Blue Bombers - 2025 Regular Season - Discussion Thread

[wbbfan]

4 hours ago, Gail said:

The press release is Monday at 1:00 eastern

yep.

 

16 minutes ago, Mark H. said:

Because Streveler.

might break 100 passing yards! 

 

3 hours ago, Noeller said:

Ya if this partnership with the Bills all of a sudden turns into "we're going to full NFL rules and going to be an NFL feeder league"... Out of nowhere 3/4 of the way through a season... It would be the most insane thing ever. That's the kind of **** you figure out in the offseason. 

yeah that’s the biggest fear for me. 

Realistically, I don’t think it can be field size changes. too many teams on bad turf as it is. 

 Next to that, 4 downs would be criminal especially on our field. it’d be un watchable. 

True minor league agreement with the nfl? 

Nfl return and scoring rules? 

I’m worried but maybe it won’t be some thing awful like that. 

Could also be the previously rumoured ufl/xfl merger deal.  

Streaming and gambling crap doesn’t fit the sound of this. 

[Rich]

Just now, Super Duper Negatron said:

Do we really think the number one reason young fans aren't watching in the worst markets is the rules, though? I think it's more "I don't look football, and I don't like football that isn't the NFL". Rule changes won't fix either of those.

I agree with you.  I think young people aren’t watching because it isn’t “the league”

This doesn’t change that.  

[wbbfan]

5 minutes ago, Goalie said:

You have to think if it was truly major changes then tsn carries the pc. Sportsnet might even. But nope. 
 

prob a big sponsorship deal? Maybe a deal with the nfl actually where each team gets a couple million bucks. No idea. Toronto has an agreement with buffalo. Us and Minnesota. I dunno. BC and Seattle. Buy 1 get one. Yeah. I dunno. Could be anything. Streaming deal makes sense since announced on their streaming service 

That would make sense, but tsn mails it in a lot with the cfl. 

Sponsorship, streaming and gambling etc doesn’t make sense with significant changes to the cfl game. 

2 minutes ago, Rich said:

I agree with you.  I think young people aren’t watching because it isn’t “the league”

This doesn’t change that.  

nailed it. 

11 minutes ago, Super Duper Negatron said:

Alienating the diehards to turn the CFL into the football equivalent of the AHL would kill it within 5 years.

I think the UFL is far more likely. they are in bad shape and desperate. They could always go back, but it would be catastrophic. 

[Goalie]

Young people watch on their phones but have to like sports and lots of young people don’t anymore. The zombie apocalypse ppl speak of is here and it’s ppl staring in to their phones he says while typing on his new iPhone he got 3 hours ago. People don’t become football fans. Your mom or dad are fans so you become one. Ppl don’t just become nfl fans either. It’s the same thing. 15 million viewers is great but USA has 300 million people. Significant amount don’t watch. And nfl viewing numbers have remained the same pretty much so it’s not like they are growing in the USA themselves. CFL should be proud to be the Canadian alternative to the nfl. We aren’t America so the cfl is pro here. Promote it as maybe being part of our Canadian heritage instead of becoming more Americanized which at the moment Canadians are avoiding the USA like the plague. Dumb move if going more American. That’s gonna backfire so much. Elbows up?? 

Edited 1 hour ago by Goalie

[Goalie]

A small part of me hopes for the return of the Las Vegas posse so we can get another oh Christmas tree Canadian anthem. Canadians aren’t going to Vegas right now so let’s bring a part of Canada to them. 

[Rich]

Article from earlier this year where commish says only Winnipeg and Saskatchewan made money last year.  That isn’t sustainable as a business model so something has to change. 
 

https://globalnews.ca/news/11263497/cfl-commissioner-league-financial-struggles/amp/

 

This article seems to be around diversifying off TSN.  But I wouldn’t call that big changes to the game. 

[Goalie]

I’d suggest a streaming deal. Maybe YouTube. Won’t be rules cuz that’s a committee thing. Has to be something to grow the revenue. And rule changes don’t do that. 
 

could it be expansion or maybe I’m not sure it makes a difference but going to 1 division next year. 

Edited 1 hour ago by Goalie

[rebusrankin]

I'm going to be pissed if we add more american rules such as 4 downs or american kicking rules.

[17to85]

Just now, rebusrankin said:

I'm going to be pissed if we add more american rules such as 4 downs or american kicking rules.

Making it into shitty NFL won't win any fans and will only alienate the fans you do have

[Goalie]

4 minutes ago, rebusrankin said:

I'm going to be pissed if we add more american rules such as 4 downs or american kicking rules.

