GDT 2025 preseason kick off

[Booch]

Just now, Bigblue204 said:

oh forsure. But if MOS or Walters isn't here next year, it will be by their choice. Not because the franchise decides to move on.

most likely...but you never know....trip to the big dance again and lose for much the same issues...or lose out in Semi's or WF again...for same issues....I'd have no issue with moving on...as should the Management have no issue...4 epic fails in a row...when will it end...our last cup victory was 4 yrs ago now...Personally I dont care if we "got" there again if we keep losing it for the same insane stubborn reasons....If we went and replaced the top dog...or promoted say a Younger or Costello from within....does anyone really think we would drop right into the abyss?...Highly doubt it...the culture and way things done here wasn't an invention and a whole new way of doing things created here...it's how good teams operate and we got away from it for a decade or so....part of that dry spell wasn't just incompetence and clown show stuff...some was just the way it goes...some was bad luck

I not saying can anyone, but if we fail again....and was preventable if not for the same stubbon reason's and not owning up to a ooop's admission....its time

[Bigblue204]

4 minutes ago, Booch said:

most likely...but you never know....trip to the big dance again and lose for much the same issues...or lose out in Semi's or WF again...for same issues....I'd have no issue with moving on...as should the Management have no issue...4 epic fails in a row...when will it end...our last cup victory was 4 yrs ago now...Personally I dont care if we "got" there again if we keep losing it for the same insane stubborn reasons....If we went and replaced the top dog...or promoted say a Younger or Costello from within....does anyone really think we would drop right into the abyss?...Highly doubt it...the culture and way things done here wasn't an invention and a whole new way of doing things created here...it's how good teams operate and we got away from it for a decade or so....part of that dry spell wasn't just incompetence and clown show stuff...some was just the way it goes...some was bad luck

I not saying can anyone, but if we fail again....and was preventable if not for the same stubbon reason's and not owning up to a ooop's admission....its time

I get what you're saying. But I think you're day dreamin a bit. Miller will not push either one out after another winning season. It will take at minimum consecutive seasons where the needle moves in the wrong direction. No I do not mean losing the GC game again. I mean not making the cup, not making playoffs etc etc.

[GCn20]

On 2025-05-24 at 4:31 PM, Mike said:

Who is they? A couple random fans on the Blue Bombers forums? Derek Taylor?

Pokey Wilson had 3 catches for 13 yards last preseason and our leading receiver got cut after the first preseason game. As a collective, we’re putting way too much stock in things like preseason yards, targets, etc. Especially with what we know about our coaching staff.

I totally agree. Not to mention that Mitchell has proven his ability in real games in this league. I`m certainly not going to suggest that D. Mitchell is a sure thing or anything but he`s a proven, productive receiver in this league. He will get a chance to see real game action before a decision to cut him is made imo.

[Booch]

3 minutes ago, GCn20 said:

I totally agree. Not to mention that Mitchell has proven his ability in real games in this league. I`m certainly not going to suggest that D. Mitchell is a sure thing or anything but he`s a proven, productive receiver in this league. He will get a chance to see real game action before a decision to cut him is made imo.

I am sure he will get firat 3 games....if he just not grasping things or producing...he will be gone....But I will be shocked if he not rostered game 1 in some capacity

[Goalie]

I’ll be honest. I expect Dillon Mitchell to step up and show he’s better than a rookie in Hall and 2nd year guy wheatfall and Myron Mitchell In our system but I’m curious if rookies and 2nd year guys looking way better, Dillon Mitchell’s issue must be between the ears. Hope he shows up soon cuz he had some good showings in Edmonton. Doesn’t sound like Zach dressing in Regina this week so hopefully d Mitchell gets a shot with the 1’s whoever they are. Strev and the boys but I’d imagine we gonna be a pretty rookie heavy roster. With a bye week 1, I might be inclined to play who I think are the ones more and just insert the promising rookies but I feel we gonna go real young and not many “starters”. 

Edited Monday at 02:03 PM by Goalie

[GCn20]

27 minutes ago, Booch said:

I am sure he will get firat 3 games....if he just not grasping things or producing...he will be gone....But I will be shocked if he not rostered game 1 in some capacity

He was our big FA get, so I think he gets some opportunity before we cut him loose. Unless, his attitude is the cause of this then he might get walking papers but I haven't heard anything to indicate that. Seems he is just not adjusting to our offence yet. Maybe that comes, maybe it doesn't....but we will give him time I would think. He has been paid a portion of his salary already so keeping him on costs us about the same as a rookie now.

