Henry Burris, Jovon Johnson and the Redblacks dim Bombers' hopes with 27-20 win

The Ottawa Redblacks pulled off their second-straight victory over Winnipeg Saturday, following last week's 27-24 home win by edging the Blue Bombers 27-20 on the road, and they iced the win thanks to a couple of surprising sources. First, 40-year-old quarterback Henry Burris had been impressive with his arm for most of the day, but Ottawa's game-winning drive inside the final three minutes was all about the ground game, first with rookie running back William Powell (who finished with 117 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries) pounding the ball up the middle and killing substantial time off the clock, and then with Burris taking the ball in himself on a third-and-goal quarterback sneak with just 45 seconds left to give the Redblacks a seven-point lead. Then, Winnipeg put together one final drive, and got the ball to about the 25 for a last-chance Hail Mary, but after the pass was tipped up by one defender, it was grabbed by Ottawa's Jovon Johnson, a former Blue Bomber. Johnson landed out of bounds, so it didn't count as an official interception, but his play combined with Burris' touchdown run proved crucial to this Redblacks' win, boosting their chances of grabbing first place in the East and all but extinguishing Winnipeg's playoff hopes.

Burris did much more than just this run on the day, of course. He threw for 413 yards and a touchdown while completing 29 of 43 passes (67.4 per cent), and while he had two interceptions, he was largely key to Ottawa's offensive success. He hit six different receivers on the day, with Brad Sinopoli leading the way with eight catches for 120 yards and Chris Williams adding seven catches for 96 yards and a touchdown. Burris also moved past the 60,000 passing yard mark for his career, and further bolstered his case for the CFL's Most Outstanding Player award. His legs were also key Saturday, though; he evaded pressure on several scrambles, only taking two sacks on the day, and his touchdown run (on an impressive gamble by the Redblacks to play the odds on third-and-short conversions and go for the win, rather than play it safe and allow the Bombers to send the game to overtime with just a field goal) was vital to Ottawa's ultimate success.

Johnson (who recently spoke about how he's upset with how Winnipeg let him go) and the rest of the Redblacks' defence were also crucial throughout the day. They put Bombers' quarterback Matt Nichols under plenty of pressure, sacking him six times, and that paved the way for defensive back Brandyn Thompson's two interceptions. Justin Capicciotti led the way with three sacks, while Shawn Lemon, Moton Hopkins and Brandon Sermons each had one. Ottawa held Nichols to 282 passing yards and two touchdowns with two picks, and they completely shut down Winnipeg's ground game, holding Cameron Marshall to just 20 yards on six carries. That's a solid defensive showing, and that was a big part of this critical win. It leaves the Redblacks tied with Hamilton for first in the East with a 10-6 record, and their final two games are against the Tiger-Cats. Thus, this defensive performance played a big role in letting them control their own destiny going forward.

The Bombers also partly did this to themselves, though. Their play was mistake-filled all day, including two picks and a fumble, and Nichols' interceptions in particular came on poor decisions. They mostly avoided getting buried in the first half thanks only to some return turnovers from Ottawa (two Burris interceptions and a lost fumble). Winnipeg also took far too many penalties here, including an illegal kick and an offsides late that played a big role in the Redblacks' final drive. It was yet another close-but-no-cigar game for the Bombers, but it's one that easily could have been better, and it's almost the final blow to their playoff hopes. At 5-12, they're still mathematically in the playoff hunt for the moment, but they would need to win their final game against Toronto in two weeks and have both the 6-10 B.C. Lions and 6-10 Montreal Alouettes lose their remaining two contests. That seems highly improbable, so this is about it for Winnipeg's postseason hopes. Thus, this is going to be a loss they'll regret, and while some of that was about great play from Ottawa, the Bombers are also to blame for their own mistakes. Those mistakes might just have ended their chances of making the playoffs.