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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.

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 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.

Spending a lot of time looking at changing rules with the belief that this will help grow our league is such lazy thinking with little effort needed just debating and intellectualizing about it ad nauseum in house while they could be doing way more important things. Rules in our league is not the reason we can't compete with the NFL. It's $ and location so should not the CFL Commish and his team be applying a full court press on how they can attract sponsors, increase attendance by marketing that they are comitted to drawing the highest quality talent for fans to watch and cheer for?

For me it's not about $$ it's about finding that absolute force in the middle. Sayles reminds me of Vega. He's above average but not someone who is going to be dominate game in and game out. I wouldn't be disappointed if the Bombers signed Sayles, but I wouldn't want to place all my hope in him turning around the DL....if that makes sense.

I like the Cadwallader signing.

Is now a bad time to mention that with my new deal, I am now among the highest paid posters on MBB?

If we don't allow players the chance to go south as soon as they're able, they just won't come here in the first place. So we're still ******.

hodge also reporting that walters said both bryant and paddy want to continue to play and performed well last year. Which sounds like he’s hoping to lock both back up. I’m fine with running back with both of them and kola gone. I think we need to grab one free agent ol and let every one fight it out for spots.

It's a start. No one would say he'd turn things around but suddenly the Bombers have a player that teams actually have to account for on defense. It strenghens our middle. We have a run stopper & a pass rusher. it makes everyone around him on the D Line better. Just like on the OL the problems they had with Koala. How can players around him have played better when he was the worst starting center in the league? You wouldn't last very long as a GM shopping at the Dollar Store for players.

Walters better not say he has no money to sign quality CFL free agents.

Clercius has been exceptional in his extremely limited role. I've got no concerns with him pencilled in as the last wr and 2nd Canadian for this year. Now we do certainly need to draft some Canadian WRs behind that, preferably guys who can outrun slow offensive linemen. I think we can address this either with quantity picks or a quality pick. We could also take some swings on guys in free agency, bumping Clercius to a rotational role. Guys like Brissett, Gittens, maybe Ungerer, or Nield. We could take a flyer on Baker for depth. He hasn't been healthy, but that means he should be dirt cheap, and as a last wr/back up thats great value. We could bring back Bolo, again a low-cost guy who could slide back and forth between the last wr and the backup. I'd love that. We could also jump into the full-on reclamation mode pile with Bruggeling. He still has a tremendous combination of size and athleticism. Didn't we just go through this discussion, too? Am I crazy? Way more guys succeed in coaching who failed at their positions than all-time greats. Jake also wasn't always some awful mess of a player. He was a very good rotational guy and fringe starter at one point. Being as effective as he was at bullrushing and playing the run, in his prime, requires a lot of technique. The problem has never been his trade craft. It's been that he is so slow for maybe 3 years now; he is lucky to get in contact with an OL on a deep pocket when pass rushing. He's not reggie white or von miller or some thing, but those guys seldom become great coaches at the position.

First question, that's why I think we are in this situation where he hasn't resigned. I think he will need to go to free agency to see, teams are willing to overspend on ends coming off career years, not ones off multi-year career slumps. Now, he and his family are deeply entrenched in Winnipeg. I don't think they want to leave. The initial knee-jerk reaction of "I'm not taking a pay cut!" gives way to the reality that his career is soon to end, and his family is cemented in this area. He likely has some cushy post-playing gigs lined up here, leaving now to chase some cash could really cost him in his post-playing life.\ We did the exact same thing to Jeffcoat. He thought he would get much better offers and didn't, despite coming off a strong year; his limited games scared teams off. He chose to retire rather than play for cheap. We also played hardball with key DL free agents like Sayles, Nevis, Stove, Kongbo, etc. I would take any of those guys and Jeffcoat at the point we let them go, over WJ today. I'd pay more for those other guys than WJ, and WJ earned more than any of those guys would get. For the 2nd, I can't say for sure, as much as I would love to know the answer to that. Previous to this year, the thought of us walking from Jake and Kola was a pipe dream. The DL is on a rebuild, we need to bring in an outside FA, and we have some hungry young talents. Also, when our D was at its best, WJ was on limited reps. 19/21, we rotated the DL more than anyone does currently. We carried essentially 2 full DLs, and they all played meaningful snaps. And that is how the rest of the league runs their DL now. We built the paradigm, then lost the keys. Really, we lost the bodies, and our staff decided it's better to carry 7ol and a FB for short yardage sets that we never struggled with, rather than carry a full DL and rotate those guys in to take meaningful snaps.

