\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
![\"ROBERT](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/4525647_web1_20260828-Bombers-vs-Allouettes-RL-0487.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
ROBERT LEE \/ FREE PRESS<\/p>\n
Montreal Alouettes defensive back Nate Beauchemin hits Winnipeg Blue Bombers wide receiver Tommy Nield at the goal line to force a fumble on Friday. <\/p>\n
Lawson remains in disbelief over the sequence of events that followed, which included multiple players and multiple body parts making contact with the football before Bombers linebacker Tony Jones finally scooped it up for a fumble recovery.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought it was about to be incomplete,\u201d said Lawson. \u201cThen I saw the running back behind me and he got it and I was like \u2018What the hell?\u2019 And then he tossed it up (in the air). I was like \u2018what is happening right now?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe got it somehow and it was a turnover. At least we got the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bombers linebacker Kyrie Wilson secured the ball momentarily after Alouettes running back Travis Theis lost the handle, only to see it slip through his own hands.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was the weirdest thing, with how it happened,\u201d said Wilson. \u201cI\u2019m just glad that we came up with it at the end. Even though it would have been better if I\u2019d gotten the interception, we still got the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jones ended up with the final touch.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt slipped out of Kyrie\u2019s hands at the last minute and I saw all the bobbling, so I\u2019m like \u2018I\u2019m diving on it,\u2019\u201d said Jones. \u201cWe thrive off turnovers. Whenever you\u2019re getting turnovers on the defensive side of the ball, we\u2019re giving our offence more opportunities to score and put points on the board. Every defence wants to force turnovers and get the ball to your offence as much as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just glad that we came up with it at the end. Even though it would have been better if I\u2019d gotten the interception, we still got the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Bombers still sit last in the CFL in interceptions with four, but they\u2019re second in the nine-team loop in fumble recoveries with 10.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been close on a lot of takeaways. We\u2019ve had a lot of them come to us but we just didn\u2019t finish the play,\u201d said Wilson. \u201cYou\u2019re starting to see it coming together. Yes, we\u2019ve still left some out there but you\u2019re seeing everybody buying in and we\u2019re getting more chances to get those takeaways from the work we\u2019re putting in.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow we\u2019ve just got to be ready for when those opportunities come and make those plays when it\u2019s time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Winning the turnover battle again would be one way for the Bombers to build on Friday\u2019s win as they prepare for the Labour Day Classic at Mosaic Stadium in Regina on Sunday.<\/p>\n
The Bombers had three takeaways against the Alouettes, including a critical blocked punt on the opening drive of the second half and a late turnover on downs.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the stats that generally leads to victories, is winning the turnover margin,\u201d said Bombers head coach Mike O\u2019Shea.<\/p>\n
The lone turnover for the Bombers was a fumble by receiver Tommy Nield, who hauled in a reception on second-and-10 from the Alouettes 15-yard line and was on the verge of getting into the end zone for his first major of the season when defensive back Nate Beauchemin met his at the goal line and punched out the ball on a solid hit. The play was reviewed to determine if Nield had crossed the threshold for a touchdown ahead of the fumble, but the turnover stood.<\/p>\n
Instead of that missed opportunity serving as a rallying point for the Alouettes, the Bombers got a blocked punt from Tanner Cadwallader on the first series of the second half that was recovered on the one-yard line by rookie defensive lineman David Reese.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just happy I was able to be at the right place at the right time and do my part.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just happy I was able to be at the right place at the right time and do my part,\u201d said Reese. \u201cI\u2019m just tracking the ball. I saw him block it and after that part, I just wanted to get the ball and secure it as best as I could. The offence ended up punching it in.\u201d<\/p>\n
In that change in momentum, the Bombers were also quick to pick up their teammate Nield, who had a strong outing, with five catches for 62 yards (his most productive day since Week 2 when he had seven catches for 111 yards).<\/p>\n
\u201cOne play doesn\u2019t define the game. We\u2019ve all taken turns turning the football over at some time in our career,\u201d said Bombers quarterback Zach Collaros, who was named one of the CFL stars of the week Tuesday. \u201cThere\u2019s not really much to be said. Obviously, when something like that happens to you specifically, you feel down about it but it\u2019s a next-play mentality and Tommy was able to flush that and (move) on.<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\tThe Warm-Up<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Jets Game Days<\/p>\n
On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.<\/p>\n
\t\t\tSign up for The Warm-Up<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t \u201cHe really brought it on the outside, on the edge, from a blocking standpoint. And then, when the ball was thrown his way, he did a great job of catching it and making the play, extending drives for us and he had a good scramble drill there. He played a great game.\u201d<\/p>\n O\u2019Shea agreed with the assessment.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, (Nield) wanted that one play back on the goal line, but \u2026 that was a tremendous play defensively that was made on the goal line to punch the ball out right there,\u201d said O\u2019Shea. \u201cYeah, we\u2019d like to score, sure. Maybe with a different angle, maybe it\u2019s a score, I don\u2019t know. Once again, that\u2019s why it\u2019s the greatest team sport going. Teammates have his back.<\/p>\n \u201cEverybody understands that there\u2019s going to be plays that are made by the opposition. I don\u2019t think there was anything that Tommy was doing there that needed big correction. It just was a great play by their guy.\u201d<\/p>\n winnipegfreepress.com\/kenwiebe<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Ken Wiebe Ken Wiebe is a sports reporter for the Free Press, with an emphasis on the Winnipeg Jets. He has covered hockey and provided analysis in this market since 2000 for the Winnipeg Sun, The Athletic, Sportsnet.ca and TSN. Ken was a summer intern at the Free Press in 1999 and returned to the Free Press in a full-time capacity in September of 2023. Read more about Ken<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Ken 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 Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.<\/p>\n \t\t<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Reporter
\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<\/a>
\n\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<\/p>\n