Thomas Skrlj/CFL.ca
Hello, Andrew Peirson.
Nice little cut on a crossing route, find the soft spot in the zone and sit down in it. Soft, cradling hands to make the reception and a first down celly that looked just like a receiver’s, not an offensive lineman’s.
They say there’s nothing like a big man touchdown but I dunno, a disciplined route and a second down conversion catch seems pretty sweet too.
Here are this week’s takeaways.
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PUT THE TEAM ON HIS SHOULDERS AND A MOP IN HIS HANDS
Way back at the end of June, with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers struggling off to an 0-3 start, running back Brady Oliveira practically begged the team to let him carry them out of their doldrums.
They didn’t, immediately, and the Bombers would lose another one to fall to 0-4 before getting their first win of the season, over Ottawa, with Oliveira rushing 23 times for 129 yards against the REDBLACKS.
Since then, and for the most part, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ offence has been piggy-backed by the 27-year-old star, who did it again in Week 18 with 24 lugs for 147 yards and a touchdown in the Bombers’ win over Hamilton.
Over the course of Winnipeg’s eight game winning streak, Oliveira has rushed 126 times for 743 yards and with a league-leading total of 1,254 yards over the course of the season – and with big efforts getting bigger as the schedule drains he’s emerged, in my opinion, as the front runner for Most Outstanding Player.
“Terrific,” said Winnipeg coach Mike O’Shea of Oliveira’s efforts on Friday night. “Certainly, once again, helped out the entire team.”
In Week 18, Brady Oliveira turned things up to 10 on the ol’ performance meter. Can he go to 11?
THE CLUBHOUSE LEADER HAS HAD A TERRIFIC BACK NINE SO FAR AND HE JUST BIRDIED THE 15TH
Who else but Rolan Milligan Jr.?!
A league-leading eighth interception for the @sskroughriders defensive back.#CFLGameDay LIVE on @TSN_Sports
📱: Stream on CFL+ pic.twitter.com/lY61dyBXRO— CFL (@CFL) October 6, 2024
Rolan Milligan Jr.’s performance in his 15th game of the season fired up the hype-o-meter on the 30-year-old Saskatchewan Roughriders veteran.
Four more tackles for Milligan and an interception to boot, his league-leading eighth of the year.
Glancing back at my Week 10 takeaways, I pointed out that we were on course for a rarity to occur; for a defensive back to win the Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award.
Milligan was the clubhouse leader at the halfway mark of the season, though you’d have found plenty of support for Montreal linebacker Tyrice Beverette at the time, as you will now. And now, there’s more company with names like Darnell Sankey, Nick Anderson and Nyles Morgan legitimately in the mix.
Only once has a defensive back ever won the MODP (Winnipeg’s Jovon Johnson in 2011) but Milligan’s work in the secondary in 2024 has continually kept him in the conversation for the prize and in his 15th game of the season, his performance got him even closer to being named the second.
ALL THAT’S LEFT TO DO IS TO DO WHAT REMAINS TO BE DONE
With Week 18 finals in the books, a lot of the CFL playoff math is complete, at least as far as selecting the six post-season combatants goes.
For the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, one lone possibility remains for a spot and that is somehow grabbing third place in the East.
With two games remaining, Hamilton has to hope the Toronto Argonauts fail to get a single point in the standings over their last three, and the Cats win out. It’s possible. But probable? Doesn’t matter, according to Ticats’ QB Bo Levi Mitchell. All his team can do is take care of their end.
“What is in our hands is the way we attack these next two weeks after the bye week,” said Mitchell following Hamilton’s 31-10 loss to Winnipeg. “And I can promise you we’re gonna come out with the victories.”
“Hopefully, the dream’s not over,” head coach Scott Milanovich told reporters.
The Ticats play at home against Calgary in Week 20, and finish on the road, in Ottawa, the following week. The Argos go to Winnipeg this week, and close with a home game against the REDBLACKS and then a roadie in Edmonton.
IT’S SIMPLE. SIMPLY PUT, HE’S A SIMPLIFIER
After a win over the Calgary Stampeders – joined with mathematical connections to losses by Hamilton and Edmonton – the BC Lions get an X beside them in the standings and a spot in the playoffs. There is still the matter of attempting to secure home field advantage for the Western-Semi and that means this week’s game against the Roughriders, in Regina, is gargantuan.
Defensive back/SAM T.J. Lee – who helped key the Lions’ Week 18 win by knocking down a lateral pass, scooping up the ball and racing to the end zone for a major – told reporters that he and his mates just need to keep things uncomplicated.
“If we win, and we win, and we win, and we win, we’re champions,” said Lee. “Simplify”
“I’m a simplifier.”
Okay, his equation actually needs one more win in there but the point he’s making is perfectly clear.
BONUS TAKEAWAY: Lee’s post-game media conference is pretty terrific all the way through. Have a look at it if you get the chance. “I really don’t have any hate on my plate” was a gem he dropped, after being asked about this week’s game in Regina. “It wastes my energy to just hate. So, I want them to be at their best, I want us to be at our best, and let’s clash. Let the best team win.”
BONUS BONUS TAKEAWAY: They’re happy to get the win, but BC head coach Rick Campbell tells you he has concerns with the offence with one quick reply. Asked to size up the unit’s performance against Calgary, Campbell answered “meh.”
2025 TRAINING CAMP DOES NOT, IN FACT, START RIGHT NOW FOR THEM
With the Calgary Stampeders eliminated from playoff contention after a 32-15 loss to the BC Lions, you might figure the team could use its final three games of the season to get a jump on player evaluation for next season.
Tossing in a bunch of inexperienced, young players for a look-see against teams that are still playing for something is a pretty good way to measure them, looking ahead to the next campaign.
And Stampeders’ head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson might opt to go that route as he spies games against Hamilton and Saskatchewan among the three games left on the schedule.
But as of the moments following his team’s loss in Vancouver, he’s not thinking that way.
“We’re still gonna try to win,” said Dickenson. “Whatever the best roster we can put out there to do that, that’s what’s gonna happen.”
This week, the Stamps play host to Edmonton with a chance to leapfrog the also-eliminated Elks in the West Division standings.
AND FINALLY… Thinking the Lions might pull a switcheroo and try Vernon Adams Jr. for a start? Doesn’t look like it. “He plays well enough to win,” said Rick Campbell about Nathan Rourke.