as a fan, would love to see this -- hated how it ended with Sheed.

Agree. I think Rando would've been a league all-star on most any other playoff team. Yeah, that is what im really hoping for. That more important than having an impactfull free agency, and that is pretty important. This camp needs to be the scrapiest in ages. Any one with the age/wear of bryant/neuf should be going into camp under heavy scrutiny. But they are much better positioned to excel than they have been for a couple years. If both are as healthy as they can be going into camp, I expect the OL battle to be a real war. We've seen so many guys elevate them self to elite status from intense camp battles. Lawler, schoen, stove, desjarlais etc. So many times we've broken through a new star player, it's been because while they were great in camp, they had a real dog fight in camp too. On the Ol we have some real sleepers and interesting depth built up. Returning guys (to us, or the league) Vanterpool, Stewart, Dooley, Elsbury, Wallace, Eli, Vibert, and Poncius are all well poised going into camp this year. They've all been on Prs and or in TCs up here previously. They should be well-adjusted and understand a good chunk of the league's nuance. The game should be slowed down for them in camp this year. They all have significant upside. The Canadians and Vanterpool have high floors as well. If 1 Canadian and 1 imp from that list take the next step, our OL will be in a great spot. Plus, we already have imp rookies like Lindsay and Williams with tremendous upside. We should hit free agency for a guy, draft another depth piece, and sign a couple more good prospects. But a lot of heavy lifting is done on the OL, including the most critical addition by subtraction.

Yeah he was out of the league for a long time after Winnipeg (1999-2011) but since he returned, he's coached almost exclusively for the TiCats. One season (2012) in Montreal, one in BC (2018) and now Ottawa - that's pretty stable for an assistant coach in the CFL. Definitely a lot of other coaches who have moved around just as much (if not more) or that same time period. BLM probably regretting his decision not to retire right about now... Hamilton Tiger-Cats sign Chris Kolankowski following release from Blue Bombers - 3DownNation

We'll have a new Center so I expect Neufeld play will improne.

I would guess Tyrell Ford money

An American Draft would just be another step toward bush league irrelevance for the CFL. Like a point and laugh exercise.

Im not sure it would draw that much interest...there are so many Americans. How do you decide who goes #1? How do you ensure the guy who goes #1 actually wants to come? How do you decide who is able to be drafted at all? It would be weird to put effort into a draft only to have a bunch of guys get cut. I just dont see how it be anything but a gimmick. The football world is incredibly more dynamic than it was in the 60's/70's.

This is the thing for me with an American draft and (imo) one of the reasons why there is so much turn over on the neg lists. If these guys get drafted and then say no thanks to playing in the CFL, what was the point of drafting them? As it is now, if the team holding neg list rights gets told the player has zero interest in the CFL, they can just drop him and add someone else.

WHY not...based on career Sayles averages more tackle a yr, and only 1 less sack per....and is younger....so quite comparable really if you look at the play of both. Sayles as well is mire durable and misses less time....Not saying he is a guy you spend like a drunken sailor on but a fair deal he is a good piece on your dline, especially if you can add another interior guy to go along with Lawson and him

“I’ve been speaking to (Kramdi and Nichols) both a little bit. Having them back as key parts of the defence is really important. Redha’s our quarterback back there. Same with Deatrick. They’re both really good guys to work with. And they also have kind of the same mindset. We want to win. We want to win now. And we want to be good every day. They have high standards that I like and resonate with. And they help me be a better player. And they’re good dudes, too. They’re pretty funny.” Evan holm just thought was an interesting quote. Definitely regarding Kramdi.

