Blue Bombers -- 2025/26 Offseason -- Discussion Thread

[Booch]

1 hour ago, Tracker said:

I would say there is a kernel of truth in this, but it would sound corny and I would be creamed in comments. But he is husk-y.

hopefully he can navigate the maize of training camp 

 

26 minutes ago, JohnnyAbonny said:

As a backup he’s fine. Better to have a guy with some speed at least instead of the Corcoran’s and Jeremy MurphY’s of the world. 

and although somewhat liited in attempts he avaeraged over 10 yards a PR and 21 a kickoff...so as in in gae replacement he wont just bobble and drop for no gain....so that depth is nice and especially with his National status...and yes he does have some wheeels on him and has to be accounted for out there

[johnzo]

1 hour ago, Bigblue204 said:

I hope he gets an opportunity to really pop this year...

I love you guys but also I hate you guys.

[bigg jay]

On 2025-12-23 at 3:50 PM, wbbfan said:

signed peyton thorne. wow its going to be interesting to watch the qbs in camp. Mich state, auburn, played at good schools. Guy has incredible raw talent and athleticism. Easy smooth arm action with a good release. Very capable runner. He’s not really wired for high volume running. 

 Great upside in a young guy. 

Looks like we can thank Kent Austin for this guy coming up here.  Hope he pans out.

https://3downnation.com/2026/01/16/payton-thorne-winnipeg-blue-bombers-qb/

[SpeedFlex27]

5 hours ago, Colin Unger said:

On 2026-01-13 at 9:32 AM, SpeedFlex27 said:

You just answered your own question...

how exactly??  If you’re looking at two QBs and they are both equally injury proned and uninspiring you’d obviously rather have the one that’s younger and cheaper.  So I repeat.  You’d be against that swap why?  

 

  

Edited yesterday at 01:06 AM by SpeedFlex27

[WinnipegGordo]

Bombers signed a 6'5" American safety

[kelownabomberfan]

3 hours ago, Tracker said:

I would say there is a kernel of truth in this, but it would sound corny and I would be creamed in comments. But he is husk-y.

I bet he performs well if the coaches butter him up.

[wbbfan]

9 hours ago, WinnipegGordo said:

Bombers signed a 6'5" American safety

Addison isn't just big (tall), he plays big. Converted to S during the COVID-shortened season after starting out as a WR (2 years).  In the 3 years post-position change, he was very productive. 

The good: Size (6'5 195), Athleticism 4.55 40 10'7"broad, 36" vert, great explosive numbers, good speed, and average agility numbers. Successful position change. Versatility, he played a lot of teams, backed up, but played a lot of reps. Played very well against the run and the pass. Physical, with a great nose for the ball, made a lot of plays.

The bad, a bit slight build for his height, 6-year covid super senior, despite playing well and for big schools, didn't get much NFL interest.

The Ugly is, only a 1-year starter despite being in college for 6 years. 

Overall, really good pick up for camp. Very high upside, the type of guy who could fit extremely well into JYs system, and has an inside track to playing his way onto the team with his team's skill set. He's a crafty, extremely physical football player who has that lunchbox ethic and dog mentality that Mos loves. Which, in a very big-bodied athletic DB, is a great combo. He's going to be in a very tough position to make the roster, with Kramdi/Allen/Woodbey, hopefully Griffin, and likely Vaval as a Di. But he's got the talent where he could come in and take a job, or capitalize on any opportunity that pops up. 

 

https://www.nfldraftscout.com/cfb/bio/1021804

https://uclabruins.com/sports/football/roster/bryan-addison/14419

[SpeedFlex27]

With his size, physicality & speed, wouldn't he be better suited to play SAM rather than Safety? 

[wbbfan]

1 minute ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

With his size, physicality & speed, wouldn't he be better suited to play SAM rather than Safety? 

He’d be a very good fit at either, also at wil/nickel. 

 Hes a down hill type more than a side to side guy. The sam needs to be a good bit of both, especially in our system. His so so agility would be the big obstacle, plus the nuance of the position.

He certainly has that upside and versatility that we should challenge him in camp with many positions and see where he settles. 

Those big fringy guys who can cover are extremely valuable in Ds. 
For me, i’d build a D around as many of those outlier match up nightmares as possible. 

