A week off can do wonders. Just ask hard hitting football players.
“It’s always good to get away mentally,” Winnipeg Blue Bombers running back Andrew Harris said. “Physically it’s what everyone thinks about.”
The Bombers returned to practice on Monday following their final bye week of the season. It was a welcomed break for players who just came off a stretch of 11 straight games, eight of which were wins.
“Those are things that carry over for the confidence of your team,” quarterback Matt Nichols said. “It’s always nice going into bye weeks on a good note.”
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Winnipeg comes back from its time off still holding onto second place in the West Division. One thing did change during its bye week though – the elimination of full contact padded practices.
“As I’ve gotten older, I’ve noticed my body can’t take as much pounding,” linebacker Kyle Knox said. “It sounds nice to the ears.”
The CFL made the adjustment to help reduce the risk of injuries. Teams were previously allowed 17 padded practices a season.
“It’s just something you need to get use to because you won’t have them anymore,” defensive back Taylor Loffler said.
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Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea doesn’t believe the change will affect how his team trains for games.
“We’ve had two practices a week every week so far with no pads and managed to practice,” O’Shea said.
“I think certain players need contact more than others. They’ve got time on their own to get what they need done.”
The Bombers first game back is Friday against the East Division-leading Ottawa Redblacks at Investors Group Field.
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