Dascow

He's a far better offensive lineman than you'll ever be!!!! Debatable.

Your comment is a contradiction.. If hes and upgrade we should attempt to sign him at a rate that we can justify. If he is a great RB, then he should be a great RB on a team that can setup similar situations for him to excel.. But seeing what has happened here the past 5 years, i guess we might not be able to create the situation. So no simpson, or ford.. Then who? I can see us letting ford walk if he is really overpriced, but why Simpson? Inuries alone i suppose/ We may end up with a really shitty RB when we probably need a great RB to take the pressure of our willy. Your second sentence explains it all. The rate we could justify paying for Sheets is not a rate he will accept. On top of that, he's already said he will go back to Saskatchewan if the NFL doesn't pan out. Plus, running backs are a dime a dozen. Probably the easiest position on the roster to replace.

Didn't Morley practice at center last year and he was awful at it? He couldn't get the long snaps down in shotgun.

The Bombers should save their money with Glenn and rather spend it on up coming free agent o-linemen like Bourke. I would have no problem over paying for a player like Bourke. Andrew Jones and Wyane Smith are still on the market as well. I don't know how good they are but I do know that both of them have started at some point. Without an offencive line it doesn't matter who is starting at QB. With a serviceable O-line I think Willy can be very successful. On the Poblah matter: To blame Mack for picking Poblah is revisionist history. Every GM in the league would have used their first pick on Poblah if given the chance.

Now that the Bombers have their QB they need to focus all of their time, energy and resources on building the pieces around that QB. More specifically they need to focus their time, energy and resources on shoring up the O-line. Not on another back-up QB. To give Willy the best possible chance, I would trade as many assets as it takes to bring in some quality linemen. If Willy doesn't pan out then at least the Bombers will have a solid front which means a better situation for the next guy. Although if we give Willy a good front 5 I think he will be successful. (That opinion is based solely on optimism... ) Success in the football world starts in the trenches! I'm a 49er fan and that's exactly how they did it. One year they used 2 of their first round picks on O-linemen. It wasn't popular with the fans then because it wasn't that "sexy" pick they were hoping for, but it hindsight it was very smart.

I really hope they haven't given up on Jade Etienne. We were just starting to see something from him last year.

To sign Burris they would have had to a least match Ottawa if not raise the offer a little. So if the Bombers are paying 460 or more for Burris then they wouldn't be able to sign Willy as well. That's just too much money tied into QB's. Especially when you have a guy like Muamba who, if his stint down south doesn't work out, will be looking for a big pay day too. There is no way the Bombers could entice Willy to come here to be a back-up for less money. Now if the Bombers sign Willy, they will have more money to sign other key free agents and if Willy pans out they will potentially have him for more than one or two years. So while Henry Burris is 6 years into his retirement Willy could be still going strong. So to me it's a choice between signing a guy that will help your offence now and maybe next year or signing a guy, for a lot less money, that could help your offence for the next decade. It's true that Burris is a proven commodity and Willy is not. At the same time though you have to ask yourself why 2 teams in the last 3 years have given up on him? I personally would have rather had Burris for the 375k that the Bombers were offering AND Willy, but obviously that is an impossibility because Ottawa wants to pay him more than he's worth. In this case I think Walters made the smart move. If he doesn't land Willy, then I might throw my hands in the air...

Sign Glenn when he gets released. Sign big Willy when he hits free agency. I'd much rather over pay for an NI offencive lineman than for Burris.

What was Glenn making last year? (What would he be making this year?) If Ottawa came close to matching what the Bombers offered Burris, which was reportedly 375k, and Glenn is making 250 - 300, then I don't see how Ottawa could afford both. If those are the numbers then it's possible that Ottawa will be forced to let Kevin Glenn go. But like I said, I don't know what the numbers are...

I don't see Poblah as potential anymore, and trading him for a proven player is a step in the right direction. Joe Mack loved 'potential' and look where it got us. I just think though, that if Wally is looking at moving Banks it's because he's one step away from cutting him, think that Walters could have played a bit more hard ball rather than letting Wally dictate the move. Some people love to take chances on those potential guys I suspect that there could have been some better asset management gone on. I don't give 2 shits about losing Poblah but so far I am not convinced that Walters is a good trader. I know Wally likes riding on top of the wave and all, but do you think that Wally would be willing to just cut a respected leader and DB like Banks though, even at 34? Even if he's the team's 3rd best corner, that seems like a bad team move to me. Unless he's lost a couple of steps and is no longer good enough to stay on the field. True leaders are in short supply... as long as Banks can still ball on the opposition's 3rd/4th best receiver, I'm good with this trade. Yeah he trades them to someone else... the issue here to me is that more and more it seems like Walters pays sticker price for guys in trade, sticker price is sucker price. I hear what you are saying. Keep in mind, he's new at this. I am hoping that with some experience that is a skill he can learn. He is not getting fleeced in any of these trades so that is a good start, but like any rookie, he needs to show growth.