Oh hell yeah....If we draft good...recruit and use FA effectively Corcorran shouldnt make it outta camp

in the cfl and football in general, full on tear down rebuilds seldom work. You’ve got to identify in season some talent worth keeping and developing then add. I hope we get the add part right this off season. yep. But not with an army of fringe roster guys who don’t play, like we did last year at wr. You’re right on ksb, but i’d take that in a heartbeat as the 3rd ni wr on the roster. But upgrade over corcoran.

ahhh....gotcha....but none the less a players career and his talent level has really no bearing on anything....as well as if never played...Some giys are just made to be able to coach, get points and strategy accross, and to actually demonstrate....and most hone that craft over yrs...and it's a rarity to just plop a gy into the pro coaching ranks with zero experience...and or zero idea if they can do the job....other than we really liked hi as a player...he so smart..etc...etc I would want the best players and coaches available on my team, not some gifted placement....

Cue the music from Deliverence.

They have...by subtraction.

Apparently Jovon Johnson hired as position coach for the Argos... From 3DN: "The Toronto Argonauts are set to hire former CFL standout Jovon Johnson as the team’s defensive backs coach, per sources. The 42-year-old has spent the last six years coaching at the high school and collegiate levels in the United States, most recently as the special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach at Gannon University."

I don’t think this should be a surprise. If you lock up any young All star player, prior to free agency you already know they’re going to be getting compensated by choosing not to make it to free agency.

Dinwiddie is well known for being an elite CFL quarterback of course. And lets not forget the incredible play of Danny Maciocia, who's play undoubtably propelled him to his first CFL HC gig. I won't even begin to mention Scott Milanovichs fantastic career as an NFL QB where he completed 66.6 percent of his passes for a total of 9 yards.

I think if he weren't cut out to be a DL coach, they would've put him in the SnC room. Mos loves his gym stuff. Most kids who come up here were 3-4 star in HS at best, with size or athleticism, who went to a big school and didn't play. Then transferred to a small school, played heavily in year 2, and finally found production. Then, immediately came out thinking they'd go to the NFL. It's most often that, or the same path in reverse. The ones that come up here normally need consistency and reps. Not just game reps, but 1-on-1 too. dl/ol and wr/db are the positions that by far benefit most of 1-on-1s at all levels of play. It's hard to improve at doing 1-on-1s at other positions. But even without pads, linemen can grow endlessly with more reps against someone able to challenge them. DL is one of the most well-supported positions for development, though. Both lines have a tremendous volume of very high-quality camps for any level. Which is why its also important to support it with a good position coach, but having an extra body to support jake in his first camp would be a good idea. he should be fine after that.

Yeah, you're right. Thomas isn't going to be a make-or-break for us at Dl coach. Howard was very solid here, though he had spectacular results a bunch of other places. Young too. But in general, we have really struggled to take talented kids and turn them into highly effective DL. And this is over a long period of time with many coaches. We've never gotten back close to having what Richard Harris brought. Jake won't be any significant down grade over the past couple years.

Personally I wouldn't be as critical hiring any existing coach but sitting through a season with an unqualified OC is currently affecting my opinion on inexperienced coaches. If Thomas had retired and coached at a lower level for a season or two before getting the position, i would have zero issues with it but I also can appreciate that a DL coach is nowhere near as impactful as an OC so it's not an apples to apples comparison.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers make Evan Holm CFL's highest-paid American DB - 3DownNation $180,000 in hard money in 2026 with up to $6k in bonuses. in 2027, he gets $185,000 in hard money with $55,000 being guaranteed.

And we haven't won a championship since. games are won on the LOS. That's something that never changes.

lol. Name one. Honestly. One. Just one cuz I can name 50 who weren’t. including some of the greatest coaches of all time like bud grant John madden and some dude named Vince Lombardi who played never played pro football. I mean really. Buck. Dinwiddie. Steinhauer millanovich macoica. I mean 90 percent of the coaches In both pro football leagues were just average to below average players or not at all even. Andy Reid sure was a hell of a player eh, I mean really.

