Winnipeg Blue Bombers face tough test against high-flying Alouettes

Brady Oliveira remains a steadfast believer in the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

Despite an uneven first half of the season and struggling offence, the veteran star running back says it’s what happens behind closed doors that gives him confidence.

“I get to witness that with my own eyes,” Oliveira said following Thursday’s walk-through practice. “That’s what I appreciate most about this group, is when our backs are against the wall, they just continue to show up and have my back and everyone’s back in the building.”

That’s a good sign for the Bombers (5-5), who will face their toughest test yet in a Week 13 matchup with the CFL-leading Montreal Alouettes (9-1) Friday night.

Last week’s disappointing loss to the Edmonton Elks, which included blowing a 16-0 lead, was the club’s third defeat in four games. The Bombers had their best effort of the season through the first half, followed by arguably their worst performance in the final 30 minutes.

Story continues below advertisement

Winnipeg is in fourth place in the West Division, ahead of only the 4-6 Calgary Stampeders. The B.C. Lions are in third with the same 5-5 record, earning the tiebreaker with a better point differential, with the Elks (8-3) leading the pack and the Saskatchewan Roughriders (6-4) in second.

Given their poor play, many fans have started to write the Bombers off as a legitimate Grey Cup threat.

Get breaking National news

Get breaking Canada news delivered to your inbox as it happens so you won't miss a trending story.

“There’s always going to be outside noise,” Oliveira said, noting it’s difficult to hide from social media critics. “It’s very easy to see the naysayers – the non-believers – and what they think about the Winnipeg Blue Bombers this year. But right now, we just got to really have faith and believe in ourselves.”

Winnipeg’s offence needs the most help, as they sit in the league’s bottom-third for points, total yards and first downs. The passing attack averages 80 fewer yards per game compared to Montreal’s 344.

That leaves Winnipeg with little margin for error.

“We shouldn’t be looking for a larger margin for error,” Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea said. “Nobody plays a perfect game, but you should be looking to play better and better every week and we should be looking to play as tight, as clean a game as possible. When you play a team like Montreal, you got to play better than you’re playing.”

Story continues below advertisement

The Alouettes are riding a seven-game win streak. Unlike Winnipeg, Montreal’s offence is rolling, led my quarterback and MOP front-runner Davis Alexander.

Alexander paces the league with 3,400 passing yards and a 124.5 efficiency rating over 10 starts. He’s complemented by a solid run game, led by tailback Travis Theis, who is averaging 104 yards over the last six games.

While this is Alexander’s first regular-season start against Winnipeg, the 27-year-old defeated the Bombers 42-33 in last year’s East Division semifinal, ending their streak of five consecutive Grey Cup appearances.

“That was a heck of a game and they came back on us and we really had to battle,” Alexander said. “As for the first regular season game, that’s kind of been the story of my career so far. I haven’t started against B.C. yet and only had my first start against Calgary earlier this season. But, honestly, we’re more concerned about ourselves. That’s why you hear a lot of guys around here talking about faceless opponents.”

Alexander boasts an impressive 20-1 regular-season record, including a perfect 14-0 against the East Division, and has thrown for at least 300 passing yards in eight of the last 10 games. He faces a Winnipeg defence averaging the fewest passing yards (269) and the lowest completion percentage (66) in the league.

“They play a different kind of coverage than what a lot of teams do. A lot of teams try to mimic their coverages as a kind of a curveball,” Alexander said. “You can tell (defensive co-ordinator) Jordan Younger has his hands all over that system and knows how to plug in guys.”

Story continues below advertisement

Montreal can clinch a playoff spot this week with a win and a Hamilton loss to Calgary. Montreal cannot finish any lower than third in the East Division.

Head coach Jason Maas understands his team has a target on its back, he just doesn’t pay it any attention.

“We have a huge expectation in our locker room and we have not been shy about our stated goal of the year, which is to win the ninth Grey Cup for this organization,” Maas said. “That alone puts a target on your back. Saying you’re going to win every week puts a target on your back. I couldn’t care less. That’s our belief, and we’re working extremely hard to achieve that every day.”