The Ottawa Redblacks' 26-18 loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers wasn't just another defeat in a season filled with them; it was one of the most frustrating and disappointing performances in the franchise's 11-year history.
Here are all my thoughts on the game.
1) It was a game that Bob Dyce's squad desperately needed to maintain any illusions of 2025 being a playoff season, and in theory, things were lining up for them to move back into the win column.
The Bombers came into town on a three-game losing streak and with their backup quarterback under centre. Meanwhile, the Redblacks' starting pivot returned after missing a month with a knee injury.
And yet none of it mattered. After Dyce spent the week talking about how hope remained and his team controlled their own destiny, the offence and special teams hung their head coach out to dry with poor attention to detail and sloppy play. 20 of Winnipeg's 26 points came directly as a result of Ottawa's self-inflicted wounds and mistakes. There were another six points that weren't scored because of a pair of missed field goals.
A defensive effort that was so good that it only allowed three completions in the entire game and had only conceded six first downs by the middle of the fourth quarter, still wasn't enough.
It's honestly unbelievable that Ottawa failed to beat Winnipeg. In the series of lowlights R-Nation has experienced in recent seasons, this defeat ranks near the very top.
2) After missing three games, Dru Brown returned to the starting lineup. While Brown wasn't the sole reason Ottawa lost, he was a factor.
The final numbers look good -- 33-of-45 for 406 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions -- but the reality is a large chunk of that production came when it didn't really matter. Yes, completing 73 percent of your passes while hitting nine different receivers is good, but that's kind of negated when only three of the 14 drives you lead result in points, and your pair of turnovers gifts the opponent 10 points.
Brown had a number of excellent throws; he also had a handful of off-target misses and forced some balls into windows that weren't there.
Another lowlight was his failure to throw the ball away on a second-down play in the second quarter that led to a 17-yard sack. Despite having a ton of time to get rid of the ball -- sometimes coverage means nobody is open and that's okay! -- Brown clung to it and kept retreating backwards until he was taken down. What made the outcome so shocking was that it was the kind of thing you'd expect from an overeager rookie trying to make a play, not a guy making his 26th career start.
Aside from a handful of pass attempts, Brown never pushed the ball down the field. Given that we've seen both Brown and Dustin Crum have extensive playing time in 2025, it's fair to say that it's not because either has an inability to do so, but rather because Tommy Condell's offensive system doesn't emphasize it.
Speaking of which...
3) When you look at the final stats, you'd think Condell called a great game. The Redblacks finished with 452 yards of offence, 25 first downs, converted 50 percent of their second-down opportunities and went two-of-three in the red zone.
And yet, Ottawa's attack was anything but effective. Who knew the highlight of the game would be the seven-play, 85-yard opening touchdown drive? After spending so much time lamenting the Redblacks' poor starts to games, they finally figured it out....except they then proceeded to only find the end zone again on the game's final play, 55 minutes later, when trailing by 15.
One thing that's clearly been demonstrated this season is that Condell's attack doesn't push the ball down the field. Despite having a speedster in Kalil Pimpleton and deceptively shifty guys like Eugene Lewis and Justin Hardy, who are more than capable of winning jump balls, Condell's attack tends to have his receivers running sideways and not vertically.
This was evident multiple times against the Bombers. Ottawa threw plenty of passes behind the line of scrimmage (hitch, swing passes, and screens) where one receiver was expected to make multiple defenders miss. The most maddening thing was that on those rare occasions where the Redblacks took deep shots, they paid off. And yet it was a tool rarely pulled out of the box.
Also, with veteran William Stanback out, it was a chance to feature Canadian running back Daniel Adeboboye. The former Argo has done nothing but produce when given limited touches this season. Yet, for whatever reason, he was only handed the ball nine times.
In situations where one might expect him to get the ball, such as on second-and-short during a game where he averaged nearly five yards per carry, his number wasn't called. And when it made no sense to call a run, such as when it was second-and-10 at midfield late in the third quarter, Condell dialled up a handoff up the gut to receiver Bralon Addison. This isn't to take anything away from Addison, who has repeatedly proven he's tough enough to grind out hard yards, but the decision to run in and of itself was puzzling, and to do it with a receiver even more so.
