WINNIPEG - This time, quarterback Michael Bishop wanted to be sure his Blue Bombers didn't squander their chances.
Bishop did his part, throwing for a season-high 411 yards and two
touchdowns as Winnipeg (7-9) kept its playoff hopes alive with a 41-24
win over the Montreal Alouettes (13-3) Saturday.
"We had some great opportunities today, we took advantage of it,"
said Bishop, who completed 17 of 33 pass attempts with just one
interception, which wasn't his fault.
"The only thing I would say about that is, in the past we should
have done that and today, against the best team in the league, we did a
great job of taking advantage of it.
"It says a lot about our character and our belief in one another trying to get a win."
The victory came in front of a season-low crowd of 21,378 at Canad
Inns Stadium and tied Winnipeg with Hamilton (7-9) for second place in
the East Division.
Montreal started second-year QB Adrian McPherson instead of league-leading pivot Anthony Calvillo (sore calf).
In his first CFL start, McPherson ran for a nine-yard TD and
completed 20 of 35 pass attempts for 232 yards and one TD. He carried
the ball 11 times for 95 yards.
"(McPherson) had to deal with some pressure at times and made some
good throws for us and made things happen with his feet," Montreal head
coach Marc Trestman said.
"So it's a great job for him to go out there and do the things that
he did today. It's just unfortunate that we didn't come away with a
victory."
The shine of the win isn't diminished because Calvillo wasn't playing, Bombers head coach Mike Kelly said.
"I knew that question was going to get asked, and Anthony doesn't play defence," Kelly said.
"Our offence beat their defence and that's what it comes down to … (Calvillo) is one guy. We beat them as a team."
The two clubs play again next Sunday in Montreal, and Calvillo will likely play.
"(Calvillo) is arguably the best player in the CFL right now so we
take this with a grain of salt, but they've got 11 other starters and
12 on defence that they were playing with," Bombers defensive tackle
Doug Brown said.
"We understand they're a more dynamic and explosive offence when he's out there, but it's a stepping stone for us."
Winnipeg's defence won the battle at the line of scrimmage. While
the teams went into the game tied for the league lead in fewest QB
sacks allowed (25), McPherson was sacked four times - twice by Odell
Willis and twice by Phillip Hunt.
Winnipeg's offensive line didn't allow a sack.
"It was probably one of our best games of the year as far as pass protection went," Bombers centre Obby Khan said.
"We gave (Bishop) a lot of time back there."
Bishop completed several long passes, and his only interception
came when Adarius Bowman had the ball ripped out of his hands by Als
cornerback Mark Estelle.
Trestman thought his defence played hard, especially because it went
into the game without some regular linebackers and lost defensive
tackle Eric Wilson early (knee injury, two to three weeks).
He doesn't think players' psyches will be affected by the loss.
"This is one game in 18 right now and everybody knows the scenario
we played under," Trestman said. "It wasn't the most opportune
scenario, but as I talked to the team about it, this team's got a
strong backbone, we've got depth.
"We've got to address the issues that took place, but I don't want to over-value what's happened."
Late in the first half, Winnipeg receiver Terrence Edwards caught a
57-yard TD pass from Bishop. Titus Ryan hauled in a 53-yard catch less than a
minute later as the Bombers took a 24-9 lead into the break.
It was Ryan's first start since arriving in a September 20th trade from Calgary along with Willis and receiver Jabari Arthur.
Edwards also pulled in a 50-yard reception, but was tripped up on
the way to the end zone. The third-quarter catch set up a one-yard TD
run by backup QB Ricky Santos, who was acquired in a trade last
month with Montreal.
Bombers
return man Jovon Johnson sealed the result with a sensational punt
return TD. Johnson weaved back and forth across the field as he took
the punt back 79 yards at 7:05 to widen the spread to 41-18.
Earlier this season, Johnson took back a missed field goal 118 yards for a TD against Edmonton.
Bomber kicker Alexis Serna hit all four of his field-goal attempts
from 23, 29, 20 and 15 yards. Punter Troy Westwood, playing in his
first game back with his old club, added a single.
As Westwood trotted onto the field for his first punt, fans started
cheering and clapping in a show of appreciation for the 17-year vet, who was cut last year in training camp.
Montreal kicker Damon Duval was three-for-three on his field goal attempts
from 28, 41 and 30 yards. Westwood conceded a safety for two
Alouette points.
The Alouettes also got a TD from receiver Andrew Hawkins, who caught
a 19-yard pass at 9:24 of the fourth that made the score 41-24 after a
failed two-point convert attempt.
