Armchair GM

It's a smart point (by an Argo fan no less)... that said, the GM's and player agents should have a pretty good handle on what the new TV deal will bring in for revenues; and the effect on the SMS. Wouldn't be surprised if they've got a working understanding, but that the player side would be unwilling to put pen to paper until the CBA is official.

Great point Jaxon. Agree 100%. That said, Calgary's got 3 guys that have shown ability to QB in this league. And Ray is relatively durable. Given that Glenn and Collaros are FA's at year's end, I could see both being made available. With the new regime in charge, and being judged in the short-term; there could be more impetus than ever to make a deal to bring one of these guys in. Short-term judgement is rarely a good thing... but honestly, if we find our QB of the future, or heck, even a 2-3 year effective stop gap in Glenn for Poblah and a mid-round pick... it'd be a positive.

Tim Burke was unanimously seen as the CFL's best co-ordinator that had not yet received an HC shot. There's a big difference between that and the next great CFL HC. We've got front row seats to that show, right now. A DC as good as Burke was with 2 different franchises... there had to be something beyond his skill as a DC keeping him from other top jobs. He's a poor leader, poor communicator, and poor front-person for the organization.

My bigger hope is that he hasn't grown tired of the circus, realized he has talent, and doesn't want to make a decision based on a hope and a prayer that the Bombers will straighten themselves out.

Joe Mack did 1/2 of the job extremely well (the 1/2 you're talking about). He just did the other 1/2 very poorly. Mack was something the Bombers have seen very little of over the past several years: steadfast in his plan. He stuck to his plan at all costs. He was honestly a rock. He valued youth over experience, new blood over CFL retreads, and continuity at OL over a quick hook. Scouts should do all of these things. The problem is that his role was GM, and not just talent scout. How such an accomplished scout could not improve upon Boatman though, is beyond me.

Bring back Joey Elliott.

The guy is 2 starts and about 5 appearances into his CFL career... a little early to call him the second coming of Tee Martin, isn't it?

Stability and experience would serve the Bombers so good right now... I'd like our next GM to be someone who has been a part of the CFL landscape for years. To have the connections to bring in the best coaches. To know the game well enough to know if it is your QB that is the problem, your OL, your coaching, etc. To know my competition and the market well enough to be able to enter into a trade to get guys that can help us, rather than avoiding trades like a dirty word. Higgins is my #1 choice, and Database is #2 right now. Not that Mike Murphy couldn't be great... but because I'd err on the side of a longtime CFL guy with connections and knowledge from across the league... to replace a longtime NFL guy (Mack) who seemingly didn't foster those relationships.

Couldn't agree more. Love how Mack turned our NI content around... but we've been one of the 2 weakest franchises in the CFL 3 of his 4 years, because we cannot generate offense. His failures to address QB and offensive game planning are his downfalls.

When you finish slightly more games than you start... that statistic loses its significance. What's the Bombers' record in games he starts? 3+ years is plenty of sample size to start measuring Buck's success on basis of his entire body of work; rather than just the games he finishes. That's like measuring a boxer's success in matches that he doesn't get KO'd in.

OK, he had one very good quarter of football. Not good enough in a 4-quarter game. And definitely not good enough considering that he has played approximately 15 quarters. I may be a number or two off on that, so please don't attack the minute details. 1 good quarter out of 13, is no better than 1 good quarter in 15.

I think the past is clouding your judgement of the CFL's worst QB of 2013. Behind backups such as Mitchell, Collaros, Willy, Goltz, and in the same sentence, Mike Reilly, a starter that hasn't played at that level this year. At one point, Buck *could* play as you put it. But if you could kindly show me the *flashes* you speak of... because I haven't seen them. The OL is bad, but Buck has hampered himself by staring down receivers and holding the ball too long, as a trend. I disagree with you on Goltz being able to do something only because he's more mobile. You don't need to be more mobile to be an effective QB in the current Bomber offense. You need to be decisive and deliberate with the football. You need to have a couple of hot reads, and be capable of going to option #3 or just getting rid of the ball. Shockingly, we've had slant routes over the middle open more often than not... Buck has just not looked there very often. Crowton's offence has actually opened up some receivers in space. I'm not ready to write it off yet. P.S. There is no "t" in Buchko.

While we're at it, can we promote Swiston and "transition" Morley into an OL special assistant, not tell him about it, and have him ***** to the media? If we're going to put a QB in that might give us a better chance to win... might as well replace the CFL's worst guard and give a young guy a shot at keeping Goltz off his backside. Nowhere to go but up...

My only question is whether this is a function of Buck's self-serving attitude, or Mack/Burke not being forthright with him on what his demotion would entail. Buck going to the media angry like this speaks to it possibly being column B... sprinkled with a heaping dash of column A.

Holy Negatron... you dug deep and found something to ***** about with this news. I really wouldn't care if we have to pay Buck MORE to be a 3rd stringer/QB coach. This is a landmark day for the Bombers... the day we unhitched our wagon from Buck, and looked to trying to find a starting QB that can help us be successful. Heck, I wouldn't care if we paid him like he started. Addition by subtraction...