Has the committee met tho. I don’t think so. Osh is on that committee isn’t he. I don’t see him approving that. But could explain his being more easily annoyed attitude recently  

4 downs for a team with Brady wouldn’t be awful but… keep it Canadian. 
 

it’s revenue related for sure. 

Edited 1 hour ago by Goalie

[Mike]

I think significant is really going to mean significant. I can think of one way they’d change things up … 3rd down and 5 or less, you’re not allowed to kick the ball.

Field dimensions wouldn’t make sense - logistically too much of a challenge because of the teams that share fields with other teams (see: us)

Going to four downs is the easy choice, I don’t think it’s that.

If it’s not directly rules related, I wouldn’t be surprised if they announce they’re going to one division. They could technically announce that effective immediately, not that it would make sense. 

[Captain Blue]

In typical CFL fashion, what a weird way to operate. An announcement of a big change coming in a press conference, in the middle of the season. 

[bigg jay]

17 minutes ago, Goalie said:

it’s revenue related for sure. 

Bet it's not.  A new revenue deal would be great but wouldn't constitute "significant changes" (plural) as indicated in the press release.

I could see it being related the the kick-off study they did last year but didn't follow through with any changes.

https://www.tsn.ca/cfl/dave-naylor-cfl-unlikely-to-alter-kickoff-rules-this-off-season-1.2239790

 

[Mike]

Rod Pedersen says expect the Americanization to be announced

[wbbfan]

45 minutes ago, Rich said:

Article from earlier this year where commish says only Winnipeg and Saskatchewan made money last year.  That isn’t sustainable as a business model so something has to change. 
 

https://globalnews.ca/news/11263497/cfl-commissioner-league-financial-struggles/amp/

 

This article seems to be around diversifying off TSN.  But I wouldn’t call that big changes to the game. 

league needs to make drastic strides to be more profitable. but short of selling out fixing that is a long hard road. 

Teams need to take action to grow their market. not many are doing a good job of that. But hamilton, ottawa, montreal  and bc should all be able to turn a profit as well. edmonton needs work, calgary needs intervention, toronto needs a miracle. 

[Brandon]

48 minutes ago, Goalie said:

Young people watch on their phones but have to like sports and lots of young people don’t anymore. The zombie apocalypse ppl speak of is here and it’s ppl staring in to their phones he says while typing on his new iPhone he got 3 hours ago. People don’t become football fans. Your mom or dad are fans so you become one. 

Football fans are aging out of the CFL big time.  

For Canada the white population which makes up a large majority of the CFL audience are just no longer having kids and families at all.   As each generation goes by that rate keeps dropping at a significant rate.   Canada has replaced the drop in population via immigration and those folks have absolutely zero interest in Canadian football. 

30 years ago when I was a kid the parks were full of kids playing soccer/football and the streets had tonnes of kids playing street hockey.    Nowdays they are almost all empty with exception of the East Indian community who are the only ones in my area that utilize the parks and those kids are playing soccer mainly.   I'm not sure how you can grow the football game to folks with zero nostalgia or awareness of it.   

This is why I think Miller has done a great job of making a Blue Bomber home game a fun event.  It's an event that can appeal for all ages and the football game is the icing on the cake.   

I don't believe the invention of an IPad has destroyed interest in the CFL.   

[wbbfan]

2 minutes ago, Mike said:

Rod Pedersen says expect the Americanization to be announced

was he one of the people who said it was a done deal with the xfl too? It’s honestly been too long. 

Mid season announcement, I expect any changes put in place to kick in next year. this could be the last grey cup under proper rules if people are right. I sure hope not. 

[Noeller]

10 minutes ago, wbbfan said:

was he one of the people who said it was a done deal with the xfl too? It’s honestly been too long. 

Mid season announcement, I expect any changes put in place to kick in next year. this could be the last grey cup under proper rules if people are right. I sure hope not. 

I'm gonna enjoy this GC week immensely... Even if we're not in it.... And man, it's the last "real" one..... ****. Soak it in while we can.

[Tracker]

10 hours ago, GCn20 said:

Walters needs to wake up from his 3 year nap. Sorry, if that offends anyone but KW has done an outright lousy job lately.

Walters' greatest sin is in allowing O'Shea carte blanche to hobble the team as he has. Walters has learned nothing from the Willy/Nichols incident.

[Slimy Sculpin]

40 minutes ago, Captain Blue said:

In typical CFL fashion, what a weird way to operate. An announcement of a big change coming in a press conference, in the middle of the season. 

And without any meanful consultation with the fans (the folks who freight the bill)? Of course, this is the C(sometimes Confused)FL