There undoubtedly been stranger wins in the long and storied history of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, victories that featured bizarre endings, fluke plays and what-just-happened moments. Well, we now have a new entry to add to the ‘freaky victory’ list, as the Blue Bombers 26-18 decision over the Ottawa Redblacks Saturday afternoon in front ot 20,003 at TD Place seemed to be ripped straight from the pages of ‘Ripley’s Believe it or Not’. Consider two facts as evidence: -Winnipeg evened its record at 7-7 despite attempting just eight passes and completing three of them for a measly 54 yards. Just for the record, the lowest passing total in a Blue Bombers win is zero — set in an 18-14 win over Edmonton on August 25, 1960, in a game played in a driving rainstorm in which Ken Ploen attempted nine passes, completing none. -The Blue Bombers got a club record 128-yard missed field goal return score by Trey Vaval, the third longest in Canadian Football League history. He added another 71 yards on a second missed three, giving him 199 yards on whiffed field goals, a league record. “That’s about as gritty a win as I’ve ever seen, man,” said quarterback Chris Streveler. “Coming into this game we said, ‘by any means’ and that’s about as unique of a win as I’ve ever seen and, honestly, just a complete team effort. “Offensively we did not have a great day, but we ran the ball well and put some drives together when we needed to… I wished we could have got into the end zone more but defensively they had our back all day. They played amazing. Special teams-wise, Papi (Sergio Castillo) made his kicks, Trey with obviously the return and giving us good field position. That’s complimentary football. We know we got to get better on offence, but we needed this win. “We’ve won a lot of games just grinding it out like that and running clock, getting first downs and riding Brady (Oliviera) and the O-line leaning on guys. That’s what they did today.” STREV PUNCHES IT IN. 14-8 BOMBERS#ForTheW pic.twitter.com/iZXw45MjmW — Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) September 20, 2025 And when it was pointed out that the team is now 3-1 this season in his starts, however they may look, Streveler just shook his head. “Some of the craziest wins ever. Some of the craziest games ever,” he said. “But winning games is all that matters and I’m not concerned about me in any of this. I’m just concerned about our team, where we’re going, what we need to get better and I’m just really happy for our guys to get this win today. “As crazy as it is, it feels good.” More from our view in the TD Press press box on the Blue Bombers seventh win of the season… WHAT IT MEANS… The Blue Bombers not only ended a three-game skid, but got a critical victory given what happened Friday night in Calgary with the B.C. Lions knocking off the Stampeders 52-23. Both Winnipeg and B.C. are now 7-7, with the Blue Bombers owning the season series, and the Toronto Argonauts loss to the Montreal Alouettes Friday also keeps the path to a possible East Division crossover spot for the team that finishes fourth in the West. As well, the Stamps have now lost two straight and are now 8-5. “One of the most-gritty wins I’ve been a part of and maybe an ugly one, as well,” said running back Brady Oliveira, who rushed 20 times for 100 yards while Streveler added 72 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. “But it’s also one of the most crucial wins for this organization. We understand with B.C. winning… I look at that stuff as well, so I’m not being naive to the other outcomes around the league. We understand that we’ve got to win games, and it started this week with going 1-0, but this one was crucial for us and we got it done. “Oh man, that feels good. We put so much into it this week and to grind it out like that… a win’s a win.” THE SPARK… The Blue Bombers trailed 7-0 after the first quarter and were having difficulty finding any traction on offence — the first three possessions were two two-and-outs and an interception — when Vaval, the rookie returner, gave his squad a boost. Latching onto a missed Lewis Ward 43-yard field goal attempt near the back of the end zone, Vaval opted to take it out rather than concede. Moments later he was in the Ottawa end zone after the 128-yard return, just three shy of the CFL record, FYI. FLIP THE SCRIPT TREY #ForTheW pic.twitter.com/ZOn7bPG2tr — Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) September 20, 2025 “When I caught it I was actually kinda scared because I was still deep in the end zone,” said Vaval. “I thought, ‘I’m about to get tackled deep in our zone and my coaches and my teammates are going to be f’in pissed.’ “As I got going I thought, ‘Thank you, God’ and then I just trusted my blockers down the field. I knew I had to do something otherwise everybody was going to be pissed.” Vaval’s efforts were just one part of an outstanding special teams performance, as Sergio Castillo went four-for-four in his field goal attempts and the kick cover units weren’t just solid, but also saw Michael Ayers force a fumble that was recovered by Tanner Cadwallader which led to a field goal just before halftime. THE BACKBONE… The defence’s fingerprints were all over this one, too, forcing four turnovers — two interceptions by Cam Allen and a turnover on downs. Winnipeg was +3 in the turnover differential, which was massive given what was unfolding on offence. OUR BALL. CAM ALLEN COMES UP WITH IT #ForTheW pic.twitter.com/bbGybw2jsp — Winnipeg Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) September 20, 2025 “Honestly, I’m going to give all the credit to my teammates,” said Allen. “They’re making sure they’re lining me up in the right spot. Being a rookie they’re out there communicating with me. It’s them getting me in the right spot and me listening to all my coaches making sure I make the play for us. “… That first drive I felt like (Ottawa) was going right at me. So, going to the sideline, seeing the adjustments I needed to make and what they were going to try to do on the next drive… it was about being comfortable and I’m getting more comfortable back there.” NOTABLE Oliveira’s 100-yard effort gives him 20 100-yard games in his career — including receiving — and ties him with the legend Leo Lewis for third spot on the club’s all-time list. Nic Demski had his consecutive games with at least one reception streak halted. He was targeted just once and caught a ball, but the play was waved off due to a holding penalty meaning the streak stops at 84. Willie Jefferson did his thing with two tackles, a sack and two pass knockdowns. He now has 92 career knockdowns and 77 career sacks. KEY MOMENT: Strange as it sounds, we’ll reference one of the three completions as critical. Winnipeg led 20-11 in the fourth quarter with just under 11 minutes remaining when they began a drive on its own 15-yard-line. The attack then pieced together an eight-play, 66-yard drive that ended with a Castillo field goal, but critical in the drive was a Streveler-to-Joey Corcoran pass that covered 24 yards and converted a second and eight at the Winnipeg 53-yard line. KEY STAT: +3 It’s been a struggle for the Blue Bombers in the turnover differential department all season. So, a +3 is massive, with the two Allen interceptions leading to 10 points and the Ayers/Cadwallader forced fumble/recovery leading to another field goal. NEXT: The Blue Bombers are back home at Princess Auto Stadium next Saturday, September 27th at 2 p.m. to face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in what will be the club’s annual Orange Shirt Game. --- This story originally appeared at bluebombers.com and is republished here with permission.