What useful purpose does asking Buchko that question do at this stage? No respectable CEO would tell the media that we are actively looking for a new GM. I don't care how bad the state of affairs is. Mack should be out there front and centre, I agree. He's responsible for football operations. Do they interview Bob Young about the Tigercats struggles? Robert Wetenhall about the Alouettes struggles? No. The conversation starts and ends with the GM's. Mack needs to get out there and talk to the fan base... but Buchko has nothing to contribute to a football ops discussion.

Ugh. The Bombers as a rule CHOOSE to never be interested in another team's cuts and backups, and are always so quick to announce that. For the record, I don't think we should go after Burke Dales... but I'm just sick of hearing this line from the Blue and Gold. When you have had one good season in the last 5... you need to have an open mind to players that could help you out in an injury situation. For example, right now we have zero chance at acquiring Kevin Glenn. Tate's hurt, and is getting the injury-prone tag very quickly. In the spring, we probably could have. The Bombers just didn't open their minds to it, because Glenn's someone else's backup, is not the long-term solution, and we'd have to pay for it. Right now, Etienne's emergence and Kohlert's reliability make a Poblah expendable. Package him up with a lineman and/or draft pick, and we might have been able to get a solid but unspectacular guy like KG, who could be enough to help us win some of these games our D is setting us up to win. It's becoming more and more clear by the day that our management's mindset, and inability to move away from Buck Pierce / find a new QB, is this team's real cancer.

Morley's brutal. Below-average for the past 2+ years at least. For some reason, the coaches haven't seen it, and I bet he continues starting. Wouldn't be so quick to dismiss Jovon on that Giguere TD... Cauchy bit the underneath route. Giguere will outrun Jovon all day, every day. That said, Burke isn't the hugest Jovon fan... and I could see it as a way to get Sears into the lineup, if he's ready. The other one I see is Matthews. Has not been great this year, but I would think his full body of work from last year should buy him some time. When Buck Pierce hits you in the chest, you buy a lottery ticket. When you don't catch it, you buy a plane ticket home...

Outside receiver is not the issue. That we predictably throw to the sidelines, and to out routes, while ignoring the in-routes, is the issue. Too easy to cover.

Gahhhhhh! It's the O-Line's fault that Buck holds onto the ball 5-6 seconds? 5-6 seconds is enough for any defense to get to ANY QB! What I'll be watching from the IGF upper deck Friday night is how often our slotbacks are open over the middle. You can't see the open WR's on TV for the most part, but the home opener, Watson could have had twelve taxis from all of the waving his hands he was able to do when open on slant routes. If our offense on Friday night resembles the offense from the home opener, it will show the fans that Crowton's offense is succeeding at getting guys open in space... just that Buck isn't seeing them/getting them the ball. Watson would LEAD the CFL in receiving right now if Buck saw him 1/2 the time during the home opener... and Etienne wouldn't be too far behind. Milt Stegall, Geroy Simon, Ben Cahoon, Weston Dressler, Nik Lewis... what do they all have in common? All SB's that rank very highly in terms of impact on the field. Get Watson, Edwards, Etienne, Anderson... whomever, involved in the middle of the field. Too often Buck chooses to go at the out routes and sidelines... it's too predictable. Using your inside guys might be enough of a "wrinkle" to spark this offense.

Watson's been able to get open often the first 2 games, and Crowton's retooled offense seems to be geared towards getting his SB's open in space. Just need the QB to get them the ball in stride... Watson's the best bet in my opinion. Breakout season predicted.

I sooooo disagree with this statement. I sat in the upper deck at IGF last Thursday, marvelling at how open our SB's were over the middle, all night. I'd judge Crowton based on how well he creates opportunities for his offense to make plays... multiple open receivers on most plays is a damn good start. The Bombers' offensive woes thus far fall on the QB either a) making the safest read his first look, and not progressing through his reads.

If you could back up your opinions with even anecdotal evidence of trends in Pierce's game that support it, I'd listen. The trends I see.. inconsistent passing, not progressing through his reads, and leaving the pocket to take malicious hits... are neither good, nor inconsistent with 2012.

I am by no means a KG fan, but there are strong supporting arguments: 1) This defense could be good enough to send us to the playoffs; with even an average offense on the other side of the ball. 2) KG isn't immune to injuries, but he understands how to be a pocket passer and is less injury prone than Buck, at least partly because of it. 3) KG's got a few good years left in him, and would be at worst a more reliable placeholder, until we groom "the next one." 4) Right now... when Tate is looking amazing, Mitchell is healthy, and all of our QB's are healthy... the price is as low as it is going to get. I don't think we will be a dominant attack with KG, but if you breed yourself on D like the Bombers have... even an average offense that shows fleeting glimpses of the ability to have big games can give you a shot at playoff glory.

He was a DHB last year. He is absolutely a great tackler... but the job of a DHB is to defend the pass. Let's not lose sight of that. Look at the job our secondary did in pass coverage yesterday... I loved what Hefney brought to the Bombers for his first couple of years. He became a guy who opposing QB's keyed on exploiting. That's not good. What I don't disagree with is that you want your LB's to be your leading tacklers. Hef didn't want to be an LB in Winnipeg. Amazing how well a little perspective compliments a dinner of pink slip.