2024/2025 Blue Bombers Off-Season Thread

[JuranBoldenRules]

21 minutes ago, Blue In BC said:

You lost me with the comment about Logan. He'll be a DI so he can only come in replacing an import on any down. That means a receiver coming off. That will be true whether we have 5 Canadians on offence or 6. I like Makonzo and the new Canadian LB's. Shay will be a little late to TC but yes these guys will be taking reps away from DI's etc.

Overall just hoping we don't lose some guys to injury in TC like last year. Lawson back should be a great improvement too.

A marginal concern about how recovery from injury Parker, Lawson, Makonzo and Schoen returning after significant injury in 2024.

I wonder if any posters will be at the rookie camp over the next couple of days.

 

Important to remember that for officiating purposes all the teams do is declare how many Canadians are playing on O and D, and who the DI's are.  It's possible to sub an American for a Canadian if you're regularly using more Canadians on a side of the ball than you declared.

If they go 8-9 Nationals as functional players, someone like Logan could be used as a sub and not classified as a DI.  You just need to have the right number of Canadians on the field at all times.  So if you had 6 Canadians on the field for O but only declared 5 on O, 2 on D, you can sub Logan in for anyone.  But I think it will be hard to find that 6th Canadian unless they force a 3rd receiver out there.  Gotta think they will list Bryant or Jefferson as a nationalized American.

Vulnerabilities for us are Oliviera and Demski in terms of injury IMO.  You need to have a solid plan to get out of a game without them.

[Blue In BC]

9 minutes ago, JuranBoldenRules said:

Important to remember that for officiating purposes all the teams do is declare how many Canadians are playing on O and D, and who the DI's are.  It's possible to sub an American for a Canadian if you're regularly using more Canadians on a side of the ball than you declared.

If they go 8-9 Nationals as functional players, someone like Logan could be used as a sub and not classified as a DI.  You just need to have the right number of Canadians on the field at all times.  So if you had 6 Canadians on the field for O but only declared 5 on O, 2 on D, you can sub Logan in for anyone.  But I think it will be hard to find that 6th Canadian unless they force a 3rd receiver out there.  Gotta think they will list Bryant or Jefferson as a nationalized American.

Vulnerabilities for us are Oliviera and Demski in terms of injury IMO.  You need to have a solid plan to get out of a game without them.

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.

[Fatty Liver]

1 hour ago, Booch said:

Bailey was actually persued by several teams before he was found out to be an eligible Global...so that trade up for him was a wise move and he will add more value most likely than any Canadian at bottom of roster. Pass protection wasn't necessarily our demise...poor scheme and coaching and playing with crippled players had more impact. With that Peterson we traded for along with Logan...we more than capable of backing BO up especially if we only designate 5 Nationals need to be used on Offence as opposed to 6...as well if we actually designate and use a Nationlized American on offence....with the amount of guys we now have to switch in and out on defence....going 2 nationals on defence and designating Stanley as the Nationalized player makes uber sense

Not really, under the Nationalized American rule that would put Stanley on a 23 play snap count, which Natl. do you propose throwing in at LT to finish the game? Zach wants to know.

Edited 21 hours ago by Fatty Liver

[Bigblue204]

13 minutes ago, Fatty Liver said:

Not really, under the Nationalized American rule that would put Stanley on a 23 play snap count, which Natl. do you propose throwing in at LT to finish the game? Zach wants to know.

I'm not sure he'd have to leave. He just would no longer count as a NI.

[wbbfan]

49 minutes ago, Blue In BC said:

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.

 

Depends on how we decide to do the roster. We could start 2 imps and use the Canadians in place of a DI, or we could start 1 Canadian and roster an imp back up. We could end up with 3 imp lbers, but If we do I think we are likely worse off. Our jones is limited in what he can do, new jones is far less limited, kyrie is a shadow of his former self, Ayers is the guy I want to see kept/played/developed more than any other imp lber.  Unless some thing drastic changes. next week or two we have Shay join us up here, Kyrie is an easy walk away from guy, and Tony jones limitation in the pass game makes him easily replaced by Jonathon jones, and Ayers. Plus we got Makonzo and the role of the dime will. 

Now maybe Kyrie has found the fountain of youth, or Tony jones has found prime bighills range in pass pro, but I sure would bet against either of those things happening. 

[wbbfan]

57 minutes ago, Booch said:

depends on how we shape the roster...he doesnt have to be a DA 

DEPTH Behind Demski is horrid...hope he stays healthy

Yup, basically if (more like when) he goes down we will have to flip the ratio, or play some one around the jamie stoddard line at best. Maybe they really like Corcoran, who had awful testing. 17 linemen out jumped him at the combine. Think he was the worst testing wr/skill player drafted this year. A bunch of DL beat him in every single measurable at the combine while being 40 lbs heavier. 

