Winnipeg 28, Edmonton 21
Penalties hurt Eskimos
An Edmonton Eskimos team that started the season with the pedal to the metal ran out of gas short of the end zone Thursday night, falling 28-21 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Seven field goals by Sean Whyte accounted for all the scoring by the Eskimos, who now have a bye week to fuel up and think things over.
And chances are Eskimos head coach Jason Maas will spend a few sleepless nights haunted by his team’s ongoing penalty problems.
An Eskimos team that opened the 2019 Canadian Football League season as an offensive juggernaut, despite losing franchise quarterback Mike Reilly in off-season free agency, couldn’t overcome self-inflicted wounds this time, as they surrendered more than a field’s worth of penalty yards for the third straight game in falling to 2-1.
The Bombers, meanwhile, came off an early bye to improve to 2-0, as the lone undefeated team left in the West Division.
An Edmonton side that came into this week leading the league in both penalties and penalty yards couldn’t get past the opening kickoff without being flagged for an illegal block.
Their initial drive ended with a punt after taking a procedure penalty on third-and-one.
Winnipeg’s first snap saw Eskimos defensive back Money Hunter take a 15-yard spearing penalty, but were forced to punt the ball after rookie coverage linebacker Brian Walker came up with Edmonton’s 10th sack of the season.
Former Eskimos pivot Matt Nichols led an eight-play, 64-yard touchdown drive that ended with back-to-back rushes by Nic Demski. They both caught Edmonton’s defence on its heels, with the first call being an endaround for a 35-yard romp, before taking a handoff seven yards into the end zone to lead 7-0.
The drive was helped along by a roughing-the-passer penalty — which Edmonton was called for five times last week — by defensive end Nick Usher on second-and-20, and defensive pass interference call against cornerback Josh Johnson.
Immediately after Edmonton got on the board with a 30-yard field goal, the Eskimos defence got caught again as Nichols hit rookie Lucky Whitehead for a 75-yard touchdown in the final minute of the opening quarter to take a 14-3 lead.
A handoff to C.J. Gable on third-and-one from Winnipeg’s 33 yard-line ended in a turnover on downs midway through the second, as the Eskimos running back was stopped in the backfield by Bombers linebacker Thomas Miles for a two-yard loss.
But the Bombers booted it right back after Nichols had to throw the ball away on a discombobulated play, and Almondo Sewell came up with a sack.
Eskimos QB Trevor Harris’s pass was deflected at the line while looking for Ellingson in the end zone, leading to Sean Whyte hitting a 20-yard chip shot to trail 14-6.
But the Eskimos quarterback got another chance in the red zone after rookie linebacker Vontae Diggs recovered a fumble by reigning CFL rushing titleholder Andrew Harris.
Once again, Gable was unable to convert, getting stopped on second-and-three to set up a 10-yard field goal.
Winnipeg turned the ball over again with 37 seconds left in the half, as Chris Matthews leaped to get a hand on an overthrow, only to deflect the ball to Walker.
But with four seconds left, Harris was sacked for the first time this season, getting hauled down by defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat.
Whyte hit from 45 yards out to close out a first half that saw him make it four straight field goals. Edmonton trailed the Bombers 14-12.
The third quarter began with some patented special teams trickery by Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea on the kick return, as Charles Nelson lateralled to Derek Jones for a pickup of 34 yards.
It was a different half, but the same story for the Eskimos, with another defensive pass interference call going against Johnson to set the Bombers up for a fiveyard touchdown pass to Andrew Harris, capping a six-play, 73-yard drive to go ahead 21-12.
After another big punt return by the Bombers, Whitehead struck again on another one-play touchdown drive, taking a bubble pass 41 yards to the end zone to go ahead 28-12.
The third quarter closed with the Eskimos finding themselves on the right side of calls for defensive pass interference and roughing the passer on a drive that, once again, ended in a field goal, so they still trailed by two scores to open the fourth.
And they were still down by a two-score margin after Whyte kicked his sixth field goal of the night with six minutes left, before his seventh brought them within seven points of the lead in the final two minutes.
But the Eskimos didn’t go quietly, gambling on third down twice in Winnipeg territory while forcing a second fumble by Andrew Harris.
Extra points: Bombers RB Brady Oliveira had to be driven off the field ahead of halftime after replays showed his right ankle get snapped out of place while getting rolled on during a kickoff … Eskimos defensive tackle Almondo Sewell left the game in the final four minutes … In his 30th season as Bombers head equipment manager, Brad Fotty was recognized in Thursday’s home opener.