It was the kind of start that had fans in the stands facepalming.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers initially looked nothing like a group that had an extra week to prepare for Thursday night’s showdown at home with the Edmonton Elks.
Two fumbles, two missed field goals and more struggles on defence put the Blue and Gold in a 17-0 hole midway through the second quarter.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods
The Edmonton Elks’ Joel Dublanko and Noah Taylor celebrate sacking Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros during the first half of the Elks 23-18 win in Winnipeg, Thursday.
And while the second half was far from perfect, the Bombers showed signs of life — especially on defence — and miraculously grabbed an 18-17 lead with 8:34 remaining in the contest after running back Brady Oliveira dragged a defender to the front pilon of the end zone on a 14-yard catch and run.
But ultimately, the Bombers needed more than that to make up for their brutal beginning.
The Elks had the ball with 3:30 left and quarterback Cody Fajardo delivered. He capped off a 10-play, 57-yard drive with an eight-yard TD strike to receiver T.J. Luther to give the visitors a 23-18 victory.
For the first time since 2017, Edmonton is 3-0. The Bombers, who were smacked 37-27 by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats before last week’s bye, drop to 1-2 with both of those losses coming on their home turf.
Thursday marked the 16th consecutive sellout at Princess Auto Stadium. It was also the first time Edmonton has won in Winnipeg since June 14, 2018. The Bombers are now 16-4 after their bye weeks dating back to 2018.
The talk all week was the importance of slowing down Edmonton’s superstar running back Justin Rankin, who entered the evening with a mesmerizing 9.1 yards-per-carry average and 426 total yards.
And yet, on his very first touch, he scampered down the field for 29 yards with ease. The whole Edmonton offence, with veteran pivot Cody Fajardo, hit the ground running with 68 yards on their opening three plays, en route to a seven-play, 95-yard scoring drive capped off by, you guessed it, Rankin for a five-yard touchdown rush.
Rankin closed out the first half with 95 rushing yards on 11 attempts.
Meanwhile on offence and special teams, things weren’t any better. The Bombers fumbled on their first possession after running back Brady Oliveira was popped by defensive lineman Jordan Williams. The Elks returned it 93 yards to Winnipeg’s three-yard line before being forced out by receiver Ontaria Wilson.
Wilson went to the locker room afterwards and did not return to the game. The Bombers also lost star defensive lineman Jake Ceresna to injury in the second half.
Oliveira lost two fumbles in 2025.
The Bombers managed to hold the Elks to three but quickly allowed the away side back in scoring territory minutes later when rookie tight end Dante Daniels fumbled after a 29-yard gain while trying to hurdle a defender.
Five plays later, the Elks found paydirt to go up 17-0.
Bombers kicker Sergio Castillo misfired from 49 yards in the first and 50 in the second which proved costly.
The Bombers managed to head into half on a positive note after quarterback Zach Collaros connected with Tim White for a 29-yard TD to cut Edmonton’s advantage to 17-7.
Rankin did most of his damage early as he ended the contest with 106 yards rushing on 15 carries and three catches for nine yards.
The Bombers have allowed opposing running backs to run for 100-plus yards in all three games this season.
Fajardo went 25-for-35 with 267 passing yards and one touchdown. Collaros completed 24-of-33 passes for 290 yards and two touchdowns.
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Oliveira had 77 yards rushing on 13 carries. Nic Demski led the Bombers in receiving with six grabs for 92 yards.
The Bombers fumbled six times with three of those being recovered by Edmonton. Collaros, who was taken down three times on the night, was strip-sacked from behind in the third with defensive lineman Malik Carney pouncing on the loose football.
Less than an hour before kickoff, the Bombers announced starting right guard Patrick Neufeld had been ruled out for a personal matter. Tyler Elsbury moved to guard while Tui Eli took over at centre.
The Bombers hit the road for a Week 2 rematch with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats next Sunday.
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Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.
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