Edited Monday at 02:09 PM by GCn20

[Goalie]

Perhaps interesting spots to watch are more on D than O. DL. LB. Safety and Corner. Even the punting spot I think is a legit competition right now. Evans is better after 2 3 punts. The hang time and the distance and was holding = 

 

On O it’s really just receiver but i am intrigued by a 2 back style O. And OL but not gonna pretend there. Can’t tell on tv most the time never mind cfl plus. 
 

how do you get Cooley on the roster and how do you start Willy Adams Woods Vaughters on the DL. 
 

do you go Canadian LB x 2 with J Jones and Ayers in the middle? 
 

safety?  

 

Brady. Demski. Clercius. 3 OL. Plus Kramdi = 7. Extra draft pick = Shay or a safety?  If it’s 8 alright. Then DL LB or Safety. And if Lawson ain’t ready, Jake is not a better option. 

Edited Monday at 02:14 PM by Goalie

[GCn20]

On 2025-05-24 at 5:20 PM, JuranBoldenRules said:

Does when a punt bounces off his face and into the endzone for the other team.

For sure. We can give him SOME reps in practice, but being a good RB does not guarantee he can return well and I think a lot of people here seriously underestimate how big a skill shagging punts is.

[GCn20]

On 2025-05-24 at 6:11 PM, Mike said:

I don’t know why we still care about preseason 

This was immensely better football than the UFL games on TSN. 

[GCn20]

On 2025-05-25 at 12:05 AM, JuranBoldenRules said:

At the same age Dru Brown was the starter for Ottawa.  He’s only 9 months older than Wilson.  I don’t think there’s a lot of runway for Wilson to develop into a starter.  A guy in his first pro camp looks more comfortable in the pocket.  Would like to see some confidence from Wilson.  Still a real hesitation to move the ball, then check downs to nothing because he held it so long.  

I get keeping him for the first little bit because of the suspension and Streveler coming off major knee injury, but we should be looking for another prospect.

I like what I saw from Artopoeus more than what I saw from Wilson given their respective development time. Wilson is a 2nd year guy but looked pretty hesitant.

21 hours ago, BBlink said:

Agree that it would be tough to get Cooley on the roster when Brady is there. He brings a lot of the same stuff as Oliveira. Unless he can return I see him as our PR backup.

Not to mention Logan, who is also a very good RB. I hope Cooley can add some value somewhere so we can keep him but I`m just not seeing how unless we can stash him on the PR but I`m seeing several good candidates for that as well that are at positions far more important.

Edited Monday at 02:40 PM by GCn20

[JuranBoldenRules]

26 minutes ago, Goalie said:

Perhaps interesting spots to watch are more on D than O. DL. LB. Safety and Corner. Even the punting spot I think is a legit competition right now. Evans is better after 2 3 punts. The hang time and the distance and was holding = 

 

On O it’s really just receiver but i am intrigued by a 2 back style O. And OL but not gonna pretend there. Can’t tell on tv most the time never mind cfl plus. 
 

how do you get Cooley on the roster and how do you start Willy Adams Woods Vaughters on the DL. 
 

do you go Canadian LB x 2 with J Jones and Ayers in the middle? 
 

safety?  

 

Brady. Demski. Clercius. 3 OL. Plus Kramdi = 7. Extra draft pick = Shay or a safety?  If it’s 8 alright. Then DL LB or Safety. And if Lawson ain’t ready, Jake is not a better option. 

Here's a likely game 1 napkin roster scenario as of today.  I left the kickers and Benson off.  Assumed Lawson and Kelly are injured.  Having a returner in the secondary leaves the O pretty thin.  I think they keep Griffin on because he can play like 8 spots on D and is great on special teams.  Could see them swapping Schmekel for Jaylen Smith too, especially if they play on going with 30 fronts.  Could also see Lofton losing his job. 

If they go with something like this...3 Canadian OL starting, they need 6 ALL CAPS on the field at all times on O, and only 1 ALL CAPS on the field on D on every snap.

