The Corbett Report, September 25, 2026

Introduction

It’s the second home matchup with Toronto this year.  There’s something you haven’t been able to say since the Bombers were in the Eastern Division.  It’s a key matchup, too.  The 7-6 Bombers are only two points ahead of Calgary, and with the season series on the line when the Bombers entertain the Stamps two weeks from now, it’s imperative that the Bombers maintain their lead in the standings, otherwise, 2026 could be the first year since 2015 that the Bombers miss the playoffs.

I’ve said it so often that it’s getting nauseating, but this Bomber team is a hard one to read.  One week they look like world-beaters, and the next they look like a mediocre, middle-of-the-road squad.  This week, Dru Brown gets the call and it begs the question “Have we seen the last of Zach?”.  The hit that he took on Banjo Bowl weekend after trying to stop a Riders interception return didn’t look that bad.  It seems like it was enough though, cause here we are 2 weeks later with Zach on the 6-game injury list and Dru Brown’s the starter.  Get used to it fans, this may be the Bomber team that finishes the season.  Will it be on October 23^rd in BC, or will the Bombers make their 10^th consecutive playoff appearance?  It all starts tonight.

Welcome to week 17, welcome to the Corbett Report.

Standings

Team	GP	W	L	T	Pts	PF	PA
West
Edmonton	15	10	4	0	20	433	347
Sask	13	8	5	0	16	375	340
BC	13	7	6	0	14	397	357
Winnipeg	13	7	6	0	14	345	352
Calgary	14	6	8	0	12	490	479
East
Montreal	14	11	3	0	22	498	410
Toronto	14	8	6	0	16	415	403
Hamilton	14	4	10	0	8	327	421
Ottawa	13	0	13	0	0	308	479

Awww, poor Ottawa.

Bombers

The Bombers lead the league in only one offensive category: most yards rushing by a single player, that  being Brady Oliveira with 1,084 yards rushing.  Add his 278 yards receiving and he’s accounted for 30% of the Bombers’ total net offence of 4,495 yards.  With Dru Brown as the Bomber starting QB,  it would be wise to stick with an Oliveira-heavy game plan.

On defence, the Bombers are coming off a game in which they held last year’s defending Grey Cup champs to just 6 points and 278 yards net offence.  They were also able to win the turnover battle by a 5-2 margin.  They’ll need a similar outing this week if they’re going to gain a victory over the Argos.

Argos

The Argos come into Winnipeg lead of course by Chad Kelly.  Kelly is the league-leading passer with 4,777 yards and 31 passing TDs.   Although here’s the rub; he also leads the league in interceptions with 22.  How bad is that? The second place finisher plays for the Redblacks and has thrown just 14 picks. 

The Argos run game seems non-existent with barely 1,000 yards total for the year, so if the Bombers hope to stop the Argos from scoring, they’ll need to slow down Toronto’s passing attack.

On defence, the Argos are pretty much a middle-of-the-pack kind of team.  In most defensive categories they look neither overwhelming nor underwhelming.  For this matchup, it’s interesting to note that they’ve secured 10 interceptions, whereas the Bombers (the last in the league) have gotten only 5.

Keys to the game:

For the Bombers to win

• Intercept Kelly twice
• Pound the Argos defence with Oliveira
• Win the special teams battle

For the Argos to win

• Score early and take the crowd out of it
• Stop the running of Oliveira
• Win the turnover battle

The predictions

Record so far this year: 34 – 27 (Bomber games 7 – 6). 

This week it looks like it’s a hometown sweep.

Go with

• BC over Saskatchewan
• Ottawa over Calgary (the Redbacks finally get a victory)
• Edmonton over Hamilton

And

Much will depend on Dru Brown but I’m counting on a big defensive night.  It’ll be:

Bombers 33 Argos 21

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