I don't see Poblah as potential anymore, and trading him for a proven player is a step in the right direction. Joe Mack loved 'potential' and look where it got us. I just think though, that if Wally is looking at moving Banks it's because he's one step away from cutting him, think that Walters could have played a bit more hard ball rather than letting Wally dictate the move. Some people love to take chances on those potential guys I suspect that there could have been some better asset management gone on. I don't give 2 shits about losing Poblah but so far I am not convinced that Walters is a good trader. I kind of feel like Poblah was one step away from getting cut too though. He's injured a lot and he can't catch and because of that I wouldn't put him ahead of any of the non-import receivers that are currently on our roster. (Other than the new guys that have just recently signed, because I don't really know how good or bad they are.) If Kolhurt re-signs, it would be tough to get him on the field. Obviously there is some risk with this trade. Trading a young NI for an aging vet. It's possible that Kito could become the next Kamau Peterson, but I just can't see it. Hopefully Banks can bring some more leadership that is dearly needed on that Defence.

I would have to agree with this sentiment. Yesh! It's tough being a Bomber fan these days...

Could Bucknor get a look a safety?

Henry Burris should be the last resort. If they can't get either Collaros or Willy then look at Burris. It's funny that this article makes no mention of Drew Willy and that he might also be an option. I wonder if that's how the Bombers feel or if Penton just missed the obvious? Something else I found funny in the article was this line: "he would be an excellent mentor for the team's young pivots." I think Burris would be fine, as long as he's starting. Once he has to sit down for the younger guy I could see him pouting on the sidelines and being more of a distraction then a mentor. The fans would turn on "bad Hank" so fast...I can't see it being a good situation. That being said, with Burris at the helm I could see this team reaching a 9 - 9 record and so after the debacle of last season the football club may see that as something they need to bring to the fans. A 9 - 9 team would at least be in the hunt for the play-offs, although I don't think it would be enough to make the play-offs in the West. I just can't see a Burris/Bombers relationship ending well though.

I think that is a product of the last couple of years. Losing LaBatte was a huge blow to the psyche of many Bomber fans. I don't know why but lately I can't help but feel the worst is coming.

This. His defensive scheme is very unorthodox and once it's figured out, which like you said usually happens by Labour day, it gets picked apart. I really hope this doesn't happen.

I am thinking along the same lines as you are. Whatever the situation with Goltz and Burke was, it is sort of irrelevant because Boltus could have also been cut at any time and replaced by Brown. But Marcel never did that. He stuck with his guy despite Boltus' obvious short comings. That scares me that something that obvious was never addressed. I agree with you Brandon, if Boltus is back at training camp, that is a big red flag.

If Burke said he didn't want him playing...you think MB would go against that? This was not the first time Burke had said a player would no longer be playing or performing in a certain position due to a mistake. Burke was pissed at Goltz because he was pouting. The whole "Burke didn't want him playing" is nothing but conjecture, unless you can show me some kind of proof otherwise. If Burke didn't want him playing then why keep him on the roster? The Bombers had other options at QB. Putting Boltus in there was a detriment to the team and any O-Co worth their salt would have realized that and made efforts to change that. That decision in my mind is on the OC. Why can"t it be both? It could very well be both. That doesn't exonerate Marcel in any way though, does it?

If Burke said he didn't want him playing...you think MB would go against that? This was not the first time Burke had said a player would no longer be playing or performing in a certain position due to a mistake. Burke was pissed at Goltz because he was pouting. The whole "Burke didn't want him playing" is nothing but conjecture, unless you can show me some kind of proof otherwise. If Burke didn't want him playing then why keep him on the roster? The Bombers had other options at QB. Putting Boltus in there was a detriment to the team and any O-Co worth their salt would have realized that and made efforts to change that. That decision in my mind is on the OC.

Every other team in the CFL has an established starter so I think Willy's odds of starting are still better in Winnipeg even if Winnipeg did sign Collaros. Like you said, Collaros still has a lot to prove.

Is there something I missed? Why do you guys think it was Tim Burke making that call and not Marcel? Was that ever stated anywhere? Because normally the offensive co-ordinator is going to send in the short yardage team. And normally it's the offensive co-ordinator that will decide which players are in the short yardage package. That's what makes him the O-Co. You know...co-ordinating offence and stuff...

This hire is giving me flash backs to the countless times Marcel kept putting Boltus back in there for 2nd and short situations, despite that fact that it was obvious to everyone, except Marcel, that boltus was awful at it. Game after game he kept putting him back in and game after game we would do a collective face palm. It was so bloody obvious, (and easy to fix.), and yet it was never corrected. This hire really concerns me.

Based on the news in the Free Press article, leaving Kohlert unprotected was an astute tactical move. It's something I feel this club has lacked over the years. If it works it's a brilliant tactical decision and even if it doesn't work out in the end, I think it was logical. If Kohlert re-signs with the Bombers, (Which I really hope he does.), I won't feel sorry for Ottawa one bit. They knew that picking a free agent was a big risk and they made that choice anyways. I don't fault them for picking Kohlert, but I definitly won't feel bad either if they never get him.

If Medlock's available, O'Shea better be interested. That guy is a beast.