Blue In BC

3 receptions for 21 yards. You really want to use that as a metric? lol

Yup. It doesn't make sense. Roster declared. 4 players moved to 1 game IR including J. Jones and D. Mitchell. Lofton to 6 game IR which I expected unfortunately. That leaves combined depth on OL suspect with Neufeld also nicked. No other import OL retrained on PR. It they knew Lofton was out long term why did they make that choice?

I'd like to see him in a game but what he might bring is wishful thinking we see early in most seasons. I understand what he might bring in those types of play calls on offence. I also understand that eliminating a downfield receiver brings the defence closer to the LOS. That's a concern even above what it does with the ratio. It's not like we can't do those things with Peterson. Being able to rotate him with a slot is not the same as replacing him with a RB on every down.

Would you expect Cooley to rotate with a receiver or Oliveria? Again the point is that if Cooley is a DI we lose one import on defence. I don't see the trade off in taking out Vaval or any other defensive player to get Cooley on as a DI. IDK. Maybe Cooley is everything some posters think he might be. Too small a sample and none of it against 1st string defenses.

Last year was last year and we often started 9 Canadians. For game 1 we're probably down to 7. If Kelly and Mazonko weren't injured I'd be ok without a DB as a DI. That plus he was getting the work as the returner. Others had some reps but he was getting the most. It doesn't guarantee that sticks but I'm guessing it does until Logan returns. Noting that our early season returns were not that good and musical chairs. Vaval played a lot at DB in pre-season and practice. It's debatable whether we need him as a DB but a fair argument / question. Posters seem to get excited about a new RB they want on the AR. Maybe Cooley is that guy, but is he a better option than any of the 3 receivers ( excluding Schoen ). Yes, it's a possibility but I'd be surprised. I see Lofton confirmed as out but Neufeld is now questionable. That changes things possibly both LG and RG. Vanterpool might have been choice 1 at LG ( still might be ). Who lines up where is now flip a coin. 3 import OL means we lose that extra import on defence. Still curious who you think are the 2 other DI's, with or without Vaval on the AR as a DI assuming one of the starting receivers does the returns.

We'd like 2 import DT's but I don't see it happening. Wilson, Jones, Jones, Ayers and Griffin with only 2 starters and 2 DI spots available. If Vanterpool doesn't dress we get one import that dresses instead. I've suggested that would be Griffin. Person is another choice as a DI. So if 1 of the Jones and Wilson are starting, pick your 2 other DI's besides Castillo and Vaval? As I've suggested Vaval would also be depth at DB. Using a different returner doesn't resolve that issue. Cooley would be a luxury with Oliveria getting virtually every touch. The other DI choices would see the field often in rotation. I guess we'll see the depth chart tomorrow.

I think Vaval has to be on the roster as DB depth. In that sense he sticks as the returner until Logan is ready. Woods, Vanterpool and Ayers come off IMO. If we start Vanterpool, that creates a problem and we can't afford to lose Griffin as depth at SAM. Not sure what you meant about Weitz for Wallace? I think Bailey in for Weitz because he will be depth at DE. Don't need another LB in Weitz.

That's the issue. We don't know when or if Kelly or Makonzo might be available. That's disappointing because our depth at DB in general is thin as a result. Kelly was getting a lot of reps in 2024 and I would think Makonzo would have as well this year. Laval will be on the AR as a returner while Logan is out. Griffin is the back up at SAM but is essentially a DB cover guy too.

Maybe. We can't keep all those import LB's on the AR. Who gets moved and to where is a giant question at the moment. LOL. Yes but it was against the Riders and they suck.

Bailey would make more sense than Weitz IMO, if we choose to roster the 2nd global. At least he would get some reps at DE. However, it comes at the cost of a Canadian and I'm not sure where we'd trim. 3 Canadian LB's, 1 receiver drafted and Peterson acquired in trade all added to the roster for 2025. That said, that's a lot of Canadian LB's. Until they sort out the import LB's ( 4 counting Griffin ), I'm not sure what we're doing exactly. Our DE's in 2024 were not good except for Jefferson. Adding Vaughters is great but depth? Yikes.

We're allowed 2 global players on the AR. We don't NEED 2 global players on the AR.

Initial roster is disappointing and confusing. Too many imports at the moment. All the LB's retained but none of the rookie DL?

Dandy is an import DB. Are you suggesting he beats out Bonds at CB? There isn't room for him to be a DI at the moment. It looked like Vaval got more playing time at DB than Dandy so I'd rank him higher on the depth chart. I can see any or all of Dandy, Allen, Gowan and Avery on the PR to start the season. All and all a good group of rookie DB's to choose among.

Yeah, I thought he might have to fight to win his spot. I found it unusual how many import OL we brought in this TC, so that must have been another indicator. Lofton not practising won't help him either.

Interesting. Parker and Griffith could both make the AR by not having Bridges as a DI. Gowan is getting a lot of good press so far so he might be this year's " find " in the secondary. Having Parker as a back up wouldn't the worst situation. I had expected Griffith to be the safety but now there may be more of a competition with Parker.