 

[SpeedFlex27]

4 minutes ago, wbbfan said:

He’d be a very good fit at either, also at wil/nickel. 

 Hes a down hill type more than a side to side guy. The sam needs to be a good bit of both, especially in our system. His so so agility would be the big obstacle, plus the nuance of the position.

He certainly has that upside and versatility that we should challenge him in camp with many positions and see where he settles. 

Those big fringy guys who can cover are extremely valuable in Ds. 
For me, i’d build a D around as many of those outlier match up nightmares as possible. 

 

I just remember Brandon Browner patrolling the secondary with the Stamps. Receivers had a hard time with his size (height), speed & physicality. He dominated. 

[Booch]

Intruiging for sure..I could see him doing well in a role like woodbey did..off the edge..in the box covering the intermediate zone and flats

But watching his tape...he could be a real good downhill safety too, with ability for some real good over the top coverage..hopefully he pans out and gets a DA role to experiment with him

Him at safety if he is real deal and Allen at corner...versatile scenario..especially with woodbey amd hopefully Griffin

[GCn20]

16 hours ago, wbbfan said:

He’d be a very good fit at either, also at wil/nickel. 

 Hes a down hill type more than a side to side guy. The sam needs to be a good bit of both, especially in our system. His so so agility would be the big obstacle, plus the nuance of the position.

He certainly has that upside and versatility that we should challenge him in camp with many positions and see where he settles. 

Those big fringy guys who can cover are extremely valuable in Ds. 
For me, i’d build a D around as many of those outlier match up nightmares as possible. 

 

I would like his chances a lot more if he had more experience. Nice athlete but very raw. I see him as either TCF, or practice roster at best. That being said if he brings his lunch pail and works hard who knows. We did keep the marine for those reasons.

15 hours ago, Booch said:

Intruiging for sure..I could see him doing well in a role like woodbey did..off the edge..in the box covering the intermediate zone and flats

But watching his tape...he could be a real good downhill safety too, with ability for some real good over the top coverage..hopefully he pans out and gets a DA role to experiment with him

Him at safety if he is real deal and Allen at corner...versatile scenario..especially with woodbey amd hopefully Griffin

He will have to show some serious smarts because his lack of experience at his position will make coaches wary

[rebusrankin]

I wonder if we see a Neufeld and/or Bryant signing before the start of free agency?

Assuming we have moved on from Streveler and Schoen. Is Schoen looking to continue to play or is he going to go into engineering?

[SpeedFlex27]

15 minutes ago, rebusrankin said:

I wonder if we see a Neufeld and/or Bryant signing before the start of free agency?

Assuming we have moved on from Streveler and Schoen. Is Schoen looking to continue to play or is he going to go into engineering?

He is cooked thanks to Osh & the medical staff. 

16 minutes ago, rebusrankin said:

I wonder if we see a Neufeld and/or Bryant signing before the start of free agency?

Assuming we have moved on from Streveler and Schoen. Is Schoen looking to continue to play or is he going to go into engineering?

Where else is Neufeld going to play. he has a home here as he knows our blocking system & has played guard for over. He'd have to start over somewhere else. part of a successful Ol  is continuity & trusting the guys beside you. 

[Booch]

3 hours ago, GCn20 said:

I would like his chances a lot more if he had more experience. Nice athlete but very raw. I see him as either TCF, or practice roster at best. That being said if he brings his lunch pail and works hard who knows. We did keep the marine for those reasons.

He will have to show some serious smarts because his lack of experience at his position will make coaches wary

For sure..but he is no more raw than any cis draft pick...and prob blows most away with athleticism...so hopefully our coaching staff will coach

 

43 minutes ago, rebusrankin said:

I wonder if we see a Neufeld and/or Bryant signing before the start of free agency?

Assuming we have moved on from Streveler and Schoen. Is Schoen looking to continue to play or is he going to go into engineering?

Neither will be ready until at least post labour day anyway so they a non issue..maybe some talks in back half of season tho

I think both Stan and Neuf have an idea of a fair deal already discussed and are allowing the team to sign others and see what FA is bringing to help the team..and officially sign when dust settles..and possibly get a bit more if money is still there

 

[wbbfan]

3 hours ago, GCn20 said:

I would like his chances a lot more if he had more experience. Nice athlete but very raw. I see him as either TCF, or practice roster at best. That being said if he brings his lunch pail and works hard who knows. We did keep the marine for those reasons.

