Is This the Game?

Pigseye…I used to laugh when you would post about the Toronto conspiracy & the 100th Grey Cup, but after lastnight it sure looked like you might be on to something!
How many times did the D stop Toronto on that opening drive, only to have the drive continued by phantom penalties? The game was decided on that opening drive.

You can’t be serious.

Yeah, that and the refs must also have told Ball to step in front of that pass and take it to the house. And they must also have told Wpg’s snapper to miss Elliott with a snap, and Elliott to make a lazy effort at grabbing the ball while it skittered along the ground. And they must also have told Toronto’s DBs where to stand in the end zone so they could intercept three passes there.

Try reading my post again, not one of the things you mentioned happened on the OPENING DRIVE :roll:

No one can honestly say that WPG wasn’t jobbed on that drive. Not one.

...the refs also control the Winnipeg sports media

I agree, letting Buck play is just getting too scary, whether the hits are legal or not.

And what’s the syndrome with QBs who look like superstars in one game and never again? Elliott against Hamilton; Dinwiddie against Calgary a few years back (remember how one Bomber fan wanted to start a DOO WAH DIDDY chant after that one?); Porter against Montreal, for another guy who’s regressed; it goes on.

There’s probably a culture to fix here as well as a roster to overhaul, and it will take time. What’s the betting the Ottawa ReRuns will get their first win against us?

I read it. You said the game was decided on the opening drive. So that means nothing that happened in the next 52 minutes affected the outcome? Really?

Whether they were or weren’t, there were 52 minutes left in the game and they were down by one score. To suggest that the game was lost because of officials’ calls on that drive is to suggest the Bombers are an incredibly weak and character-less team that was incapable of overcoming a 7-0 deficit with 3 1/2 quarters left – a scathing indictment, I’d say.

That’s just it. this is a team that is mentally fragile, most teams are when they are in last place (in any league). The team showed up to start, held TO a few times on that opening drive, onlt to see it continue due to phantom penalties. They did all they could and yet still gave up 7. That’s going to be kind of deflating don’t you think?

Because major fouls always get applied, regardless of what else happened on the play. If they could be waved off, guys would be able to take a free shot at someone.
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Thanks. OK, I get that they will always walk off a major foul. But if the offensive team is in an improper formation before the snap, I don’t understand why that’s not whistled immediately like a procedure call? Why are they allowed to get a play off in that instance to begin with when its just going to come back anyways, unless there is another penalty as in this case.

Deflating? Yes. Fatal? I don’t see why it should be. Virtually the same thing happened to Toronto last week – the Als were stopped early on their opening possession but it continued thanks to a completely phantom facemask call (against Ball), and they ended up scoring a TD. The Argos went on to lose but there is no way I would suggest they lost because of that opening possession. Now mind you, they are not in last place and I guess not as fragile as the Bombers apparently are. I guess if I was a fan and felt my team was so mentally fragile that it could not handle a couple of questionable calls on the opening possession of the game, I’d spend my time criticizing or worrying about my team and not blaming their demise on the refs. There were a lot of other things in the game that would make the Bombers more likely to implode than those early penalty calls, IMO.

The match doesn’t ever get near the dynamite, but it ignites the fuse!

I think it’s clear the team is fragile; most of the blowouts got out of control early. This time it was penalties, against Calgary it was Huf’s call for a fake field goal early on, but this team doesn’t seem to have the moxie to overcome an early setback (granted we don’t know how Buck might have done if he could have played the second half, but that’s a different issue for a different thread). If there are really are guys in the room who don’t care about winning, as Simpson is apparently saying, it won’t take much for them to switch off the effort and sabotage everything else. Time for a housecleaning.

There were some positives from last game. The D had a bad first half, basically a bad first quarter giving up 2 TDs. To their credit they fought back and shut Toronto down to only 8 points in last 3 quarters, 5 second half points. There were more guys playing hard versus Toronto than we saw in the blowouts in Regina and Calgary for sure, especially on D. Really, their play gave the team a chance to win. Buck rebounded after the bad pick 6 and found Edwards for that TD. The offense was what let down the team in the 2nd half. Elliott made his dink and dunk throws, well most of them since he did miss a few open receivers, when Toronto played a soft zone in the 2nd half. When it came time to put up points Elliott threw 3 balls right into the arms of Toronto backs. Just think how the momentum of that game shifts if he converts 1 or 2 of those chances? That's why it was disturbing to me watching his comments on the freepress video where he basically blamed the bad first half and the playcalling. It was his 3 bad decisions that cost this team 21 points and a chance to come back for a victory.

Simpson is right. There look to be guys in that locker room that have quit or don't have the same level of desire to win. I think there were fewer of those guys last game, but I honestly believe Elliott is one of them. Simpson played with and credits Peyton Manning for the way he learns the playbook and his effort and drive. How do you think he feels watching Elliott's demeanor, the guy who has been tabbed to lead the offense without Buck? Maybe this is just my anti Elliott bias that I've built up but who else on offense would you guess? Matthews was doing the little things and throwing blocks when he wasn't getting the ball which isn't something you see a guy do who's packed it in. Watson has struggled holding onto the ball in 2 of the last 3 games but he's still been physical. Poblah? Edwards? Denmark? Maybe some of the receivers are taking plays off that the casual observer wouldn't notice. Oline? Maybe someone younger on the line like Greaves but you'd thing that a guy like January would keep him in line. That's one of the few places there is a veteran mentor. I'd be hard pressed to find a guy on defense that didn't play hard against Toronto, though something still feels off with Johnson. But Sears, muamba, suber, hefney, bowman all played and hit hard. I'm sure I'm missing something, but an effort like that on D would lead to a few more wins if only the offense delivered.

The only positive for this franchise, would be a Grey Cup! Anything else is window dressing and we are at 3 - 10. We can’t even have the ’ we were so close " talk in Winnipeg.

I don’t necessarily disagree with that. Though I think building a team that can compete year in and year out for one of the top 2 spots in the division like MTL has done for years would be a positive also IMO as that would lead to more regular shots at the Grey Cup. Or maybe I’m just grasping at straws. Or maybe I’m just dreading the thought of them scrapping the lot and starting over yet again. That would mean new players, most of which will likely be young and inexperienced, plus new coaches, new system, another season of losing or treading water. I’m getting tired of the start over carousel. I’m hoping to find some positives, some players that can be built on rather than watch another blow up, get rid of the vets or, depending on who is the GM, sign a bunch of FA vets and retreads to oversized contracts.

Good game tonight, some big hits. I thought Buck threw the ball better than I've seen in awhile. I was impressed with the recievers at first, but it was clearly the RB's night. Brink looks so confident in those short yardage plays. I just wish we can get him one more start this year. Suber got beat alot today, secondary all around gave up too many big plays. I thought Washington did alright, his returns in the first sure made a statement.

So anyways: Is next Saturday the Game? I mean we are playing the Tabbies..... :stuck_out_tongue:

Ford was the one who impressed me the most. .. that guy's got some serious acceleration.

Ford and Simpson together can be quite the force going forward. Sadly I don’t see anyway Chris Garrett can make this team next year.