 We should be looking at other teams NI wr cuts this year, one way or another. 

 

[Blue In BC]

12 minutes ago, wbbfan said:

Depends on how we decide to do the roster. We could start 2 imps and use the Canadians in place of a DI, or we could start 1 Canadian and roster an imp back up. We could end up with 3 imp lbers, but If we do I think we are likely worse off. Our jones is limited in what he can do, new jones is far less limited, kyrie is a shadow of his former self, Ayers is the guy I want to see kept/played/developed more than any other imp lber.  Unless some thing drastic changes. next week or two we have Shay join us up here, Kyrie is an easy walk away from guy, and Tony jones limitation in the pass game makes him easily replaced by Jonathon jones, and Ayers. Plus we got Makonzo and the role of the dime will. 

Now maybe Kyrie has found the fountain of youth, or Tony jones has found prime bighills range in pass pro, but I sure would bet against either of those things happening. 

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.

[bigg jay]

One game suspension for ZC.

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2025/05/07/collaros-takes-off-field-hit

 

[wbbfan]

6 minutes ago, bigg jay said:

One game suspension for ZC.

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2025/05/07/collaros-takes-off-field-hit

 

Just saw this news wow. Apparently they tried for 2 hours to get ahold of him for drug testing in the off season and he didn’t respond with in 24hrs.
 He will fully participate in pre season and tc. CFL and cflpa say they are going to clarify and improve the process of contacting players for testing.  

[Mike]

If the CFLPA is saying they need to clarify the process and teams weren’t allowed to be contacted, that really shows there’s a flaw in the process 

[Blue28]

what absolute BS.

[Bigblue204]

That ain't great.....buuut. I'm excited to watch streveler play as an actual qb

[bluto]

13 minutes ago, bigg jay said:

One game suspension for ZC.

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2025/05/07/collaros-takes-off-field-hit

 

If there’s one player—just one—in the entire Canadian Football League who absolutely screams 'poster boy for performance-enhancing drugs,' it’s got to be Zachary J. Collaros. I mean, the sheer physical dominance, the unstoppable power, the jaw-dropping speed... it’s almost too obvious, right?

[bigg jay]

4 minutes ago, wbbfan said:

Just saw this news wow. Apparently they tried for 2 hours to get ahold of him for drug testing in the off season and he didn’t respond with in 24hrs.
 He will fully participate in pre season and tc. CFL and cflpa say they are going to clarify and improve the process of contacting players for testing.  

Yeah, it came up as an unknown number so he ignored it (as most people would).  The fact that they weren't using multiple contact points is bush league.  Call MOS or Walters and say we're trying to get a hold of ZC - guarantee he answers that call.

[Noeller]

2 minutes ago, bigg jay said:

Yeah, it came up as an unknown number so he ignored it (as most people would).  The fact that they weren't using multiple contact points is bush league.  Call MOS or Walters and say we're trying to get a hold of ZC - guarantee he answers that call.

I can't believe that's not the automatic standard... You can't reach him, then you call Wade, and Wade gets him in seconds. 

[bigg jay]

7 minutes ago, Mike said:

If the CFLPA is saying they need to clarify the process and teams weren’t allowed to be contacted, that really shows there’s a flaw in the process 

Also the fact that no penalty was mentioned in the policy.  Want players to take it seriously?  Let them know the consequences for not following the rules.

5 minutes ago, bluto said:

If there’s one player—just one—in the entire Canadian Football League who absolutely screams 'poster boy for performance-enhancing drugs,' it’s got to be Zachary J. Collaros. I mean, the sheer physical dominance, the unstoppable power, the jaw-dropping speed... it’s almost too obvious, right?

He's clearly too strong for his own good now - so gassed up during GC that he nearly ripped his finger off trying to throw the ball.

[Fatty Liver]

7 minutes ago, bigg jay said:

Yeah, it came up as an unknown number so he ignored it (as most people would).  The fact that they weren't using multiple contact points is bush league.  Call MOS or Walters and say we're trying to get a hold of ZC - guarantee he answers that call.

Why in the world would Zach decide to forgo an appeal?  Force them to change policy, plus the second game of the season against BC could turn out to be pivotal in the long run.

1 hour ago, Bigblue204 said:

I'm not sure he'd have to leave. He just would no longer count as a NI.

The rules are confusing so maybe not, but sets them up for a mid-game ratio adjustment nonetheless.  Kyrie would be a better candidate for this designation than Stanley.

 

Designated Nationalized Americans replacing Designated National Players for up to 25 Snaps

National player and his backups for up to 25 snaps. As Clubs are aware, these snaps will be tracked by League personnel and Club staff may follow. Once the Club has reached its 25-snap quota on either offence or defence, they will no longer be able to substitute in this manner for the remainder of the game.

If they violate this rule, the Commissioner will have discretion to impose fines to the Club, General Manager, Head Coach as well as having the option to take away draft picks. The designated Nationalized American will not start the game and will also be identified as DA.  There can be one of these players on offence and one on defence.

This Designated Nationalized American will be identified on the depth chart.  After the first play on his side of the ball, this player may enter the game for any American player and play the remainder of the game and/or play in place of the designated National player or his backups for up to 25 snaps.

 

 

[wbbfan]

13 minutes ago, bluto said:

If there’s one player—just one—in the entire Canadian Football League who absolutely screams 'poster boy for performance-enhancing drugs,' it’s got to be Zachary J. Collaros. I mean, the sheer physical dominance, the unstoppable power, the jaw-dropping speed... it’s almost too obvious, right?

Some people a province over from us probably cooking up an angle now of he was only good he’d because we juiced him to the **** lol 

3 minutes ago, Fatty Liver said:

Why in the world would Zach decide to forgo an appeal?  Force them to change policy, plus the second game of the season against BC could turn out to be pivotal in the long run.

right? 

 

11 minutes ago, Noeller said:

I can't believe that's not the automatic standard... You can't reach him, then you call Wade, and Wade gets him in seconds. 

Soo bizarre. 

[rebusrankin]

ZC should appeal.

Typical CFL, Stuff that should earn a suspension doesn't but you suspend a guy for this?

[JuranBoldenRules]

1 hour ago, Fatty Liver said:

Not really, under the Nationalized American rule that would put Stanley on a 23 play snap count, which Natl. do you propose throwing in at LT to finish the game? Zach wants to know.

The designated one is not a starter.  You can count a nationalized American as your 8th Canadian starter, who can play unlimited.

Nationalized Americans

Nationalized American players are defined as having played with their current team for 3 years or at least 5 years in the League. One Nationalized American player may be listed as one of the eight National starters.

Edited 19 hours ago by JuranBoldenRules

[Booch]

2 hours ago, Fatty Liver said:

Not really, under the Nationalized American rule that would put Stanley on a 23 play snap count, which Natl. do you propose throwing in at LT to finish the game? Zach wants to know.

If an in game replacement for injury...be it 3 reps...or the whole 23....it's just fine and dandy....and depending on when injury happened could be a non issue.....if it more than 23 reps...well you use Logan and whatever Canadian back-up on roster...likely Peterson accordingly....other teams use it and benefit by it be it all 23 snaps...or a number under...as we should

[GCn20]

It seems outrageous to me that a player would be suspended based on not looking at his voicemails religiously. I check mine only when I recognize the number. Other than that it's like once a week or so. The CFL can be so infuriatingly bush league sometimes. 

54 minutes ago, rebusrankin said:

ZC should appeal.

Typical CFL, Stuff that should earn a suspension doesn't but you suspend a guy for this?

I would 100% appeal.

[Stickem]

Seems they've run out of ways to try and bugger us up....What a load of nonsense...like someone said, IF he can't be reached get a hold of Miller, O'Shea or Walters....AND because they didn't this suspension should be null and void....Zack would be the last player in the league trying to avoid testing...   One game suspension.......nonsensical and waaaaay over the top 

[Fatty Liver]

1 minute ago, Stickem said:

Seems they've run out of ways to try and bugger us up....What a load of nonsense...like someone said, IF he can't be reached get a hold of Miller, O'Shea or Walters....AND because they didn't this suspension should be null and void....Zack would be the last player in the league trying to avoid testing...   One game suspension.......nonsensical and waaaaay over the top 

Apparently it's already been reduced to one game for some reason, the normal penalty is two games.

[Fatty Liver]

56 minutes ago, JuranBoldenRules said:

The designated one is not a starter.  You can count a nationalized American as your 8th Canadian starter, who can play unlimited.

Nationalized Americans

Nationalized American players are defined as having played with their current team for 3 years or at least 5 years in the League. One Nationalized American player may be listed as one of the eight National starters.

Not for an entire game, they are limited to a snap count and they are also tied to a Designated National Player.  Sure other teams have found ways to abuse the rule but it's pretty obvious MOS as a member of the rules committee is not going to validate their interpretation.