I didn't think T. Jones was at risk of losing his spot but I'll take your word for it. Re-signing Wilson surprised me due to his injury history. Since I expected J. Jones to win the starting spot at WIL, who would then be the starter at MLB? I'd like to keep Ayers but don't know much about Persons although I thought he'd more likely end up on the PR to start the season. Are you suggesting T.Jones at MLB and Ayers at WIL with Person possibly as the DI? The improved depth with our Canadian LB's may influence some or all of this. Getting Shay signed would be another good step. Regarding my comments about Parker: In theory he's fully ready to go and a very good player. OTOH, we have about 10 rookie DB's fighting for a spot. While I expect him to win, having missed 2024 does put him in some jeopardy IMO. That and the fact we always find great new DB's. D. Lawson can't be discounted either.

I think Parker and Bridges are just being given opportunity to determine their versatility in other positions. I'm not saying either are at specific risk but we have 10 rookie DB's fighting to make the roster. COMPETITION at both of those positions is somewhat open. It's only day 1 so in the grand scheme of things doesn't mean much yet. It's whether specific players get extended looks at specific spots for several days. I'm not quite sure what to think about Lawson and Schoen moved to " injured veteran " list. Does this mean they may not be available to start the season? That changes several things.

Yes that was a great hit and probably a momentum statement.

I was adding to my earlier post. I was making the point that it would have been more difficult to make the roster as an import. I'd also say adding players to a neg list is also taking a flyer. IIRC E. Barriere was a neg list player in 2024. It's always hard to determine which players come to camp that were neg list players. Sometimes we hear about those that succeed but don't hear about those that don't succeed. IMO having been on a neg list doesn't give me any more confidence than any other signings the team makes. There aren't really any stats to prove or disprove where we have the most success. Tryout camps, neg lists etc. There are probably 30 - 40 players on every teams roster that will be out of the CFL when final rosters are declared. In theory, he'll make the PR at the least since we only have 4 global players. Sheehan should make the AR although we signed a new global punter. One or the other will be released probably. There is a ratio benefit for a global if he shows some level of talent. You can't add another import instead of a Canadian but you can add that 2nd global player as a choice. Note that I have no particular bias for or against. Just looking at the history of global players being successful even if he was previously classed as an import.

If a player on any neg list was a guarantee of success then sure. We see lots of players on neg lists that become total busts. Don't we think highly of every player we bring to TC? Why didn't we sign him when he was still considered as an import rather than waiting for him to qualify as a global? We had players in TC 2024 that were on our neg list and failed to make the roster. Just saying that the PR and highlight reels about every player is always positive. All the power to him to show he belongs. The issue is that as an import he has a more difficult time making a roster as either a starter or a DI because of the ratio. As a global player ( we have 4 ) 2 are punters so he only has to beat out 1 player if we choose to roster a 2nd global on the AR.

Well I suppose some global player besides kickers /punters might be the one that is actually a good player. It's a little like finding quality QB's. More failures than successes. This is the 5th or 6 year of the global program and I can't identify any global player that made a real impact and actually earned an AR spot. Global players make rosters by mandate not by prowess. Maybe Bailey is the 1st but that's a TBD. He might beat out a Canadian but does he actually beat out an import if it wasn't a ratio issue. IE: If he had to qualify as an import does he beat out the others? Sure he's got a good attitude etc etc but he's not the only one.

My expectation is that we have 3 imp LB's. Jones, Jones and one of Wilson or Ayers. My only question is who starts at WIL and who ends up as a DI. I don't think we see a Canadian LB starting anytime soon. Progressing with more reps as the season progresses and possibly in 2026. In 2025, It's clear in my assessment that we have 3 import LB's on the AR. I'd be happy if one of the rookie Canadians proves me wrong but we're paying those imports $115K-$130K each ( except Ayers ). While that isn't the only measurement of who makes the roster it certainly seems like the teams expectation of what we'll see.

I understand the concept but have no doubt that Logan will be a DI. It's essentially what we did when we had Grant in 2023 and then Whitehead as as the returner spot. An import receiver came out.

He doesn't have to be a DI but if we only start 7 Canadians then he almost definitely will be a DI. That's the advantage we had starting 10 Canadians in 2024 allowed us to do something like that. So yes we added some very good depth Canadian talent but we lost at least one Canadian starter and two is we a 3rd import OL starts. The depth chart above is interesting but we all know it's fluid. Interestingly is that 3 players released still show on the chart. No matter. It will all settle out shortly

I'm expecting we have an import DB as a DI. We're bringing a boatload of rookie DB's to TC. I get your comment about pass pro but it depends on the quality of the Canadians not the quantity of OL. It's the quality of the Canadian OL that is the question over the quality of a change to an import. It's a 50/50 question at the moment. I don't think we can say anything more than Randolph has an edge over the other imports, but that could change quickly with many rookies in camp.