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Moving on from Kola is another good move by Walters.

Kolankowski released, Schmeckel re-signed

Big Stan back https://3downnation.com/2026/01/26/winnipeg-blue-bombers-re-sign-future-hall-of-fame-blocker-stanley-bryant/

Just move on already

I always find it hard to browse the CFL's official free agent list so I re-organize it by position for readability. Still lots of time until free agency opens so this list is getting smaller daily.

Brady is the most complete running back in the CFL full stop. Rushing, receiving, blocking, no one does it all as well as he does. Now that doesn't automatically make the contract he got worth it, but there's worse guys to over pay than a home grown legit MOP candidate who can do it all at the position.

Nice..this is a key signing...one of the have to have back ones in my opinion as he just coming into his own...he physical..one our better tacklers...can play any of the db spots and guys dont realize hes 220+ pounds..and can cover...hed make a solid WIL too if given the opportunity...and was our best SAM last yr

Did the same logic apply when Sam Hurl was starting at MLB back in the day? Oshea using his roster in a suboptimal way is not a new phenomenon.... but I feel like we go around and around and around about this all the time.

https://www.bluebombers.com/2026/01/06/blue-bombers-sign-all-cfl-halfback-evan-holm-to-two-year-contract-extension

Schmek, improved before his injury, as a back-up rotational piece with Lawson, combined with his play on Jumbo packages, he is a perfect fit IMO. I could be wrong but I don't think he will be ready for the start of the season anyway...... Kola moving on and Thomos transitioning into coaching, in conjunction with signing, mostly Canadian starters thus far has been IMO a great offseason start...

I admit to hating on the Rourke hype as much as anyone. When he tore into the new commish and the dumb rule changes… I liked Rourke the player quite a bit more.

This seems like a not good move when you've got Shay and Smith needing reps....

wallace played the best of our guards outside of vanterpool. It was his first full season and first time being a semi regular starter. The fire is pretty far from his feet. Eli, is the one who needs to step up most. After that, it’s bryant. We have a good few imps to push him, and we are going to see some very good imp tackles hit free agency. Wallace is more than fine if he continues his progress at the same rate. imo, upfront money is the way to get him and at a good over all price. https://3downnation.com/2026/01/18/b-c-lions-gm-ryan-rigmaiden-sounds-alarm-about-nils-effect-on-future-of-cfl-qbs/ The only thing i’d add to rigmaidens comments is, it’s not coming. it’s already been here. And it’s nil+ nfls expansion of pr and pr compensation. We already don’t see the guys who have any real success at good schools. We’ve lost first and second pick over of the former pipeline schools like bigsky, basically once a qb is 4/5star in hs, we’ve lost out on an opportunity with them unless they fully crash out of the nfl or blow all that money. Even then, the usfl is more attractive to those guys despite the less money. the days of 80-90k qbs with some upside is over. I think a second salary increase should partly be used to split the cap with qbs. The floor needs to be 150-200k for us to attract the talent the league desperately needs. Teams should have a floor 1million on ar qbs. It’s an investment in the league and game it self. 500k for the starter, 250-300k for qb3 and 200-250k for qb3. If your top tier qbs are earning 750k-1million each, instead of 500-700k you have a much better ability to attract young qb with upside talent and success. Yeah. Allen to corner, kramdi to s and griffin to sam would be awesome. pretty much just sergio to re up now

Winnipeg Blue Bombers re-sign American DB Michael Griffin for 2026 CFL season - 3DownNation

Love it. Relentless lunch pail dude who does the dirty work on teams and does it well. Noticed him making a lot of solid teams tackles last year, but people tell me his teams game is much deeper than just chasing kicks...

Average league salary is pushing $130,000 with current cap number and the rookies still make under $90,000....significantly less for American rookies. These numbers aren't outlandish. Teams are ready to pay $250,000+ for decent Canadian OL and starters now. The "highest paid" whatever headlines today are kind of laughable considering 45% of the league are free agents. That's going to change by February.

I think its time to move on from Jefferson. He's going to be 35, he's had declining production the past two seasons, he takes plays off and he costs too much money. Too be honest, he seems to get a pass from many here, while other players don't.

Holm is outstanding... A worthy All Star recipient. Stoked to have him back.

History is on your side

IMO Johnson and Mack are the top 2 and then there's quite a drop off. Arguably a huge drop off from Johnson to Mack too. Johnson is a guy just hitting his prime, legit #1 target. Most of the rest are guys who are in decline. Some guys coming off injuries who might bounce back, like Bane. Could be useful depth but basically have a better version already in Wilson. Robustelli and Nield you could probably get at a decent number. Some upside there especially with the type of offense Collaros runs. Need the big bodies that can both find the chains and win a vertical route. If we had Demski, Nield, Clercius for Canadians, plus other depth/draft pick. Wilson, Mack, Robustelli, rookies/reclamation project for Americans....I'd be good with that. Think you can build a solid offense with that. I'd be in the hunt for Johnson, Mack, Robustelli, Nield, think about Brissett if he's willing to leave the GTA (doubt it), Rambo, consider bringing back Stearns as he developed some chemistry with Collaros. Wheatfall walks. Schoen I'd keep the line open but he's not going to be able to play until the fall if that.