 

QB- Streveler, Wilson, Artopeous

RB- OLIVIERA, PETERSON, CHRIS-IKE

WR-CLERCIUS, CORCORAN

SB- Schoen

SB- DEMSKI, COBB

SB- White

WR- D Mitchell

OT- Bryant

OG- WALLACE

C- KOLANKOWSKI, ELI

OG- NEUFELD

OT- Lofton

 

DE- Jefferson

DT- THOMAS, SCHMEKEL

DT- Woods, Adams*

DE- Vaughters, MUNIER-BAILEY

LB- KRAMDI

LB- T Jones, GAUTHIER, CADWALLADER

LB- J Jones, Griffin*, SHAY

CB- Bonds

HB- Holm

S- Allen, HALLETT, HAGERTY

HB- Nichols

CB- Gowan, Vaval*

[M.O.A.B.]

Any update of the LS battle? 😁

[wbbfan]

14 hours ago, JuranBoldenRules said:

Hamilton cut Chris Smith.

If he’s healthy, love to have him back. 
 

1 hour ago, GCn20 said:

Those UFL games help me sleep. You can actually hear the wind blow through the uprights of the empty stadium when the players aren`t talking. So soothing­.

Im hoping for more than that. I think he`s got it in him.

lmao no doubt. Insane that they are going for another year like that. 
 

 

24 minutes ago, JuranBoldenRules said:

Here's a likely game 1 napkin roster scenario as of today.  I left the kickers and Benson off.  Assumed Lawson and Kelly are injured.  Having a returner in the secondary leaves the O pretty thin.  I think they keep Griffin on because he can play like 8 spots on D and is great on special teams.  Could see them swapping Schmekel for Jaylen Smith too, especially if they play on going with 30 fronts.  Could also see Lofton losing his job. 

If they go with something like this...3 Canadian OL starting, they need 6 ALL CAPS on the field at all times on O, and only 1 ALL CAPS on the field on D on every snap.

 

QB- Streveler, Wilson, Artopeous

RB- OLIVIERA, PETERSON, CHRIS-IKE

WR-CLERCIUS, CORCORAN

SB- Schoen

SB- DEMSKI, COBB

SB- White

WR- D Mitchell

OT- Bryant

OG- WALLACE

C- KOLANKOWSKI, ELI

OG- NEUFELD

OT- Lofton

 

DE- Jefferson

DT- THOMAS, SCHMEKEL

DT- Woods, Adams*

DE- Vaughters, MUNIER-BAILEY

LB- KRAMDI

LB- T Jones, GAUTHIER, CADWALLADER

LB- J Jones, Griffin*, SHAY

CB- Bonds

HB- Holm

S- Allen, HALLETT, HAGERTY

HB- Nichols

CB- Gowan, Vaval*

I don’t think Lofton is gonna be ready, but we do still have a decent bit of time. 
 

Lber is what I worry about. I really don’t want use to give up on Ayers, especially for tjones. 

[M.O.A.B.]

5 minutes ago, wbbfan said:

If he’s healthy, love to have him back. 

I would like to see Cooley first on the KR, maybe he can do it. 

 

[Booch]

12 minutes ago, M.O.A.B. said:

I would like to see Cooley first on the KR, maybe he can do it. 

 

Smith tho is an experienced kick and punt returner tho...i expect at worst Cooley is on PR to hone the skill

[Atomic]

I was just reading about Quinton Cooley to see if he had any experience returning. Looks like he never did it in college but had a handful in high school. I also came across this ridiculous stat:

Quote

Cooley attended Southern Nash High School in Bailey, North Carolina.[1] As a senior, Cooley ran for 3,058 yards and 55 touchdowns, before committing to play college football at Wake Forest University.

Imagine what those games must have looked like 🤣

[JuranBoldenRules]

16 minutes ago, M.O.A.B. said:

I would like to see Cooley first on the KR, maybe he can do it. 

 

Really comes down to punts.  Receiving them at all first, then receiving them in any position to advance the ball.  Not a skill you just pick up and start doing at game speed.

[GCn20]

2 hours ago, Booch said:

most likely...but you never know....trip to the big dance again and lose for much the same issues...or lose out in Semi's or WF again...for same issues....I'd have no issue with moving on...as should the Management have no issue...4 epic fails in a row...when will it end...our last cup victory was 4 yrs ago now...Personally I dont care if we "got" there again if we keep losing it for the same insane stubborn reasons....If we went and replaced the top dog...or promoted say a Younger or Costello from within....does anyone really think we would drop right into the abyss?...Highly doubt it...the culture and way things done here wasn't an invention and a whole new way of doing things created here...it's how good teams operate and we got away from it for a decade or so....part of that dry spell wasn't just incompetence and clown show stuff...some was just the way it goes...some was bad luck

I not saying can anyone, but if we fail again....and was preventable if not for the same stubbon reason's and not owning up to a ooop's admission....its time

MOS is safe unless we go sub .500 this year. He gets the benefit of the doubt otherwise. I'm not saying MOS is on a forever run but it will take a significant dip in the standings before they ever pull that trigger. Walters is far more likely to get canned then MOS if we were to just be mediocre this year, I know you don't love the way MOS does things but he has a lot of good will in the bank.

Edited Monday at 03:58 PM by GCn20

[Pete Catan's Ghost]

50 minutes ago, M.O.A.B. said:

I would like to see Cooley first on the KR, maybe he can do it. 

 

Unless I heard incorrectly, Cooley said post game, that historically, he has very little experience catching screen passes…which seems insane to me. 

[JuranBoldenRules]

6 minutes ago, Pete Catan's Ghost said:

Unless I heard incorrectly, Cooley said post game, that historically, he has very little experience catching screen passes…which seems insane to me. 

Whole offense is RPO which means he's either getting the ball or faking that he is and running into defense.

Pretty crazy that you could have 25 touches a game and average less than 1 reception a game though even at that.

[M.O.A.B.]

Fun fact: 

Last game, #36 Cooley has 36 rushing yards, 36 receiving yards and 36 yards after catch (yac). That's pretty cool.

Edited Monday at 04:18 PM by M.O.A.B.

[rebusrankin]

@JuranBoldenRules posted a pretty solid napkin game 1 roster

[Mike]

20 minutes ago, M.O.A.B. said:

Fun fact: 

Last game, #36 Cooley has 36 rushing yards, 36 receiving yards and 36 yards after catch (yac). That's pretty cool.

Change his number to 1468

[M.O.A.B.]

2 hours ago, JuranBoldenRules said:

Here's a likely game 1 napkin roster scenario as of today.  I left the kickers and Benson off.  Assumed Lawson and Kelly are injured.  Having a returner in the secondary leaves the O pretty thin.  I think they keep Griffin on because he can play like 8 spots on D and is great on special teams.  Could see them swapping Schmekel for Jaylen Smith too, especially if they play on going with 30 fronts.  Could also see Lofton losing his job. 

If they go with something like this...3 Canadian OL starting, they need 6 ALL CAPS on the field at all times on O, and only 1 ALL CAPS on the field on D on every snap.

 

QB- Streveler, Wilson, Artopeous

RB- OLIVIERA, PETERSON, CHRIS-IKE

WR-CLERCIUS, CORCORAN

SB- Schoen

SB- DEMSKI, COBB

SB- White

WR- D Mitchell

OT- Bryant

OG- WALLACE

C- KOLANKOWSKI, ELI

OG- NEUFELD

OT- Lofton

 

DE- Jefferson

DT- THOMAS, SCHMEKEL

DT- Woods, Adams*

DE- Vaughters, MUNIER-BAILEY

LB- KRAMDI

LB- T Jones, GAUTHIER, CADWALLADER

LB- J Jones, Griffin*, SHAY

CB- Bonds

HB- Holm

S- Allen, HALLETT, HAGERTY

HB- Nichols

CB- Gowan, Vaval*

Pretty much, agree. 

Except, Griffin should be together with Kramdi at SAM. And I expect Jaylen Smith to be in the lineup in place of Hagerty. 

[Fatty Liver]

2 hours ago, GCn20 said:

I like what I saw from Artopoeus more than what I saw from Wilson given their respective development time. Wilson is a 2nd year guy but looked pretty hesitant.

Not to mention Logan, who is also a very good RB. I hope Cooley can add some value somewhere so we can keep him but I`m just not seeing how unless we can stash him on the PR but I`m seeing several good candidates for that as well that are at positions far more important.

Sad but likely true, the limited PR spots this year are going to be valuable, can't use them up on a Greg McCrae type option that is a backup to a backup.