Winnipeg Blue Bombers' Brady Oliveira catches a ball during practice ahead of the 111th CFL Grey Cup, in Vancouver, on Nov. 13, 2024.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
There’s a long list of things the Toronto Argonauts must do if they hope to upset the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Sunday’s Grey Cup game.
Near the top is containing explosive Bomber running back Brady Oliveira.
The Argos are planning a more-is-better strategy when it comes to preventing Oliveira from running wild at BC Place on Sunday.
“The thing with Brady is that he is so powerful,” said Kevin Eiben, who shares Toronto’s defensive co-ordinator duties with Will Fields. “His legs are built like tree trunks.
“You’ve got to have more than one guy on the tackle. We’ve got to swarm the ball.”
Defensive tackle Jake Ceresna may be the first point of contact with Oliveira. He said proper attire is a must.
“You’ve got to tighten your chin strap a little more and make sure you got your mouthpiece with you, because he runs the ball hard,” said Ceresna, who had 28 tackles, eight sacks and a forced fumble this year.
“He runs the ball hard. He’s not an easy guy to tackle. He’s slippery, elusive.”
At 5-foot-10 and 222 pounds, Oliveira is built like a fire hydrant. What he lacks in speed he compensates with brute force. He can make a tackler miss with a slick move or leave cleat marks on their chest running over them.
Oliveira led the CFL with 1,353 yards and 239 carries this year. He’s also dangerous as a receiver, making 57 catches for 476 yards and a touchdown.
“You can never forget about him,” said Toronto linebacker Wynton McManis, rolling a toothpick around his mouth as he spoke. “He’s great in the pass game, catches the ball really well out of the backfield.
“Once he catches the ball, he’s a running back. Then his instincts just kick in. A tough player to deal with.”
Oliveira was named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Canadian at Thursday’s CFL Awards. He joins Jon Cornish, Russ Jackson and Tony Gabriel as the only players to win both awards in the same year.
Toronto defeated Winnipeg twice this year. One game went to overtime. Both were decided three points or fewer. Oliveira had a combined 25 carries for 160 yards and 12 catches for 92 yards in the two games. He didn’t score a touchdown. He also fumbled once.
Oliveira did some muscle flexing in the Bombers’ 38-22 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders in last weekend’s West Final. He rumbled for 119 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries and added 22 receiving yards on two catches.
During the season, Winnipeg was third in the league averaging 111.7 rushing yards a game. The Argo defence was second in allowing 85.1 yards a game.
Safety Royce Metchie said one of the best ways to stop Oliveira is to not let him get started.
“We need to get as many guys to him as we can every play,” said Metchie, who led Toronto with 87 tackles, plus had an interception and forced two fumbles. “Once he gets rolling, it’s tough to get him down.
“If we can get to him early and wrap him up, that would help us as the game goes on.”
Oliveira is an emotional player. He leaps up after a big run, slapping himself on the helmet.
Eiben said one player isn’t going to stop Oliveira.
“Everybody has got to get to the ball and make sure when we get there, we are pushing him back,” he said. “He gets a lot of yards after contact. We’ve got to get at least three guys on the contact and try to push him backwards.”
The Argos are also good at forcing a team to put the ball on the ground. Toronto was third in the league with 20 forced fumbles during the regular season and recovered four fumbles in the win against Montreal.
“When you do make contact, try to get the ball out of there,” said Eiben. “We’ve been doing a great job of getting that ball out and turning turnovers into scores.
“That’s going to be a big emphasis this week. Let’s create some turnovers.”
Argos quarterback Chad Kelly will miss the Grey Cup after suffering a gruesome leg injury in the win over Montreal. That has made Toronto a heavy underdog heading into Sunday.
McManis said a strong showing on defence can give the underdog some teeth.
“We can make a statement,” said McManis. “We can come out, be physical, change the game. That’s our plan.”