Pete

of course certain gms overpay, especially those that are on losing teams.. "its not an overpay if the markets say.s" is a gross simplification. Its no coincidence that the gms doling out the biggest salaries are Hamilton and Edm. One gm does not determine the whole market> the playoff teams from ly are noticably absent in these signings. Or do you think Robbie Smith with 6 sacks deserves to be the highest paid defensive player in the cfl? (its not on the player its on the gm) I do agree that the Bombers need to be more aggressive esp when players like McEwen become available or Ceresna, Dobson not so much

Every team in the nfl/cfl gets the reports as part of their analysis. Its a tool like any other. Each one will put their own analysis along side of it. To dismiss it as otherwise because it doesnt agree with your view is myopic.

some can complain about how Walters has handled free agency this year but when you break down the signings they are all at or below perceived market value. Are any an overpay? VAUGHTERS 160 T .JONES 120 HAGGARTY 85 STERNS 85 MITCHELL 148 WHITE 90 LOGAN 108 HOLM 130 then you look at Lawler 275K, Ford 230K and Dobson 200k it would have been poor mgmt to match those or really any of the big names with the possible exception of Ceresna at 230

300k in new space doesnt go that far Vaughters +75k Holms +55k T Jones +30k Mitchel +60k white/sterns +30k plus additional increases for players like castillo and Tony Jones 25k min so far that totals 275k not a lot left over if your operating to ly , However I don't understand why we wouldn't exceed that given that we have the finances to do so especially this year,

When looking at our offseason , and assessing moves, it has to be taken in context of our injuries ly. Schoen, Lawton, Parker, and to a lesser extent Wilson missed most of last season.If any other team had signed players of that caliber it would be a good haul

Lawler left cause he wanted the money and we couldn't afford both him and Shoen so we kept the one thats the best value Of course llLawler wanted to stay ... At 275k

throw in likely another 150k for Metchie and thats more than our entire db core 5

According to 3 down Holm is at 135k while Kramdi ly was at 125-139 including 25k signing bonus)and depending on award bonuses (125 hard money then 14k on bonuses if he's named an allstar game or wins awards (ie Canadian/defensive/outstanding player in west and again for all canadian) so not quite as bad as that. Winnipeg Blue Bombers sign DB Evan Holm to one-year extension - 3DownNation

I'm not as concerned on our starting 4,, Jefferson, Woods, Lawton and Vaughters, but depth behind them is definitely a concern. Adams although athletic hasn't shown a lot. Smeckle and Thomas aren't cfl caliber dlinemen. At de we have only two rookie imports at camp Meanwhile in Edmonton their front four is now Barlow, Ceresna, Brinkman, and Robbie Smith. BC has added Betts, and Hendrix, Thank goodness for Calgary who in their wisdom cut Rose and Vaughters

Lawler continues to make out like a bandit, for a guy whose only hit 1000 yds once and then barely its crazy. It a recipe for failure because hes good they overpay him, then throw the ball his way 7-10 times a game 1/2 of which are contested and surprise hes hurt. https://3downnation.com/2025/02/16/hamilton-tiger-cats-make-kenny-lawler-cfls-highest-paid-non-quarterback/

It baffles me how players sign in free agency with gms like Hervey, they have to know that he'll drop them like a hot potato if he's at all unhappy with a player. But I guess their egos say it wouldn't happen to me.

Last year everyone had hamilton challenging in the east and bc winning the west esp when they had Rourke and Betts back.How did that turn out? It isn't always about the talent on paper. Free agency is way overhyped To me the best job by a gm has been mtrl and its not close.They have locked in a lot of key pieces for 2-3 yrs, signed a young qb for now and the future, and probably the least active in free agency - ( which is the farthest thing from free!)

<<<TONE DEAF

I really like this signing, Makonzo has a big upside. Can backup Kramdl or safety. Question mark is his ability to bounce back from injury, but likely why we got him on I assume a cap friendly amount. Low risk high reward

I see Lawlers going on about the reason he signed with Hamilton was he sees them winning the grey cup Once again its all rhetoric, he should just say that they made his dream come true as they made him the highest paid nonquaterback player in the league Kenny Lawler believes leaving Winnipeg for Hamilton 'a better move' than Edmonton foray - 3DownNation

Only need 7 the 8th is a fake national american which Bryant qualifies for as does Nichols and Jefferson.

Completely agree with this, going back with the same crew was a recipe for a mediocre saeaon

none of the backup qbs we have do I see as being able to succeed Collaros. Needed to bring in some newer options, However in the CFL with such a short preseason, and adjustments to the cdn game its very difficult to assess potential. To me they are all close to the same level.. Feels like we are bring in these guys to compete at training camp,

and Dukes is better ? kinda made my point.. Just saying Strev and Dukes or Dolegala arent better options

I think your being too harsh ,Patterson beat both Toronto and us last year and had several 300 yard games in the 6 games he started, and was 2-3 and 1. not bad for a qb in his first games. Streveler, whether its playcalling or what, had 1 3/4 games where he had significant minutes, hes 1-1 , threw for 127 and 170 yards. Lost to Calgary.

Also feel that Patterson has more upside in case Zac goes down. Dukes looked good til defenses figured him out (he seemed to have difficulty reading defenses) . He also had a superior oline in front of him. Theres a reason that the Argos turned to Arbuckle near the end of last season, (same applies to Doligala where Patterson beat him out in Riderland I like this move especially if we are using Strev as a running qb, where he could easily get hurt. I like Wilson but not ready to see us depend on him as a starter if needed. Utilize him on the pr to develop and possibly win a backup spot.

yeah but Booch can hound you for a while

Streveler signing doesn't make a lot of sense to me in that we need to find a Dru Brown as potential qb replacement. Strev didn't show a lot last year and was even stopped on 3rd and short where previously it would have been a given. He just takes playing time away from younger guys with potential We need to spend money on the oline if anything as we seemed to have little confidence in them against Toronto or Montreal.

Having 4 higher end recievers Ie lawler Schoen, Mitchell and Demski).doesnt make a lot of sense Theres only one football and it pretty much guarantees 1-2 will be underutilized esp with Zacs tendancy to overuse Lawler. Having White and Sterns gives us better depth against injuries which has been a big issue