Cody Fajardo called the Winnipeg Blue Bombers the “benchmark” in the CHL for the past few years. He obviously knew what he was talking about.
Facing their first real challenge of the season, the Alouettes were outplayed from start to finish to fall 17-3 on a wet July 1st.
It was an evening of firsts, in a bad way. The Alouettes’ defense started the game with a zero in the touchdowns allowed column. On their second possession, the Bombers found the end zone, on a pass from Zach Collaros to Drew Wolitarsky.
Alouettes quarterback Cody Fajardo had yet to throw an interception. His unbeaten streak will have lasted 10 quarters; midway through the third quarter, his pass to the goal gate was caught by enemy hands from Brandon Alexander, and returned to 62 yards. This interception particularly hurt the Montrealers, who had just managed a gain of 69 yards on a pass captured by Kaion Julien-Grant, one of the few lights of the Alouettes in this duel.
These games led to the other first of this season, the Alouettes’ first loss of the 2023 campaign.
“This interception was terrible on my part, hammered Fajardo, in a press briefing. We also lost a ball during a good sequence. We let too many good opportunities slip away. »
This match concluded what Fajardo called a “weird” week. The possible distant cousin of Pierre indeed recalled that the team had suffered several injuries during the week of preparation, an unusual fact.
The Alouettes indeed played this game despite an injury list worthy of the Canadiens of the past two years. Defensive back Ciante Evans, linebacker Avery Williams, cornerback Dionte Ruffin and offensive lineman Pier-Olivier Lestage were the newest additions to the infirmary.
The absence of Lestage weakened an already porous offensive line. The Bombers had five sacks, and a number of offensive plays went awry due to too much pressure on Fajardo.
On defense, Williams was replaced by Bryce Notree, who was in his very first game in the professional ranks, at the crucial position of linebacker. Number 44 missed a few key tackles that gave the Manitobans long wins.
Still in the bizarre elements, Fajardo indicated that the headphones through which he receives the instructions did not work during the first sequence. The Alouettes still managed a decent offensive push, but kicker David Côté missed his field goal by 43 yards.
Finally, the rain reappeared from the third quarter, and as soon as the first drops fell, Alouettes running back William Stanback lost the ball, in the middle of a streak that looked promising. Stanback is slow to regain his sunny days and this sequence will not help him.
” That’s not an excuse. It was a little wet, but I have to keep the ball, I can’t lose it,” Stanback said.
We could have added that the rain was also falling for the Blue Bombers, who did not seem disconcerted. These same Bombers had also suffered a 30-6 beating last week at the hands of the BC Lions.
When you’re the “standard” in a league, you rarely get two in a row. And we do not let ourselves be disturbed by external elements.
The game started more than 90 minutes late due to thunderstorms battering Montreal. When he started, he was expected to remain at best half of the announced 15,088 spectators. The generous downpour that dampened the Percival-Molson stadium caused another part to flee.
The Canadian League tried to speed up the game by cutting halftime to 10 minutes. The dance performance scheduled there was also cancelled. And the poor singer of the national anthem was replaced by a recording without words. In a scene reminiscent of a glorious Thursday night at Astral 2000, spectators spontaneously sang O Canada. You had to be there to understand.
He was targeted six times and caught every pass, sometimes showing great athleticism. With 129 yards in this game, he remains the Alouettes’ revelation at the start of the season.
The unit continues to search for itself, as evidenced by the 15 sacks awarded after three games.
The number of yards rushed by Bombers running back Brady Oliveira on 20 carries. The Alouettes’ defensive front was unable to contain him.