More than once, it seemed like Ottawa called the right play for the wrong situation. I get it's easy to play armchair offensive coordinator and that the turnovers can't be laid at the play-callers' feet, but the job is about putting players in the best position to succeed by maximizing their talents. The Redblacks simply don't do that often enough.
4) William Fields' defence should be heated, because they played their butts off and deserved a better fate. When the defence holds the opposing quarterback to three completions and 54 passing yards, that should result in a win. Every. Single. Time.
The Redblacks' defence didn't just play well; they dominated. Of the Bombers' 14 possessions, 10 went two-and-out. Nine gained less than five yards. Winnipeg finished with 12 total first downs, but half of them came on their final two drives. Ottawa held them to 210 yards of total offence, generated four sacks, limited them to 29 percent on second down, and snagged an interception.
R-Nation has watched some great defensive performances wasted by inept offences (see the 2021 season as Exhibit A), but I'm not sure it's ever seen such a complete effort for naught. Ottawa's defence deserves even more credit when you consider they were put in some terrible starting positions by a pair of interceptions by their offence, a special teams fumble, and a long missed field goal return.
Leading the way for the defence yet again was star linebacker Adarius Pickett. The 29-year-old finished with seven tackles, a sack, a knockdown, and a handful of other pressures when blitzing off the edge. But his most impressive play of the night didn't make the stat sheet.
Pickett absolutely obliterated Keric Wheatfall at the start of the fourth quarter to force an incompletion. It was a thunderous blow, but most importantly, it was clean. Pickett hammered the receiver's chest with his shoulder, avoiding any kind of contact between helmets. Wheatfall was understandably shaken up on the play, but walked off the field which was a positive sign.
As for everyone else, Canadian linebacker Lucas Cormier continued his strong play of late, finishing with seven tackles and his first career sack.
Global defensive lineman Blessman Ta'ala notched three tackles and a sack, as did veteran defensive end Lorenzo Mauldin. Canadian defensive end Aidan John also had a trio of takedowns while linebacker Jovan Santos-Knox had Ottawa's lone turnover.
Quick shout-out to Canadian receiver Luther Hakunavanhu. He might not play on the defensive side of the ball, but he did well to make both tackles off of Brown's interceptions.
5) He was held off the stat sheet despite rotating in on the defensive line and contributing on special teams, but it was truly fantastic to see Daniel Okpoko back on the field and hustling around. The former San Diego State Aztec was injured last month and had to be immobilized before being taken off the field in an ambulance.
6) As the Redblacks' season has gone off the rails, it's become routine to see some members of R-Nation demand Bob Dyce be fired and replaced by special teams coordinator Rick Campbell. To those clamouring for such a change, I'd ask in all sincerity, what has Campbell done to earn that opportunity or make you believe things would be any different under him?
Ottawa's special teams have been mediocre to terrible in 2025 and have cost them multiple games. That trend continued against the Bombers.
Yet again, the Redblacks gave up a return touchdown, this time off a missed field goal attempt. Obviously, field goal personnel aren't the most fleet of foot, but it was a comedy of errors as seven different Redblacks missed a chance to stop the play with a tackle. No "attempted" tackle was poorer than that of Noah Gettman. Ottawa's replacement punter wasn't brought in to make tackles, but when that kind of return is happening, you have to do more than run right by the returner and into a block.
To be fair, when it came to actually kicking the ball, Gettman averaged 50.8 yards per punt and an average field flip of 39.8 yards. Not too shabby in place of punter Richie Leone, who missed the game due to the passing of his mother (our condolences to him from all of us here at 3DN).
As for the rest of Ottawa's special teams, as if kicker Lewis Ward pushing two field goals wide right wasn't bad enough, in his return from injury, DeVonte Dedmon fumbled a punt return right before the half that gifted Winnipeg three free points. Between the Ward misses, Dedmon's fumble, and the 128-yard return touchdown conceded, the Redblacks missed out on six points and gave away ten. Is it any wonder the team is dead last in the CFL?
