Colin Unger

A lot of that has to do with CFL becoming ever more inclusive on what the definition of a Canadian is.

One thing working again Wolitsarsky is half the time when he makes I catch I thought it was Schoen who was targeted

Emilus had over a 1000 yards last season. There's quite a few Canadian receivers last year who put up some good numbers who flew a little bit under my radar.

Where do Samuel Emulis, Jovon Cottoy, Justin Mcinnis, Kiondre Smith rank?

Chances are by now they have a pretty good idea of where things are going with Schoen and Brady. We are so close now that is hard to imagine these players not seeing whats out there in the tampering window before decided whether or not to come back.

So im not sure why you're acting like the bombers are so hidden on their offseason strategy. Basically they big-ticket elite guys like Brady, Schoen, Jefferson, Bryant ect.. These guys are top priority and they aren't going to hand out a bunch of raises to mid-level guys like Gray before they have some clarity on the big-ticket players.

Id like that too but how do we actually pull that if considering there's likely other teams out there willing to offer him a starting job and a pay rise?

Basing it a lot of an article on CFL.ca. https://www.cfl.ca/2024/01/16/landry-bombers-ready-to-navigate-free-agency/ Running back Brady Oliveira, the CFL’s Most Outstanding Canadian in 2023, tops that list but he is by no means alone in the category of key veteran players whose decisions set the tumblers on everything else clicking. Receiver Dalton Schoen’s contract is about to expire. So are the contracts of offensive line stalwarts Jermarcus Hardrick and Stanley Bryant. And defensive lineman Jackson Jeffcoat. To name a few. The Bombers have a big list of primetime players on the potential free agents list. “There is a delay while we sift through all of that,” explained Walters. “But once one or two, three of those guys get locked in and we have a ‘here’s the direction we’re going,’ then I think the rest of things will move fairly quickly.” “Once your highest price point guys get slotted in, or you realize you can’t get them, then the ball can get moving on everything else.”

Any player who's a pen Right but you have to ask yourself why some of these guys haven't re-signed yet? The strategy clearly seems to be to get the top players to commit first and then with what money is left you try and sign the players of lower value. If Gray was untouchable he'd be signed already.

Im not taking any of this lightly. But im also looking at two elite players who played for scratch last year and need to get paid. I wouldn't let an elite player go just to keep our 5th best offensive lineman when we have Dobsen, Tui and 3 high draft picks. If we have to make some significant salary cuts this might very well be a good way to go about doing it. Exactly! I don't want to lose anyone either. I want to keep him but i think he's probably going to make a heck of a lot more than the 9th pick in the draft this year and that could be a way to Brady or Scheon. My preference is for Kyle to work magic again and keep everyone we had last year. I just don't know if thats going to be possible.

I never said that. Do you think twisting what I said for your purposes makes you a strong man? The replacements are the guys we already have on the roster. Like Tui, Dobsen, and Jeremy Murphy. The draft picks are to rebuild the depth after elevating some younger players. That was made clear in my original post. Looking at the roster now what's the drop off from Gray to Tui vs the drop off from Schoen to Ontaria Wilson? The drop off to Tui is nothing. He's probably better than Gray.

He's very replaceable with guys like Tui and Dobsen ready at any moment. There's a reason he's currently unsigned and not mentioned as first priority when they talk about guys like Brady and Schoen. I don't think that Gray grades out that well in pass protection. He seems to get tricked on what his assignment is too often.

The extra second could really come up big the way the bombers might have to manage their cap this season. Should be able to get 3 quality backups from the draft and a bunch of developmental and special teams guys. If we end up letting O’Leary Orange and Wolitarsky go for example with a plan to start the receiver we drafted last year to save money we can draft a receiver to backup at rookie salary as well. Ditto for the offensive line if we let Gray go we’d be in scenario where we’d likely draft one or two backup offensive lineman. Might really have to get creative this season to get all the top players we want signed.

Sign them all and let god sort it out. Personally id be fine with going over the cap and losing a 1st round pick to keep them all around this year. Is a low 1st round pick worth losing Brady over when we are in win now mode.

