The Edmonton Elks (8-3) hosted the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (5-5) on Friday night at Commonwealth Stadium in their second meeting of the season. This game was a tale of two halves.
Winnipeg got the ball to start the game on the 29-yard line. Quarterback Zach Collaros threw six passes for 55 yards to lead the offense to the seven-yard line. Collaros overthrew a couple of his receivers, and kicker Sergio Castillo made a 15-yard field goal to put the Blue Bombers up 3-0 with 7:25 left.
After Edmonton went two-and-out, Winnipeg had the ball again at the 31-yard line. Once again, Winnipeg’s offense moved the ball to the five-yard line. They went for it on third down, but Collaros’s pass intended for Nic Demski was incomplete. On the second play for Edmonton, quarterback Cody Fajardo threw a 28-yard pass to T.J. Luther. Winnipeg defensive back Evan Holm hit the ball out, and it was recovered by Tony Jones on the 36-yard line.
Zach Collaros threw two passes for 28 yards, and running back Brady Oliveira had two carries for 12 yards to the 34-yard line as the first quarter ended. Winnipeg’s offense had 188 yards, while Edmonton’s offense had 73 yards.
In the second quarter, Zach Collaros threw a 30-yard touchdown to Tim White for a 10-0 lead with 13:49 left on a six-play drive for 74 yards. Later, Winnipeg kicker Sergio Castillo made a 20-yard field goal for a 13-0 lead with 7:38 left.
Edmonton had the ball on the 40-yard line. Cody Fajardo’s pass intended for Austin Mack was intercepted by Jonathan Moxey at the 52-yard line. Winnipeg moved the ball to the 30-yard line before Sergio Castillo made a 52-yard field goal for a 16-0 lead with 4:31 left. The Blue Bombers had scored 13 points off turnovers.
Late in the second quarter, Edmonton had the ball on the 28-yard line. Cody Fajardo threw a 12-yard pass to Austin Mack, and Fajardo rushed for four yards to the 44-yard line. On the next play, his pass intended for Joshua Cephus was incomplete, but an illegal contact penalty on Jake Kelly moved the ball to the 15-yard line. It was a 51-yard penalty.
On the next play, Fajardo rolled to his right side before throwing a touchdown pass to Austin Mack. They attempted a two-point conversion, but did not get it. The Elks trailed the Blue Bombers 16-6 at halftime on a four-play drive for 82 yards.
Winnipeg’s offense had 300 yards. Zach Collaros went 16 of 23 for 190 yards, one touchdown, and one carry for one yard. Running back Brady Oliveira had 14 carries for 110 yards, and two catches for 11 yards. Wide receiver Nic Demski made four catches for 68 yards, while Tim White made three catches for 57 yards and one touchdown.
Edmonton’s offense had 130 yards. Cody Fajardo went 6 of 12 for 108 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and two carries for 12 yards. Running back Justin Rankin had a quiet first half with two carries for eight yards. Wide receiver Brendan O’Leary-Orange made one catch for 41 yards, while Austin Mack made three catches for 35 yards and one touchdown.
Edmonton got the ball to start the third quarter from the 31-yard line. Justin started the drive with two carries for 11 yards to the 42-yard line. The Elks moved the ball to the 35-yard line, where kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 42-yard field goal. The Elks trailed the Blue Bombers 16-9 with 9:27 left.
Winnipeg went two-and-out, giving Edmonton the ball back at the 26-yard line. Cody Fajardo led the offense to the two-yard line. On the next play, Fajardo rushed into the endzone, tying the game 16-16 with 1:46 left on an 11-play drive for 84 yards. The Blue Bombers would go two-and-out to end the third quarter. Edmonton had the ball on the 52-yard line to begin the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Edmonton moved the ball to the 17-yard line. On the next play, Cody Fajardo took off for one yard before David Reese stripped the ball out, and it was recovered by Cam Lawson at the 16-yard line. Winnipeg went two-and-out. Edmonton had the ball on the 52-yard line.
Cody Fajardo rushed for eight yards, while Justin Rankin had two carries for 14 yards, and Fajardo threw a six-yard pass to Austin Mack to the 30-yard line. Rankin picked up four more yards before kicker Vincent Blanchard made a 34-yard field goal for a 19-16 lead with 6:01 left.
The Blue Bombers had the ball on the 40-yard line. Brady Oliveira rushed for two yards. Three plays later, Zach Collaros overthrew his intended receiver, Ontaria Wilson, and it was intercepted by Terez Reid at the seven-yard line. The Elks would go two-and-out.
Late in the game, Winnipeg kicker Sergio Castillo tied the game 19-19 with a 53-yard field goal. The Elks got the ball on the 23-yard line with 1:36 left. Cody Fajardo and the offense moved the ball to the 33-yard line. Kicker Vincent Blanchard made the game-winning 26-yard field goal. The Elks completed the comeback with a 22-19 win. It is Winnipeg’s first road loss of the season.
Edmonton’s offense had 382 yards (259 passing yards, 123 rushing yards), 23 first downs, 2 for 3 in the redzone, and the team had no penalties. Quarterback Cody Fajardo completed 20 of 32 passes (62.5%) for 259 yards, one touchdown, one interception, six carries for 28 yards, and one rushing touchdown. Running back Justin Rankin had 19 carries for 93 yards and four catches for 48 yards.
Wide receiver T.J. Luther made seven catches for 85 yards, while Austin Mack made six catches for 68 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 43 tackles, two tackles for loss, two sacks, and one interception.
Winnipeg’s offense had 319 yards (219 passing yards, 117 rushing yards, 17 yards lost), 18 first downs, 0 for 3 in the redzone, and the team was penalized two times for 56 yards. Quarterback Zach Collaros completed 19 of 30 passes (63%) for 219 yards, one touchdown, one interception, and two carries for two yards. Running back Brady Oliviera had 16 carries for 118 yards and two catches for 11 yards.
Wide receiver Nic Demski made five catches for 80 yards, while Tim White made three catches for 57 yards and one touchdown. The defense made 43 tackles, three tackles for loss, one interception, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
Next Friday, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers host the Montreal Alouettes at 8:30 pm on TSN and CFL+, while the Edmonton Elks are on a bye week.