He will have to show some serious smarts because his lack of experience at his position will make coaches wary

If he was a direct cover db, I would agree more. He's also played a ton of D snaps off the bench down south. But at S, I don't think he needs more experience from down south. He's got the football IQ and instincts for S, tremendous size and athleticism. His success at S would be based on his adjustment to the cfl game. 

He's certainly not TCF. He's actually played something like 1000, snaps at S in the Big 10. That's worth many times more snaps at low levels. That is likely why we signed him for 2 years. He might be a developmental guy at worst in our view. 

Outside of Corner (unless we kick Allen out to Corner, as Booch said), this secondary will be extremely hard to make. I do love the idea of kicking Allen out to corner early and seeing how he does. Then if Kramdi goes back to S, Start Griffin at Sam. 

Holm, Nichols, and Woodbey should also be locked in (if healthy out of camp) to similar roles as last year. 

I'd be fine with having Houston and or Bonds back in camp to try and reclaim the other corner spot. I wouldn't have them leading the pack but if they step up either could lock down that spot. 

If Vaval is back as KR, it becomes harder to use a 2nd DI at DB. With Woodbey already to play wil, we don't need one nearly as much either. Makonzo, Shay, and Smith also greatly reduce any need to carry another DB. 

 

With all of that, we would have 1 corner spot open, before cfl free agency even begins. With possibly one or both of Bonds/Houston to compete at that spot. While Mcghee also came to us last year and has league experience, plus Williams and Texada returning who spent time on the pr last year. PLUS all the other rookies. And Lawson, who was brutal here last year but has also played in the league previously. A guy like that can always turn things around.

Short of an injury bug, this is the hardest secondary to make that we've gone into camp with in a very long time. But, bringing in impressive size, versatility, and a strong skill set is as good as it gets. 

 

 

Edited 2 hours ago by wbbfan

[M.O.A.B.]

Pat Neufeld signs one-year contract extension with Winnipeg Blue Bombers - 3DownNation

[wbbfan]

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

Pat Neufeld signs one-year contract extension with Winnipeg Blue Bombers - 3DownNation

Was pretty much a formality imo 

[3rdand1.5]

I am really happy about Neufeld upping on another year. 

I feel some don't give him the credit he deserves. 

 

[wbbfan]

2 minutes ago, 3rdand1.5 said:

I am really happy about Neufeld upping on another year. 

I feel some don't give him the credit he deserves. 

 

He was better last year than the previous year when he was banged up. With out Kola to drag the line down, I expect to see the healthy guys who play have a serious jump in their performance. 

[rebusrankin]

Nice to have Neufeld back. 

[SpeedFlex27]

1 hour ago, 3rdand1.5 said:

I am really happy about Neufeld upping on another year. 

I feel some don't give him the credit he deserves. 

 

Neuf is a steadying influence on the OL for sure. I think he'll have a great season with Koala finally gone. I mean.... Finally.

[bustamente]

The guy on the line who needs to take big strides in his game is Gabe Wallace, maybe a new centre helps with his progression.

[BBlink]

7 minutes ago, bustamente said:

The guy on the line who needs to take big strides in his game is Gabe Wallace, maybe a new centre helps with his progression.

Not sure about the center thing. I think that just helps our overall performance. I agree tho that Wallace is the guy that will need to take a step or he will be the 6th o lineman. LG could be primarily an American position this year

[Blue In BC]

On 2026-01-16 at 11:43 AM, wbbfan said:

i’d be good with giving him a nice upfront bonus then a lower base salary. if any thing, he should be leery of back end deals and off season bonuses 

yeah i like him as a depth canadian. a lot better than corcantrun. we need ni talent at wr, free back up kr is good too 

The catch about upfront money is if an injury occurs ( like Schoen ). He did miss 5 games in 2025 and 10 over the last 3 seasons.    You don't have to provide a significant signing bonus or have an off season bonus. It's all risk analysis. 

In theory he won't be a target in either Hamilton or BC so his options are becoming limited. We should speak with his agent and find out.

Edited 29 minutes ago by Blue In BC