Bombers Dealing With ‘What If’

VANCOUVER – Nick Demski sat slumped in his locker, staring off into space.

“It sucks,” the Winnipeg Blue Bombers slotback said in a voice barely above a whisper.

Big offensive lineman Patrick Neufeld heaved a deep sigh.

“It’s awful, devastating,” he said, running a hand through his thick beard.

Head coach Mike O’Shea tried to explain the raw emotions his team was feeling after losing their third consecutive Grey Cup game Sunday. 

“They all have their space to be terrible,” said O’Shea. “It will keep building and building to a point where it’s awful.”

It’s going to be another long, cold winter in Winnipeg. The forecast is for soul searching and plenty of questions.

A heavily favoured Blue Bombers team lost 41-24 to the Toronto Argonauts at B.C. Place Stadium. It was the second time in three years the Bombers lost the CFL championship to an underdog Argonaut team. They were also upset 28-24 by the Montreal Alouettes last year.

Losing doesn’t get any easier the more it happens.

The Bombers have earned the Trifecta no one wants to claim.

“I’m probably more disappointed than anything,” said Neufeld, trying to explain his emotions. “The last couple of years is anger and sadness. I guess this is disappointment.

“We’re getting a full gamut of negative emotions here.”

The game was closer than the score indicated. Winnipeg led 10-9 at half time. Toronto held a slim 17-13 lead heading into the fourth quarter.  

Late in the third quarter, Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros needed stitches to repair a cut on the index finger of his throwing hand. He returned to the field in the fourth wearing a glove and threw three interceptions.

“It’s not an excuse for our performance tonight,” said Collaros, who finished the night completing 15 of 30 passes for 202 yards, no touchdowns and four interceptions.

“I’m obviously disappointed. Things just kind of snowballed from there. It was just a tough situation.”

O’Shea said Collaros would not have returned to play if it had been a regular season game.

Collaros was asked about next season.

“We’ll take a deep breath and just kind of let this digest a bit,” said the 36-year-old, two-time most outstanding player.

A gruesome leg injury suffered by quarterback Chad Kelly in last week’s East Final against Montreal forced Toronto to start journeyman backup Nick Arbuckle against Winnipeg.

Arbuckle, who was close to quitting football last spring, completed 26 of 37 passes for 252 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He was named the game’s most valuable player.

“They did a good job of what they did,” said Demski. “They made it simple for him and their defence came out with a chip on their shoulder. They knew they had a big task to stop us, and they did a good job.”

Something the Bombers have to think about over the winter is the chances they had but couldn’t convert. Defensive end Willie Jefferson had an interception that set up Winnipeg deep in Toronto territory but the best the Bombers could manage was a field goal.

The Bombers blocked a Toronto punt, but the Argos still got a first down because of a penalty.

Jefferson said the game swung in the second half when Winnipeg was outscored 32-14.

“They were able to capitalize on their opportunities,” said Jefferson, who had six tackles and two sacks. “We had takeaways, we just couldn’t put the ball in the end zone.”

It was the eighth time the Bombers and Argonauts played in the Grey Cup. Toronto has won all eight, outscoring Winnipeg 185-72.

It was a roller-coaster season for the Bombers. They lost six of their first eight games before winning nine of their last 10. The lone loss was 14-11 to Toronto. 

The Bombers finished first in the West with an 11-7-0 record and advanced to their fifth consecutive Grey Cup with a convincing 38-22 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

The Bombers won their first Grey Cup in 29 years by upsetting Hamilton 33-12 in 2019. They needed overtime to beat the Tiger-Cats 33-25 in 2021. Winnipeg would then be upset 24-23 by the Argonauts in 2022 before losing to Montreal last year.

“We had a tough year,” said Neufeld. “We went through a lot as a team. We felt this game we were going to be in a good place.

“We just didn’t play well. When you don’t play well on Grey Cup Sunday, you’re going to lose. That’s what happened.”

(CP)