Bombers 20, B.C. Lions 11: They came for the sizzle but they got fizzle

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Nathan Rourke’s story has resonated across the country for one reason: he’s excelled playing a position that rarely sees Canadian stars.

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Kid Canada. The Maple Leaf Maestro. Etc, etc.

So it made sense he opened up his post-game comments Sunday with the most Canadian of statements: an apology.

“If you don’t mind, I’d like to say something and hopefully that answers all your questions,” he said, after the B.C. Lions fell 20-11 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at B.C. Place on Sunday, their fourth straight loss.

“I want to take this moment to publicly apologize. That was not my best football. As a quarterback, it’s never a one-person job, but it is the position where we have the ball in our hands every single play, and I didn’t make enough plays.

“I’m sorry to the team who stuck their necks out for me, for getting me here and allowing me to play, the rest of my teammates, who’s effort is never going to be an issue in this locker room. They fought right until the end, battled and got into the end zone in that last possession. Teams that have less character, they’re not fighting at that time in the game.

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“I’m sorry to the fans. I know there was a lot of excitement going in this game, and I didn’t deliver. If this is the starting point, then we only got up to go from here.”

It was as frustrated as Rourke had been as a member of the B.C. Lions, returning to the CFL after his aborted attempt to crack an NFL roster. He connected on his first pass, a 13-yarder to Ayden Eberhardt, but his night got increasingly more difficult from there.

He didn’t look like player who’d set the CFL’s single-season accuracy record, connecting on just 8-of-25 passes for 126 yards, and getting picked off twice.

He missed high, low and behind. The Bombers dropped players into coverage, choosing to be more cagey with their blitzing, and consistently jumped the Lions’ routes. He could have had four interception on the night, and a pick-six, but finished, mercifully, with two.

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“There were some things out there that I wish I had done differently. Hats off to (Winnipeg defensive co-ordinator) Jordan Younger and the rest of his team for putting together a great game plan and giving us something to think about,” he said. “Obviously they had a bye week going into this, and they played us last, so they knew what was coming. … That’s why they’re the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. They make plays and we got but we got to be better.

“As painful as it is right now, I’m very thankful to the (Lions) organization for giving me a chance to get my feet wet, and make some mistakes.

“Obviously, everyone’s expectations are high. We would love to be able to come back here and not skip a beat, but the reality of situation is that as an offence, we’re struggling.”

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The expectations were massive from a fanbase with Grey Cup aspirations and struggling through a three-game skid. But the hype and hope diverged from reality.

Rourke hadn’t thrown a pass in a meaningful game — CFL or NFL — for 644 days, since the Lions’ playoff loss to these same Bombers.

It’s been more than a year he’s been practising on a field in a different league, with different field dimensions, with different playbooks and a game that requires different throws from its quarterbacks. To ask a player to come in on three days of practice, plus a walk-through, and be the saviour was unrealistic.

“I’m super impressed. I don’t know how he does it,” said head coach Rick Campbell. “I know he won’t ever say this, and I’m not making excuses for him, but the guy … I don’t know how he flew across the country and switched from four-down football to three-down football and a new playbook. His work ethic and his intentions are through the roof, and he’ll just continue to get better and more comfortable as he gets back in the swing of the CFL game.”

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While the headlines and spotlight are fixed firmly on Rourke, lost in the glare is the suddenly impotent Lions’ offence.

The loss was the fourth straight for B.C. (5-5), the first time they’ve lost four or more in a row since 2021, when they went on a seven-game swoon in the home stretch. That streak was ended by Rourke’s first career full-game start, when they beat the Edmonton Elks in the final game of the year.

In their first six games, the Lions led the CFL with 429 yards of offence. Coming into Sunday, it was 216 in the last three — the lowest in the league.

When Chase Brice came in for the final series for B.C., going 5-for-5 for 56 yards, the Lions converted an end zone pass interference call into a David Mackie one-yard touchdown run. It was just the fourth in the past four games for B.C.

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Before Mackie’s score, only a 23-yard field goal from Sean Whyte in the fourth quarter (his 46th straight, extending his career best run) stood between B.C. and second straight shutout.

No single player nor coach can be fingered for the turnaround. In-game offensive adjustments haven’t happened. If defensive backs are jumping routes, where are the double-moves to burn them deep? If the linebackers are dropping deep, where are the underneath crossing routes that had been used to great effect earlier in the season?

Production has dropped from key players. Receiver Alexander Hollins was among the league leaders and averaging close to 100 yards a game in his first six games. During the skid, he’s pulled in just 23 yards per game, though bumped that number with two catches for 50 yards Sunday. He’s gone five games without a touchdown, and Hatcher hasn’t seen the end zone either, in his three games since returning from his Achilles injury.

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“Right now, it doesn’t matter who our quarterback is; we got to play better as a football team and as a whole offensive unit,” said Campbell. “I will always give the other team credit … (Winnipeg is) playing very well on defence. I think they got in our heads a bit because … man, we were struggling. Our football team as a whole … we don’t bail each other out; the offence, the defence, the special teams, we do a lot of things correctly, but we don’t end up making a defining play to change the game.

“I think we just obviously got off kilter with things,” he added. “Jordan (Maksymic) and the offensive staff are super smart. We’ll look at what we’re doing, and we’re gonna have to adjust some things.

“(There’s) stuff we gotta figure out. It doesn’t add up to me that (Justin) McInnis and Hollins are No. 1 and No. 2 in the league (receiving), our quarterback is lighting it up, that it just could swing so drastically. We got to put our players in better spots, or find out how to put them in better spots. … We’ve got to figure that out and making sure we’re utilizing those guys correctly. They’ve made a lot of plays this year for us, but not lately.”

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Something has to change for B.C. in the suddenly condensed West.

The Lions (5-5) still trail the Saskatchewan Roughriders (5-4-1), while Calgary and Winnipeg are tied for third at 4-6. The Bombers have won two straight, both coming over B.C. over a 16-game span. They’re now 16-1 coming off a bye.

It doesn’t get easier for the Lions, either. They travel to Ottawa to take on the second-place Redblacks (6-2-1) next Saturday, then have to travel to Victoria for the rematch in Touchdown Pacific the following week.

It’s not a lot of time to fix their problems, but it also means B.C. can flush the memory of this game away quickly.

“A big thing for me in football, whether it’s offence, defence or special teams, is fear factor,” said Campbell. “If you’re scared of the other team in some fashion, that that’s goes a long way to opening things up. And I don’t they were nervous playing us. I don’t think Winnipeg had any fear on defence the last two games we played us, and that’s on us as coaches to change that.

“I told (the team) no one’s coming in to save the day. We’ve got to be the guys that save ourselves. And there’s lots of reasons to want to keep going and keep working, because the West is wide open. It’s anybody’s game.”

jadams@postmedia.com

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