'd do a whole lot better if he'd just carry his initial speed when he changes direction.  It must be said that returner is one of the hardest jobs in all of football and very few can do it really well.

[markf]

good

"The Blue Bombers had the highest-graded offensive line of the week with a score of 80.8. Left guard Liam Dobson received the best individual score at 78.8, followed by centre Chris Kolankowski at 76.2 and right tackle Eric Lofton at 74.8.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers' defensive back Deatrick Nichols has been named the CFL's top performer for Week 18 by Pro Football Focus (PFF) with a grade of 92.3.

The two-time CFL all-star made two defensive tackles, two pass knockdowns, and one interception to help his team defeat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats by a score of 31-10. The 30-year-old has now made 42 defensive tackles, three interceptions, and two forced fumbles on the year."

https://3downnation.com/2024/10/08/winnipeg-blue-bombers-db-deatrick-nichols-named-cfls-top-performer-for-week-18-by-pff/


O line took a while maybe, but..... they've got it going now.

my impression is that coaching is a very big part of O line  success. Bombers O line coach has to be top of the league.

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

good

"The Blue Bombers had the highest-graded offensive line of the week with a score of 80.8. Left guard Liam Dobson received the best individual score at 78.8, followed by centre Chris Kolankowski at 76.2 and right tackle Eric Lofton at 74.8.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers' defensive back Deatrick Nichols has been named the CFL's top performer for Week 18 by Pro Football Focus (PFF) with a grade of 92.3.

The two-time CFL all-star made two defensive tackles, two pass knockdowns, and one interception to help his team defeat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats by a score of 31-10. The 30-year-old has now made 42 defensive tackles, three interceptions, and two forced fumbles on the year."

https://3downnation.com/2024/10/08/winnipeg-blue-bombers-db-deatrick-nichols-named-cfls-top-performer-for-week-18-by-pff/


O line took a while maybe, but..... they've got it going now.

my impression is that coaching is a very big part of O line  success. Bombers O line coach has to be top of the league.

This next game will test the O-line to see how good they really are, games they can't provide Zach with good protection is when the offence struggles to be effective. Like the Elks and the Ti-Cats before them the Bombers may have built their 8 game winning streak by beating up on weaker teams. 

Not sure how well the Argos and the Als D-lines have performed so far this season but they've been the difference makers in the last 2 GC losses and could again be the biggest obstacle in the Bombers way. If the O-line falls short again, there won't be a lot they can do about it, other than inserting Randolph for the weakest link.

[J5V]

This next game will test the O-line to see how good they really are, games they can't provide Zach with good protection is when the offence struggles to be effective. Like the Elks and the Ti-Cats before them the Bombers may have built their 8 game winning streak by beating up on weaker teams. 

Not sure how well the Argos and the Als D-lines have performed so far this season but they've been the difference makers in the last 2 GC losses and could again be the biggest obstacle in the Bombers way. If the O-line falls short again, there won't be a lot they can do about it, other than inserting Randolph for the weakest link.

I think your analysis is bang on the money. That's why having a healthy Stanley Bryant and Patty Neufeld is so important, not to mention Kolankowski, Lofton, Randolph, etc. Even then, it's going to be a challenge. Utilizing RBs to help out with keeping Zach clean is going to be a critical part of our offensive scheme. I also think it's important to remember that Zach had a compromised ankle during the Grey Cup last year and his mobility wasn't good at all. I believe he's much healthier now although my heart was in my throat when he took off running for a first down against Hamilton. I was afraid he was going to get Simoni Lawrenced!

[TecnoGenius]

We've never been able to find a replacement for Janarion. Our return game has always been terrible when he's missed time.

Well, if BC had told everyone it was hunky-dory to ignore the cap back in FA, we could have signed Grant and Jeffcoat and everyone else we wanted to retain!

I don't think we'll ever see Grant back here: any move he makes in FA will have a bidding war attached -- assuming he stays healthy.

[TecnoGenius]

Like the Elks and the Ti-Cats before them the Bombers may have built their 8 game winning streak by beating up on weaker teams. 

Uh, nearly every team we beat in those 8 games was on a hot streak or trending up!  EDM was looking like best-in-west just before we faced them.  BC was still the team to beat in the W before we knocked them down.  SSK was also hot, looking like it was going to win the W, before we back-to-back slaughtered them.  HAM was on a hot streak and 2nd or 3rd in power rankings and MOP chatter when we showed BLM what kind of team he was.

If anything you have it backwards -- the teams come into our games hot and then turn into jelly after we're done with them.  The only exception so far is SSK -- they managed to keep eking out wins.

[Jesse]

Well, if BC had told everyone it was hunky-dory to ignore the cap back in FA, we could have signed Grant and Jeffcoat and everyone else we wanted to retain!

I don't think we'll ever see Grant back here: any move he makes in FA will have a bidding war attached -- assuming he stays healthy.

 

[blue_gold_84]

Like the Elks and the Ti-Cats before them the Bombers may have built their 8 game winning streak by beating up on weaker teams. 

Yeah, it's almost as if the top team in the division is superior to its rivals.

[Jesse]

Yeah, it's almost as if the top team in the division is superior to its rivals.

And who are the supposed "strong" teams that we haven't beat?

[blue_gold_84]

And who are the supposed "strong" teams that we haven't beat?

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

And who are the supposed "strong" teams that we haven't beat?

That would be the Als and the Argos, the two teams they have not beaten this season who may arguably be equivalent in player talent and team execution when performing their best. Assuming the Bombers are automatically better than every other team because they've been playing well and beating inferior teams lately doesn't make it so.

Oh, here is the list of teams I currently consider clearly inferior to the Bombers in their current state.

Ti-Cats
Elks
Riders
Lions
Stamps
RB's

[blue_gold_84]

That would be the Als and the Argos, the two teams they have not beaten this season who may arguably be equivalent in player talent and team execution when performing their best. Assuming the Bombers are automatically better than every other team because they've been playing well and beating inferior teams lately doesn't make it so.

Flawed logic. The Bombers were not at their best in week 1 and they lost in OT to the Argos back in July. That was ages ago.

No other team over the last two months has been as solid as the Bombers have been. The Als only have a single victory in the last calendar month, and the Argos only have two.

Maybe it's just recency bias on my part, but in terms of "what you have done lately?" I don't think there's currently a better (or hotter) team than the Bombers right now.