Passing through Montreal to play their next game on Saturday, the mighty Winnipeg Blue Bombers are coming to town after being kicked in the ass last week by the BC Lions. And that may be very bad news for the Alouettes.
Winnipeg has never lost two games in a row with Zach Collaros at starting quarterback, who is 29-5 overall in the regular season in a Bombers uniform.
“We all made it a personal matter, each player in the formation, commented Collaros, coming back on this bitter loss of 30 to 6 suffered on Thursday, June 22, in Winnipeg, against the Lions. They played better than us and they were more physical.
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Collaros, who is among the best in his profession in the Canadian Football League, did not need to rewatch the film of the game to know that the Blue Bombers (2-1) had then suffered from execution problems. Him, the first. He nevertheless watched the videos, a painful exercise.
“We did the same thing after each game and we evaluated sequences of the match, recognized Collaros, quoted on the website of his team. Of course, when you come back after getting your ass kicked like that, it’s not fun to watch. We were all motivated to get back to work.”
nothing magical
Collaros is among those who didn’t have a great game against the Lions, completing just 15 passes from 26 attempts. The quarterback was limited to 191 yards through the air, having suffered an interception without getting a single touchdown. The excellent defensive unit of the Alouettes, which has not allowed a touchdown in two games since the start of the season, will try to contain him again.
We totaled six small points for the attack of the Blue Bombers, following two field goals, against the Lions. However, in the first two games of the campaign, the Winnipeg club had scored 42 and 45 points.
“Guys just need to get back to playing,” head coach Mike O’Shea told the Blue Bombers website. There is no magic solution, they have to get on the pitch, be physical and play. They’re a good group.”
The Bombers, led by Collaros and O’Shea, have actually reached the Gray Cup final in the last three editions. The Winnipeg club won in 2019, then after a year marred by the pandemic, they repeated the feat in 2021. Last year, Collaros and his teammates lost by a single point in the final against the Argonauts of Toronto.
The undefeated “Sparrows”
In the Montreal camp, the objective is obviously to remain undefeated this season after a first victory obtained at home against the Ottawa Redblacks, on June 10, and an impressive victory of 38 to 12 against the Tiger-Cats, the last weekend in Hamilton. The Alouettes will once again be led offensively by quarterback Cody Fajardo, who was named CFL Offensive Player of the Last Week.
“Individual honors mean nothing without victories. If you play well and you lose games, you don’t feel good. If you play badly, but the team wins, you are much better than after a defeat, summarized Fajardo, earlier this week, in training. I will do everything I can to help the team win. My goal is to fight and win a Gray Cup here.”
The Alouettes will wear their third uniform, predominantly red, for the first time this season on July 1st.
Alouettes fans are invited to participate in the 19th edition of the “Blitz against Hunger” by bringing non-perishable food or making donations for people in need, Saturday, at Percival-Molson Stadium.
