Stamps no longer intimidate

CALGARY – There was a time not long ago when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers dreaded playing the Calgary Stampeders.

It was only a few years back that the Stamps were universally considered the class of the CFL, having made it to three consecutive Grey Cups between 2016 and 2018. Calgary also used to routinely – sometimes effortlessly – beat Winnipeg whenever the two teams met.

Fast-forward to the present day and the cleat is firmly on the other foot. It’s now the Bombers who have become the standard across the nine-team league, having played in the last three Grey Cups and finishing atop the West Division standings the last two years.

Winnipeg has won the last four games against Calgary, including a 24-11 triumph at home in Week 5, and eight of the previous 10. And while the Bombers are currently looking down at their opponents in the standings, at 7-2, the Stamps are ahead of just the winless Edmonton Elks in the West, boasting a dismal record of 3-6 at the midway point of the regular season.

But count out the Stamps at your own peril. When the two clubs meet at McMahon Stadium Friday night, for what surely will be a spirited affair, none of what happened before will matter.

“They’re a very well-coached, good football team and have been for a long, long time. That has not changed,” Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said Thursday, just moments after arriving in Calgary. “The outcomes of the games, for us, they’re kind of irrelevant. You look at the play on the field, they play hard, they’re tough, they’re smart, so it’s always tough.”

To get you better ready for kickoff, let’s dig a little bit deeper into this one in the latest edition of 5 Storylines.

BEST IN THE WEST

As O’Shea said, the Bombers certainly aren’t taking their opponent lightly, fully understanding that Calgary, while struggling, is viewing the game as a potential catalyst to get back into the playoff picture. The Stamps are currently fourth place in the West, two points back of the Saskatchewan Roughriders (4-5) the third and final playoff spot.

Meanwhile, if Winnipeg plans to continue its run as the best in the West, it will have to keep pace with the B.C. Lions, who have an identical record and are tied with the Blue and Gold in the season series at one game apiece. Dropping a game to the struggling Stamps would seriously harm that pursuit; a victory, though, would create even more breathing room between the two.

There’s no doubt recent history has favoured Winnipeg, and Calgary is once again being billed as the underdog in this match despite playing at home. But there’s something about those pesky Stamps when playing the Bombers at McMahon Stadium; in the last four games, they’ve won three times, with Winnipeg winning just twice on Calgary’s turf in the last nine visits dating back to the 2015 campaign.

THE DRU BROWN SHOW

The Bombers will look to Dru Brown to take over the controls on offence, in what will be the 26-year-old’s first start of the season and just his second since signing a CFL contract with Winnipeg in 2020.

Brown replaces some big cleats left behind by Zach Collaros, who is nursing a neck injury that he sustained early in last week’s win over the Edmonton Elks. Collaros is listed third on the club’s depth chart and has made the trip to Calgary, but he won’t be dressed and instead will play a supporting role from the sideline.

The Bombers have all the confidence in the world in Brown, and with a similar stature and skillset to that of Collaros, Winnipeg won’t have to adjust much, if at all, when it comes to the playbook. Brown is also coming off a phenomenal performance against the Elks, when he helped orchestrate a comeback down 22-0, throwing for more than 300 yards and four touchdowns.

Brown takes the game of football incredibly seriously and he understands the opportunity that is in front of him, especially as a pending free agent. With Collaros expected to be back sooner than later, including as early as next week, how Brown performs right now could very well determine his future in the three-down game.

MAIER STRUGGLING IN COWTOWN

There’s no point in sugar coating, it’s been a rough year for Stamps QB Jake Maier. It’s a troubling sign for Calgary, especially when you consider it’s the first season with the 26-year-old as the team’s undisputed starter after they said goodbye to Bo Levi Mitchell at the end of last season.

So far, the decision to stick with Maier hasn’t exactly panned out. He has the worst completion percentage among all current starting QBs, at 63 per cent, as well the lowest passer efficiency rating, with a mark of 78.7. By comparison, Collaros’ passer efficiency rating is nearly double, at 114.9, second to only Toronto’s Chad Kelly, who leads the CFL at 120.2.

The injury bug has bit the Stamps hard on offence, including the loss of No. 1 receiver Malik Henry to a season-ending Achilles injury. They were without Reggie Begelton for a couple games, as well as all-star running back Ka’Deem Carey, who returned last week from a stint on the six-game injured list.

Calgary has tried to fill some of the holes, including signing speedy receiver Marken Michel, who returned to the Stamps following a couple years in the NFL, as well Markeith Ambles, another familiar veteran to the organization. But whether it’s questionable play calling, a leaky offensive line, a lack of confidence or a mixture of all three, things just haven’t clicked with Maier.

It might be a bit too premature to suggest it right now, but if Maier can’t find his groove sooner than later, he’s setting up to be the next up-and-coming star to fizzle out. There’s no doubt he’s playing for his future as a starter in the CFL.

STRONG D DOWN THE STRETCH

With the Bombers at the midway mark of the regular season, coaches and players were asked earlier this week to give their evaluation on what they’ve seen so far. To a man, the reports were mostly positive, with one small caveat: there’s always room to improve.

That sentiment seemed to resonate a little extra with the defence, a unit that has played well this season but hasn’t been the dominant force fans have been accustomed to seeing in recent years. Middle linebacker Adam Bighill said he doesn’t believe the defence has played a full game this season, adding they’ve had good stretches but just haven’t been able to put things together for a full four quarters.

Last week left a bad taste in their mouths, fronting the lowly Elks a 22-point head start, including a 65-yard rushing touchdown on Edmonton’s first offensive play. Limiting the run has been a bit of a sore spot this season, with the Bombers ranked in the middle of the pack in rushing yards allowed per game, with an average of 100, and a league-worst average of six yards per run attempt.

Winnipeg will have its hands full trying to shut down a formidable running back duo of Carey and Dedrick Mills. They’d be wise to take a page out of B.C.’s book from last week, when the Lions were able to gain an early 17-0 lead, essentially forcing the Stamps to beat them through the air instead of the ground, en route to a convincing 37-9 victory.

THE LAWLER EFFECT

It’s become a ritual in Bomberland to openly wonder just what all-star receiver Kenny Lawler will do each week.

In three games this season, he has 16 receptions for 342 yards, including a 200-yard performance against a stingy Lions defence in his second game, as well as a pair of touchdowns, the most recent being the game-winning score against the Elks early in the fourth quarter. It just seems like every week Lawler is finding new ways to dazzle fans and give his team a shot to win.

There’s been a few interesting stats floated out by the league this week regarding Winnipeg’s offence. The Bombers are riding a two-game streak where they’ve thrown at least four TD passes, something the franchise has never done three games in a row. The offence is also on a four-game run where they’ve thrown for at least 300 passing yards, matching their longest streak in 29 years.

It comes as no surprise that those marks coincide with Lawler’s return to the lineup. But as good as Lawler has been, he’s also brought the best out of his teammates, with receivers Nic Demski and Dalton Schoen combining for 462 receiving yards and six TDs over the last three games.

With Calgary’s secondary among the weakest parts of the defence, it could very well be a record-setting day for Winnipeg’s air attack.

[email protected]

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton