The Corbett Report, August 29, 2015

Introduction

 The opening songs a good spot to start. The often ignored, underappreciated but oh so necessary offensive line. Only heard from when they screw up, the offensive line is probably the most underappreciated position to play in sports (next of course to the 5^th man on a curling team). Let’s face it, the Bomber’s O Line has been heard from a little too much. 21 QB Sacks against???? The worst in the league by far, this group has shouldered the blame for everything from Buck’s injuries, interceptions, an anemic rushing attack and the lack of hot dogs in the concourse after ½ time.

Sound familiar? It’s from the August 24, 2012 Corbett Report. As is the opening song.   So how much have things improved? Well let me put it this way. In 2015 on August 28^th, having played one game fewer than in 2012, the Bombers have given up 26 sacks! Top in the league – 5 more than Calgary and a whopping 14 more than the league-leading BC Lions.

Indeed, 3 years later, the biggest improvement? The stadium food.

Welcome to week nine. Welcome to the Corbett Report.

Standings

			WEST
Team	Wins	Losses	Pts	For	Against	Streak
Calgary	6	2	12	219	182	3 Wins
Edmonton	5	3	10	200	150	1 Loss
Winnipeg	3	5	6	160	237	2 Losses
BC	3	5	6	179	234	2 Losses
Sask	0	8	0	205	259	8 Losses
			EAST
Team	Wins	Losses	Pts	For	Against	Streak
Toronto	6	2	12	223	207	3 Wins
Hamilton	6	3	12	315	182	1 Loss
Ottawa	4	4	8	158	228	2 Losses
Montreal	4	4	8	191	171	2 Wins

 Fun fact. While it may look like the Bombers are in 3^rd place and thus in a playoff position, look again – Montreal would be the first ever East Division crossover team were the playoffs to start this week.

 The Bombers

The Bombers are coming off of the bye week. Their last game was a heart breaking loss to Toronto. A game they woulda, coulda, shoulda won but didn’t. A game which they needed in the standings. The Bombers though seem to be finding ways to lose. Last week it was a 70-yard punt return for a touchdown that turned the Argos ship around and propelled them to victory.

This week, the Bombers are faced with the prospect of defending against Bo-Levi Mitchell, last year’s Grey Cup MVP and a QB who completes a modest 65% of his passes on average. On the Bomber side of the ball, enter Robert Marve in only his second start. He’s spent the bye week studying film in an effort to improve his knowledge of the game. I’m pretty sure in the film room one of the titles was The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, cause that pretty much sums up the Bomber season so far. Let’s hope the takeaway was the Good.

The Stampeders

The Stamps head into the game with a 6-2 record but in reality the record somewhat flatters them. On average they’ve been outscoring their opponents by a modest 5 points a game and many games (including the earlier Bomber game where the Bombers took a time count violation that basically gave the game to Calgary) have been decided in the last minute.

Still they find a way to win, as champions are wont to do. The Bombers get a break in that John Cornish isn’t in the line up, but the Stamps haven’t missed a beat in his absence and are still the class of the league.

Keys to the game

So with all of that said, here are the keys to the game:

For the Bombers to win

• No special teams screw ups
• Marve has to gain some yards on the ground
• A big play on special teams or an interception by the D would be nice

For the Stamps to win

• Show up
• Play with the consistency that won the Cup
• Rattle the Bombers rookie QB

The predictions

Oh my. I’m thinking the Bombers would consider anything better than a 10-point loss a victory. Maybe with Willy in the line up the Bombers stand a chance but without him? They’re just not there yet. Maybe by the time Stamps return in a month I’ll have a better feel about this game but not this week. It may be Cowbell Saturday but that’s not going to be enough.

Stamps 35      Bombers 25

Elsewhere?

Hamilton over Montreal

Edmonton over Toronto

Ottawa over Saskatchewan

Have a great weekend! GO BLUE!