I think that what I was saying was missed a little bit based on these responses. I think he's a top-caliber receiver. We know that. The bombers know that. But I'm not sure that outsiders know it. In the same way he's not getting NFL interest the way a taller or faster receiver would I think other teams in the CFL aren't going to offer him Lawler or Lewis type of money. I don't think he's going to be holding some kind of grudge against Winnipeg for not giving him a raise last season. He's spent a year on a team with a guy like Lawler who almost ruined his career and long-term health by taking top dollar in free agency. He'd be wise to consider playoff money and his health before deciding to take top dollar. Typically in the CFL the worst sitatuion will pay you the most money and the best situation will pay you the least.

I would assume that Acklin would be released if they signed Schoen. I don't think Schoen is going to get anything near 300k as top receivers have got in past years. That market had been driven up considerably by teams like Edmonton who were so lacking in talent they could afford to overpay for Lawler then Lewis. I also think that Schoen doesn't have the athletic skillset that makes teams salivate at the prospect of adding a guy like Lawler, Lewis, or even Ryhmes. He's a quality receiver but he doesn't fly off the page and part of his success is based on the team he plays for and his connection with Zack.

Is the Schoen to Ottawa narrative still intact with the D Rhymes signing? If they pay up to get Schoen as well probably a good receiver or two shake free from Ottawa in the process. We don't need to have Schoen in order to remain viable. I would argue that Streveler is more important because we can't risk a situation where the season is over if Zach gets hurt by going with a bargain-bin backup qb like Prukop. I would sooner have Streveler/Acklin then Prukop/Schoen.

Just not interested enough to offer anything higher than a 5th round pick? Or is it just a case that only Ottawa was willing to offer a guaranteed return whereas other teams were not convinced they'd be able to sign him. The advantage Ottawa has is Masoli will likely not be ready for the start of the season and isn't guaranteed the starting job. That's gotta be appealing to Brown. He's got a legit shot to start in week 1 and if he performs well they may very well relegate Masoli to backup.

Seems like there wasn't considerable interest in Brown. Ottawa basically willing to give up a 5th in order to get their QB situation sorted out ahead of free-agency. Winnipeg took what they could get. Does anyone know who the team teams are that had the most Canadian snaps last year? Those two teams get an extra 2nd round pick.

Personally, id rather have Streveler than Scheon. Assuming Brown is moving onto a situation where he can compete to start we are left without a backup QB. You aren't going to recruit a backup qb who can immediately help you in that role. Streveler can fill that role and also adds a huge element to our regular offense. With the XFL/USFL reducing jobs by 50% and now having a few years of vets there's going to be a lot more young talent available and we should be able to recruit some receivers. Personally, I would move Lawler back to the slot where he is more prolific. Obviously, i want all of our guys back plus Streveler. Will be interesting to see how it all pans out. Im awfully interested to see how he would do running the entire offense. His passing skills did progress in the NFL over the coarse of his time there and it would be interesting to see if that improvement would translate to the CFL.

Personally i prefer Streveler to Dru Brown. With everyone healthy he helps the team win more than Brown does and we are trying to win Grey Cups. I would think he'd be coming in with his special package on a regular basis like the good old days.

Maybe Andrew Harris has a year left in him

I agree with the sentiment that there are some readily available american runningbacks who could get the job done for us behind our offensive line. And with the XFL/USFL merger, there's going to be more opportunity to recruit rookies this season. Have said that i think the priority is Brady. He's a Canadian, a local product and he IMO has intangibles that are valuable to the team. No American runningback is going to care about the community as much as Brady nor will they understand to the same degree what it means to the fans to win. I see Brady as someone will can will this team to championships and can be a positive infectious force in the locker room helping young americans to be motivated by more than just a shot to look good and get into the NFL. Have said that we can't break the bank for him. He deserves a raise but not to be the highest paid non QB on the roster.

The best situation for Brown might be to sign a one-year deal in either Hamilton or Calgary and hedge his bets that both teams will look at other options than their starter at some point in the upcoming season.