We haven't seen disciplined WJ in a long time. But when JJ was here with the support inside both needed, WJ struggled when JJ wasn't on the field. Media types tried to invert that, because WJ was the guy who got credit and MODP nods. But post JJ, wj has been the worst version of him self, save for 2-3 games. Jeffcoat had 8 sacks in his last season here, where he played 14 games. WJ had 11 that year. Since then, WJ has played 35 games and totaled 9 sacks. Wj has always struggled with discipline. Once the ball is snapped, he relies heavily on instincts and gambling. This is most visible in how frequently teams have run read option off him and just torch him routinely, also his inability to get contain on most QBs, and how frequently he misses tackles on the QB when he gets into a good position. Despite his age and success, he has always been low on field discipline. When he was most effective in the past, he wasn't allowed to play rover. But seems to have been able to do it as much as he wants the last two years. What he has always needed to succeed is 1-on-1s. With guys like Sayles/Stove/Drake and Jeffcoat in the past, WJ didn't see a ton of double teams here. But ever since we moved on from Sayles and JJ, WJ has been the focal point of blocking schemes. And teams have realized that if you double him and get him roughed up, he will stop driving his rush lane. You can't put that genie back in the bottle. Teams are going to run read option on him in the run game, and double him with the pass. The way to make him the most effective he can be is to take away the other team's ability to game plan for him. The easiest way to do that is to take him out of the starting lineup. Rotate him as the 3rd end, and move him around. The only other way would be to surround him with ideal talent that requires double teams and support blocks. But that won't release him from his deficiencies in the run game. Could he be effective as a standard DE? I don't think so. He could've when he was younger. But I don't think he could now. He doesn't have the motor you need to fight through and keep pursuing disruption in the back field. We could make a useful role that is not a rover with him. It would have to start by limiting his snaps, though. This is really late for WJ not to be resigned. I suspect it's going to be a Jenarion Grant play. Let him hit FA, see where the market is, then try to get him back on a discount.

It's not that they aren't important at all. But the way people are talking about Thomas and acting like the DL has no hope now is over the top. The biggest factor to how well the DL will do will be the talent that is or is not on it.

Yes, last year was his 5th season. Glenn young coached the DL and Lbers before that. 17 and prior for a couple years was todd howard. But Richard Harris was the last time we had a great Dl coach. also worth noting is that Craig Roh was at least a half player half DL coach while he was here.

Edit - too early and not capable of reading.

The overwhelming majority of position coaches in our league are ex-players who retired and had zero coaching experience beforehand. Your complaint is unfounded. Jake's not our DC for cripes sakes. You can count the winning HCs of 4 out of the last 5 Grey Cups among them Osh, Mace, and Dinwiddie all retired and went straight into coaching.

You sure about that one? 🤣

If they had hired Derrick P. Jenkins from Paloma Tech University would you be as critical? or does the name “Jake Thomas” just make you feel things

wonder how much holm got? i’m mentally preparing for it to be kramdi level pay. Despite a few heavy over pays, a solid free agency period and draft will have us in A grade off season territory imo. Based on the addition by subtraction I have us on the fringe of an A minus/B plus. We need a cfl calibre qb coach, and need to address atleast two of wr/ol/dl in free agency with legit cfl starters. Then we need to have a solid crop of draft picks while adding depth with real upside also at wr/dl/ol.

The Stamps in one day lost DL Jaylon Hutchings, Rec Mario Alford & LB Jason Roberts to the NFL. That's brutal. I don't care what people say about how great it is for our players to make an NFL team, this just kills interest in the CFL. And really hurts a team like the Stamps struggling to find relevancy in a local market where barely anyone cares anymore. It's like the Stamps are perpetually rebuilding. NFL teams need to compensate CFL teams if they sign anyone under a valid CFL contract. This system is unfair the way it is. It could be us next time. Hate it.