\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
![\"John](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/3668261_web1_CP175174229.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
John Woods \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS<\/p>\n
Winnipeg QB Zach Collaros (right) hands off to Brady Oliveira during the Bombers victory over the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Friday.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe still have time,\u201d Bombers head coach Mike O\u2019Shea said following Monday\u2019s rain-filled practice. \u201cThere\u2019s enough time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got a veteran group that has been there before, that knows what it takes,\u201d he added. \u201cThat have that grit, that have lived it. That have gone through it, that know exactly what needs to be done.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 9-8 Bombers have one final regular-season game to iron out their kinks when they welcome the Montreal Alouettes to town Saturday afternoon. The Bombers have already clinched a playoff berth with last week\u2019s nail-biting win over a short-handed Saskatchewan Roughriders team, though it\u2019s still undecided where in the West Division they\u2019ll finish.<\/p>\n
Winnipeg can\u2019t do any better than third, but are likely to finish fourth, resulting in a crossover to the East Division and potentially another clash with the Alouettes.<\/p>\n
Regardless of where the Bombers land in the standings, the far clearer issue is the vastly different feeling surrounding the team compared to recent years. That was never more evident than in the locker room after the win over the Riders, who the Bombers barely beat despite Saskatchewan resting several starters after locking up first in the West.<\/p>\n
While every player took solace in getting the win, the level of frustration exhibited by many mirrored the kind of mood usually reserved for a loss. To a man, players lamented not reaching the club\u2019s high standard, noting a lack of execution and costly errors \u2014 themes that have plagued them for much of the 2025 campaign.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, it does,\u201d Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros said when asked if these uncharacteristic mistakes this late in the year were a troubling sign. \u201cIf you left that game and some of the games with the way we\u2019ve played this year without a sense of urgency or without a little bit of anger, then I think you\u2019re wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n
Finding the right way to tackle the team\u2019s collective frustration this season has been a work in progress, particularly for the offence, a unit that has struggled under rookie offensive co-ordinator Jason Hogan.<\/p>\n
The latest attempt came immediately after the loss to Saskatchewan, with O\u2019Shea getting the entire offence to break down the film together. Usually, the game film is dissected among position groups, led by each position coach.<\/p>\n
While O\u2019Shea downplayed the unique approach \u2014 running back Brady Oliveira said it was that first time it\u2019s happened since he joined the club in 2019 \u2014 it seemed to resonate with the players. Guys took accountability for their mistakes and together they came up with ways to improve and get better.<\/p>\n
\u201cHearing everyone out, people holding themselves accountable, it was good,\u201d Oliveira said. \u201cIt was really, really productive. Just got to clean up those mistakes. We watched it, we learned. Now, onto the practice field, fix those mistakes, so when game day comes, we can fly around and play fast.\u201d<\/p>\n
Oliveira, while optimistic, is also realistic. The Bombers star running back knows words are cheap, and while he agrees there is still time to right the ship on the season, he acknowledged time is running out and that those words need to be put into action sooner than later.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re on Game 18, there\u2019s not much time left. You\u2019re never going to play a perfect game, but at this point of the season, you got to be trying to play at least your best football,\u201d Oliveira said. \u201cTry to be as perfect as you can be. Again, you\u2019re not going to be perfect, but strive for that, limit the mistakes. Those mistakes are meant for training camp and early in the season; right now, you should be rolling. Everyone should be feeling good, playing good.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Bombers have set a high standard for themselves, the kind that comes with going to five consecutive championships. While it might be harder to attain than ever before, it\u2019s still the bar they\u2019re aiming for.<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
\t\t<\/p>\n
\u201cThe standard is the standard. It\u2019s what we always talk about \u2014 playing our kind of game, a clean game, bringing the physicality that we know we can, executing at a high level, winning the turnover battle,\u201d Collaros said. \u201cAll those things we try to hold up to our standard week in and week out. Each guy has to look himself in the mirror every week to see why we didn\u2019t reach that every single game. There\u2019s ways we can get better and we need to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
O\u2019Shea said he was encouraged by the way the players approached this week, having flushed the negativity from last week, much like they have after rough performances all season. He said he could see it in the way they acted at practice on Monday, displaying the kind of camaraderie he hopes to see from his players while also taking a business-like approach.<\/p>\n
While there isn\u2019t much time to turn things around, O\u2019Shea is confident that whatever time is left on the year, it will be taken full advantage of.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou keep chasing it. You don\u2019t stop,\u201d O\u2019Shea said. \u201cI love their effort. You get questions all the time about why should fans trust this team, and the answer is the same. Because I\u2019m in the building with these guys every single day and I\u2019ve seen that chase, that chase to be better.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jeff.Hamilton@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Jeff Hamilton Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University\u2019s journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Jeff produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Multimedia producer
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n