At this point, I think we've brought back the right vets and released/not signed the right players... looking at our list of FAs, there aren't any more "must signs" on the list... Makonzo is an intriguing player that I would like to actually see play... but other than him, no one on that list needs to be back

yeah...was a mere formality I think of holdovers from last yr....we need not sign any of the rest now who are FA's.....Tho I would like to see Woods back and allowed to compete as he was by no means inadequate...but a victim of what went on here...let him battle with new signings we recruited an any FA we grab

Pretty polarized opinions on WJ. It'll be interesting to see how he does.

Pat Neufeld signs one-year contract extension with Winnipeg Blue Bombers - 3DownNation

Honestly having Streveler here on IR and basically interning as a coach would be a pretty smart move. Kind of thing an organization with cash to leverage should be doing.

And the most important move has already been made: at centre

When has Mandani ever been right about the CFL?

Neg list is far superior to an American draft IMO. It rewards your scouting as opposed to a draft which is voodoo when guys may never have an interest in coming north. Draft is an event they can market I am sure is the logic but it doesn't help the game.

I love the Kramdi hate lol Dude is a very savvy player, he’s got some ball-in-the-air issues that I have seen him improve on but overall I’m happy to have him Also, he’s nowhere near the 2nd highest paid DB in the league lol

The dumb move was to sign him to a two year extension before the season had even begun. You could see the decline coming and it got worse this season. Even if sticking with him, they could have easily got him for a lot less if they waited until the end of the season to offer an extension, especially since they refuse to renegotiate contacts. Bombers have a history of tying themselves to extensions for QBs on their way down. They would have also had the time to see if Wilson or a prospect from another team may have been an option at the end of the season and could have begun a transition if that opportunity presented itself.

600k for Zach is too much. He’s had a good career and earned his fair share. I mean you only take what is offered but I would have liked to see us have more flexible for salary at the quarterback position. We’re still paying him like he’s 2022 Zach and not 2026. Not the end of the world but I would have liked to see a deal similar to what Harris is making.

Hope it's more than a depth signing. As in Center.

Bob Cameron of all people gets a punt blocked! Returned for a td as well. Just pisses me off thinking about it even still. I also maintain that if Westwood makes those first few field goals we win that game. Jumping out 9-0 is a hell of a lot different momentum wise than 4-0

2001 was the most gut-wrenching GC loss for me: the drought, plus that talent gap between us and the stamps. You sure are right about that. The pre-ship teams played everyone so tough. The magic with finding Zach, moving BA to S, etc, in 19 was insane. And the 21 team was a monster that played like they had a chip on their shoulder. That unit could've hung 50 in every single game. Zach got to sit and chill in so many 4ths lol. I think the 21 atmosphere of being unbeatable from the outside, and the fact that we kept scraping our way back to GCs, softened things up a lot. Mos needed to tighten the reins in those years, not loosen them.

Nobody knows as much as Booch...😉

There's nothing wrong with a gm bringing vets to camp... but it's up to the head coach to assess camp and decide the vet has lost his job.

Not to mention Ayers and Woodbey... I hate this signing... not that I don't like Kyrie Wilson... because he has given us some really quality years.... I just hate the idea of playing a 33 year old (let's be honest, he's starting at WIL) on the down side of his career when we have multiple ealry to mid 20s guys ready to play and needing reps... just doesn't make any sense to me

womp wooomp

I have no problem with Elgersma chasing and NFL dream but sooner or later he’ll be in the CFL if he wants a pro career at QB. I may be biased but I think the sooner he comes to that conclusion the better off he’ll be.

Vaval being back is another positive. Walters off season so far has been very good.

https://www.bluebombers.com/2026/01/19/winnipeg-football-club-announces-installation-of-new-high-resolution-video-boards-at-princess-auto-stadium/

Well with the goal post fuckery necessitating more short placement punts he might be very useful

No. We already have a lot of money tied up in the secondary.

That tee shirt was from the Eastern Division Semi Final game played at Winnipeg Stadium on November 13, 1988. The Bombers won 35-28. Attendance was an embarrassment & a shock as crowds at Winnipeg Stadium in 1988 were fairly consistent all season long around 24,000. Hence, the idea for a tee shirt commemorating that game with the attendance on the front. The Bombers got on a roll behind qb Sean Salisbury in the playoffs. They took care of Hamilton at home & then beat the Argos 27-11 a week later in the Eastern Final at CNE Stadium on November 20th. Then they wrapped up the Trifecta on November 27th by defeating the heavily favoured BC Lions by a score of 22-21. in the Grey Cup at Lansdowne Park which featured DT Michael Gray deflection of a Matt Dunigan pass to an open receiver in the end zone. Not only did he deflect the pass up into the air but he caught it on the way down at the goalline to preserve the Bomber win & the Grey Cup Championship. I'll never forget that play. The story goes that the Bombers supposedly sold over 50,000 of those tee shirts. I don't know if that was true or not. There were fans that bought that tee shirt who never attended the game while claiming they did just to join the Grey Cup bandwagon. I can't confirm that number to be true or not but a lot of people did buy that tee shirt. It seemed everyone was wearing one & it was a hot ticket item for Christmas that year. I was there along with my wife as we were STH's in Sec V, row 29 & seats 12 & 13 at the old barn on Maroons Road. I never got a tee shirt, though. Michael Gray: Grey Cup hero.

This kinda started out as an erotic description.

plus brought in some good prospects for camp, and we’ve moved on from thomas. big win in my books so far.

Walters has brought back two elite Canadian starters for the offense in Brady and Demski, two potential starting Canadians on D in Lawson and Kramdi and an all star HB in Nichols. So far, I think his off-season work should be applauded not **** on.