The Bombers beat Montreal on Saturday, but at what cost?

Leading into the game, I said that the Bombers would have a couple of goals, “In all probability, this game will have two goals for each team. First, get players meaningful reps heading into the playoffs – though that will look different for both teams. Second, escape the game as healthy as possible heading into the playoffs.” Unfortunately, for the Bombers, it did not play out that way.

Very early in the game, Chris Streveler, was injured on a non-contact play. And unlike your typical person that reports on sports, talks about an injury, and then says, ‘I don’t want to speculate,’ after they just speculated…I will speculate. It looked like Streveler injured his left knee.

I would be shocked if we see Streveler play again this year. However, in 2019 Streveler played hurt in the post season. In fact in 2019 at the Grey Cup Social in Winnipeg, after Winnipeg broke their Grey Cup drought, Streveler was seen standing, without any sign of pain and signing many autographs. (He may also have been seen pounding many beers, to which I surmised that maybe beer should considered a legal pain killer in the CFL. Because to see Streveler standing fine at that point was inconceivable.)

If you did not get a proper look at the injury, you can see it here with just over 10 minutes left in the 1st quarter.

You can clearly see that there is an issue with his leg, or knee before he is hit. And reports from CJOB are that while Streveler was in the injury tent, there was one colourful word being used over and over again.

Here is what Strevler had to say on Instgram on Sunday, ““Been trying to wrap my mind around what happened yesterday and the road ahead. All I know is this: I have no regrets. About the way I carried myself as a teammate & leader day in and day out. About how I worked everyday to get better. About how I treated everyone around me. I never cheated the process and laid it on the line every single time I stepped on the field. I’m not sure what the future looks like, but l’m confident there’s better things waiting for me on the other side of this recovery. I hope that my journey and mindset can inspire others to persevere through adversity just like | have done, and will continue to do. Thank you, as always, for all the support and everyone that reached out, it means more than you know.”

The Wilson Watch
As a result, Bomber fans got to see a lot of Wilson. And what we saw was not great.

If anyone was impressed with Wilson, I need to wonder, “What game were you watching?” Wilson had a nice play here and there, but nothing that I would call ‘impressive.’ And certainly his overall performance could not be considered ‘impressive.’ Was he horrible? Yes, at times he was. His first pass attempt was brutal. He threw at least 3 more balls that in any other game get intercepted. I do not blame the Bombers for playing him the rest of the game and not playing Chase Artopoeus. As the Bombers head to the playoffs, if Collaros has to come out of the game, Wilson will be gong in. Wilson simply needed the reps.

Coaching Mistake Compound
One of the reasons that the Bombers had to play Wilson all game, and still have not look at Chase Artopoeus is due to coaching mistakes earlier this year. Wilson should have absolutely got more live reps this year, and arguably should have started a game. Bombers’ Quarterback Woes Grow As Streveler Is Taking 1st Team Reps Even After His Last Game. This begs the question again, “Should The Bombers Sign QB Cameron Dukes?“

Final Thoughts
Outside of the Streveler injury, the Bombers accomplished what they wanted to. First, they did not appear to sustain any other injuries. Secondly, they may have found a few players that can help them win. Michael Chris-Ike had a long run of 63 yards, through a small gap…and looked quick. Thirdly, the Bombers wanted to find out if they could win a game without Collaros. The answer appears to be a resounding, ‘No way!’ That is unless the Bombers have a very run heavy game…which again speaks to the vale of seeing Michael Chris-Ike being able to rip off a long run. We will have more questions; and hopefully some answers as we approach the Easter-Semi Final where the Bombers will take on Montreal once again. However, this time, Montreal will be starting quarterback Alexander…but they may also have a few guys banged up from this last game against Winnipeg.

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