Photo courtesy: Edmonton Elks
In a tale of two halves, the Edmonton Elks came from a 16-0 deficit to find the winning field goal, with zeros on the clock, against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. It was a thrilling way to go into a much-needed bye week.
Here are my thoughts on the game.
Two different teams in each half
Winnipeg came flying out of the gate with five long drives, netting three field goals and a touchdown. The fifth was a turnover on downs on a third-and-three at the Edmonton five-yard line. All the control seemed to be in favour of the Bombers. With two minutes left in the first half, the Elks had run a total of nine offensive plays — that’s not a typo. Two turnovers in the span of those nine had a lot of fans thinking the Elks had started their bye week a bit early. A 16-0 score would suggest it was going to be a long night for the home side.
Brady Oliveira has long been a thorn in Edmonton’s side and was eating early and often. The Canadian had 110 yards rushing in the first half. Zach Collaros put 190 yards on the board, surgically finding receivers and moving the sticks. The Blue Bombers had more than triple the time of possession in the first half. The only thing that didn’t seem to be clicking was finishing with touchdowns. For all that advantage, they had a mere ten-point lead when they went to the locker room. The Elks defence had given Edmonton the chance.
I can only imagine what happened at halftime. Head coach Mark Kilam only indicated that “words were said” as the trigger that turned on the team.
The defence found even another level and held the Bombers to a total of 38 yards gained in the second half. Both Kordell Jackson and Noah Taylor notched sacks to bring the total yards to 19 for Winnipeg. On top of that success, the offence found ways to move the ball with extended drives. Justin Rankin gained 85 yards on the ground after only having 8 in the first half. The offensive line was not only clearing paths, but blocking to give Fajardo time to connect downfield. A 16-3 point swing in the back half of the game was like the two teams played Freaky Friday at halftime.
C’est deux
Vincent Blanchard kicked his second walk-off field goal of 2026. It was not quite as dramatic as the first 57-yarder in Saskatchewan, but a 40-yard boot in front of home fans did the trick.
The third-year kicker continues to add to his great story. Another perfect night going three-for-three on field goals raised his percentage to 94 on the year. A far cry from the 78 percent he was at last year. The confidence the team has in his ability to complete is so high.
“I jogged off the field,” Cody Fajardo said, “I gave my helmet to Dan, our equipment guy, put my hat on and said, ‘He’s making it.’ Then just need to jog out to congratulate him. That’s how money he’s been.”
The Laval product has shown the faith put in him as a fourth-round pick in 2024 was well worth it. He is still working on his English but knows enough to still be humble when he talks about the success this year.
“It’s a good feeling, just to do your job,” the 28-year-old said,” Everybody has a job, and mine is to put it through the posts. Happy to do my job.”
He will earn some kind of Iceman nickname if this keeps up.
Dropsies
Fajardo finished with a lower-than-usual 63 percent completion rate. A fair amount of that came at the hands, or lack thereof, of his receivers.
Kaion Julien-Grant had a tough day at the office with three targets that all seemed to go off his hands. Very uncharacteristic of the seven-year veteran. Brenden O’Leary-Orange had a couple bounce off due to good coverage, but they did go off his hands. I’ll still give B.O.O. some credit for the big catch in double coverage for 41 yards.
Justin Rankin was the only one to catch all four targets sent his way. Cody had a couple of overthrows in the first half that contributed, but the drops were noticeable this week. Maybe it is the 10 games in a row, possibly the bye week coming. That receiving corps will look to bounce back to help their captain out when they are back on the field.
More statements
After the Toronto game, I had written that it was a statement game to have that blowout win. This game may arguably be more of a pointed statement. Playing against a Western opponent that is chasing you in the standings and having to mount that kind of a comeback shows the grit of this team. All three phases needed to bring something to that second half, and they all did.
“This says way more than last week’s win,” Fajardo said, “Divisional opponent. A lot on the line. Us with a bye week looming, so sometimes your mind is elsewhere. I think this will give us confidence to know that even if we don’t play our best ball – I hope that doesn’t happen- but knowing that we can get ourselves out of a funk.”
Full Push
There have been many weeks where I have talked about the offensive line’s struggles. A lot of that can be explained by all the injuries up front and the swapping of guys in and out of the lineup. This week, though, the group being consistent paid off in the second half.
Brett Boyko had an excellent half, opening up the right-hand side with Jordan Murray, allowing Rankin to find some space. The touchdown drive in the third quarter was when I really noticed Boyko’s play. The 34-year-old was only playing his third game at guard and was pushing guys three or four yards back. The Saskatoon, Sask., native has also increased the size of the right side of the line, being six-foot-seven. Murray is learning from the veteran lineman that played tackle for most of his career, and you can see it paying off. It may make it a tad harder for Cody to see over that side — Murray is also six-foot-eight — but I don’t think he is complaining.
I think the most impressive part of the left side of the line is that I never have to mention them. Brendan Bordner has been solid all year coming in as a free agent. Carter O’Donnell has come as advertised. The former University of Alberta Golden Bear has quietly taken care of business in the guard spot and does add some nastiness to the line. There have been only a few misses on that side.
I need to mention that the use of O’Leary-Orange and Skyler Griffith as tight ends has significantly helped both sides. I see it the most when they have Rankin or Javon Leake moving to the outside. The two receivers are excellent blockers. Weird that Griffith did not get his token catch in this game — watch for that to return.
Another impressive stat for this O-line was zero sacks allowed. Winnipeg came into this game in the middle of the pack for sacks in the league, but they have some powerful guys up front with Willie Jefferson finding a fountain of youth and Jake Ceresna back to his dominant ways. Edmonton held them off. The second half in particular gave Cody more than enough time to find guys downfield. The communication in the group continues to grow and the success with it.
No penalties
The Elks had zero penalties for the game. Winnipeg did decline one penalty call, but the stats sheet says goose egg. With that having been an issue for the club on a lot of weeks, this is a welcome surprise. Now to make it a trend.
The last time they had no penalties, I did not even exist. It was October 8, 1974, according to the league
I guess I am now a fan of Tom Valessi and his crew. It always seems that the penalties, in general, seem to be well controlled in his games.
New moniker
The Elks have now won five of six games at home. Commonwealth Stadium is becoming a hard place to play again. There were 22,805 fans for this game, and the crowd got more electric as the night went on.
I have noticed that the Elks have done a great job of building the excitement throughout the game. The in-stadium displays and announcer increase the intensity through the full 60 minutes. The noise level on the last drive and after the game-winning field goal was at a level I have not heard in years. It is really nice to have that return.
“This is the Concrete Castle of the North,” Kilam quipped. “That’s what we think, and we defend it as such. Let’s brand that and start calling it that.”
I’m on board.
Rest up
Edmonton now has 17 days until their next game. A well-deserved break after ten straight weeks of football.
Going 8-3 before Labour Day is a huge step for this team. The break can help with some nagging injuries and getting a bit of a mental reprieve before the rivalry that is the Labour Day Classic and rematch. I know it isn’t actually 17 days off, but it is time to reset, watch some tape, and find a way to close the season as strong as it has started.
