The Edmonton Elks’ struggles against Winnipeg seemed to be turning until an awful fourth quarter generated the usual result. The Bombers rallied from a tie at the three-quarter mark to take the 36-23 win — their twelfth straight over Edmonton.
Here are my thoughts on the game.
Growth game
Let me get this out of the way early: there are no more moral victories. The fact that fans of the Double E have endured starting seasons a collective 0-22 since 2022 puts that concept long behind us.
There are parts of the team that took steps forward in this one but there were just as many trip and fall on your face moments. I am reverting to calling these growth games — or step back games, in some instances. Some bright lights surrounded by lingering dark clouds.
Defensive swings
Edmonton’s defence has been the most puzzling thing for me so far this season. For the third straight game, they gave up over 400 yards in total offence. This was the lauded upgraded unit from free agency, but the front four continues to have trouble getting much pressure.
Without the pressure up front, the secondary continues to struggle. Some incredible accuracy from Zach Collaros didn’t help matters. Devodric Bynum and newcomer Chelen Garnes had good coverage on catches by Keric Wheatfall and Nic Demski, respectively, but both went for long touchdowns. Those two explosive plays may have cost them the game, though they were only 112 yards of the 334 passing yards given up.
Collaros spread the ball around, with six receivers in double digits. The 10-20 yard pass seemed to be inevitable each time the Elks tried to rush. I am not seeing the knockdowns that are needed; there is too much confusion. Not a single interception yet either. I am not sure what the fix is for the secondary, but J.C. Sherritt has quite the project ahead of him.
Jake Ceresna had his best game since his return to the Elks. His first sack of the season came in the third quarter when he looked to be his unstoppable self. The six-year veteran was in the backfield a lot. He had said this week that the line needed to produce, and he was leading the charge. Both Robbie Smith and Brandon Barlow need to take cues from that work and get into their zone.
Turning points
There are certain plays that, as you see them, you realize have doomed the team that made the mistake. I saw four in this game that turned the tide on the Elks.
The obvious ones are the drop in the end zone by Kaion Julien-Grant and the fumble by Justin Rankin. Both took potential points off the board and were demoralizing in their timing. KJG did make up for his with a big touchdown in the third, but you can’t take away opportunities to score when you’re playing the Bombers.
The third one was the roughing the passer call against Jonathan Kongbo with 11 minutes left in the game. A deep middle pass from Collaros to Jerreth Sterns was knocked down on the play, almost intercepted by Royce Metchie — his best play of the year to this point. The flag came down as Kongbo slapped Collaros’ helmet after getting home on a stunt. It was the right call, I’m not arguing that. The timing was just awful. It would have been second down on the Bombers’ 37 but turned into a first down at the 52.
The fourth one was not as obvious. Down 10 points with five minutes left in the game, Tre Ford threw two long shots from his own 30-yard line and missed both. It looked like a panic move to me. Time was still available to march down the field. At the very least, give your defence a moment to catch their breath.
Winnipeg is a good team. You can get away with one, possibly two, of these mistakes, but four is unrecoverable.
Stationary Ford
I did see a lot of growth from Tre Ford in this game. This was a step forward compared to last year’s Week 16 game against Winnipeg, where he was buried by a linebacker spy and could only muster 131 yards passing. The Waterloo product was patient in the pocket and threw some darts to get to 252 yards overall, one touchdown and no interceptions.
There were longer drives where he took the passes that were there instead of trying to force things. When he needed to move, he did and kept looking down the field. There were a couple of times that I thought we might see some Ford magic. But a 62 percent completion rate does not win you games against a five-time Grey Cup participant. As mentioned, forcing the ball downfield late didn’t do the team any favours either. I’m not sure if that was offensive coordinator Jordan Maksymic’s call or Ford’s on the fly.
I like that Ford is learning to stand in and throw at this level. The thing I don’t get is why you wouldn’t at least take a shot at using his other big weapon: his feet. Only six yards rushing in this game seems like a printing error. The Bombers are very good at stopping the run, but I have to think that Ford’s dynamic speed means he can’t be stopped every time. Not having a balanced attack made it hard to excel late in the game.
Special teams can be special
After a tough first game, Vincent Blanchard has not missed a field goal or conversion in the two games since. The second-year kicker from Laval hit all three field goals outside of 40 yards. It still can be an adventure, sneaking just inside the posts, but each has been in. Head coach Mark Kilam knows good kickers.
Javon Leake was noticeable on returns with a 31-yard average and seemed to be doing more north-south running. Cody Grace had one short punt, but the other seven were towering kicks that gave the cover team a lot of time to get into positions. I can’t remember the last time I said that special teams was the most consistent phase of the team, but here we are.
Edmonton gets a bit of a break now as they don’t play again for 10 days. Ottawa comes to Play Alberta Field at Commonwealth Stadium on Sunday, July 6. I’m hoping they go beyond a growth game to a winning one.