I'm going to end this section by ranting about something I've already brought up half a dozen times this season. It was risky using Pickett as a returner when Dedmon was out, but with both Pimpleton and Dedmon dressed (as they were against the Bombers), it was coaching malpractice to expose your best and most irreplaceable defender by having him return kicks. I simply cannot understand why Dyce or Campbell continues to insist on doing it. Thankfully, Pickett hasn't been hurt, but it just seems so unnecessary. Why risk wrecking your defensive system for a short return that could be done by a number of other players?
7) With regular starting right tackle Parker Moorer out with injury, the Redblacks shuffled their offensive line. Drew Desjarlais, the team's starting left guard, shifted to Moorer's spot, and Sam Carson, the 12th overall pick in the 2025 CFL draft, made his first career start in Desjarlais' usual spot.
In theory, throwing a guard to tackle (a position he's never started at before) could have been a disaster. Desjarlais was actually fantastic, and the lone sack he conceded was squarely on the quarterback's shoulders, not his. Given that Desjarlais was frequently left one-on-one with veterans Willie Jefferson and James Vaughters, he more than held his own. As for Carson, he was mostly unnoticeable, which is what you want from a rookie in the trenches.
8) Ottawa's receiving corps put up some huge numbers, led by Eugene Lewis' nine catches for 155 yards. Lewis produced on deep shots, contested catches and weaved through defenders on short screens. Most impressively, four of his receptions moved the chains on second down. The 32-year-old has made at least one catch in his last 23 games.
As for everyone else, Justin Hardy snagged seven passes for 101 yards, several of which resulted in first downs. Bralon Addison had six catches for 69 yards and a touchdown, and turned four handoffs into 16 rushing yards. Rookie Keelan White and Pimpleton each made three catches, good for 31 and 33 yards, respectively. Dedmon made one catch for -2 yards, Hakunavanhu had one for five yards, and fullback Anthony Gosselin's lone reception was good for seven yards.
9) The announced attendance of 20,033 was Ottawa's highest since their home opener back in June. Unfortunately for R-Nation, they weren't witness to much of a performance. A year after going a franchise best 7-1-1 at home, the Redblacks are 2-5 at TD Place through seven games.
I wonder if the bigger crowd was partly the result of OSEG finally allowing tailgating at Lansdowne itself. The ability to tailgate on the Great Lawn behind the east end zone is something fans have been begging for since pro football returned to the city in 2014. Until now, it had been deemed a total non-starter.
Three hours before kickoff, R-Nation was allowed to set up tents and bring their own food and drinks. The only things prohibited were open flames and propane. There were also food trucks, a beer tent to buy drinks, and games like corn hole and foam axe-throwing set up for people to use. Fans had the option to drop off their tailgate material as of Friday night, and had until 8:00 p.m. on Saturday night to collect their stuff. Things seemed to be extremely well organized and fan-friendly.
It does beg the question, though, why did it take 11 years to happen, and why wasn't this something that started with the team's first home game of 2025? R-Nation is a passionate fan base, and in a season where the product on the field hasn't been a huge draw, lively tailgates could have been useful to pull people into the stadium.
Ottawa has two home games remaining, on October 3 against Saskatchewan and on October 18 against Montreal. Currently, only the latter is set to allow tailgating at Lansdowne. If it's not possible to implement for the game on the 3rd, hopefully, as of 2026, R-Nation will have the option to tailgate right beside the stadium every time the team plays at home. If so, I could see tailgate culture quickly taking off and making an already strong game-day atmosphere even better.
10) With the loss, the Redblacks drop to 4-10, and while the team is still mathematically alive, Ottawa's season is effectively over. Not only would the team need to double their win total to this point by winning four in a row, but they would also need help to pass the four teams in front of them, most of whom hold tiebreakers over Ottawa.
I'd love to be proven wrong, but by falling to the Bombers, the Redblacks' season is effectively over. When the story of 2025 is fully finished and written, it will be another chapter of Ottawa football history rife with failure and disappointment.