A few notes for this morning:

According to his Twitter account, Jade Etienne has signed with Sask.

According to his Facebook profile, Brandon Stewart is resigned to the fact he won't be back with the Bombers. He says Bombers haven't even contacted him since the season ended.

Cory Watson was 2 years away from even being drafted into the CFL at 24. The jury is still out on Etienne.

this. Why can't people wrap their minds around this??

Bah, Etienne's a Rider so good for him. Local boy comes home. I have about as much interest in him now as I do in Robb Bagg or any other Rider player. He was leaving anyway so good we got Willy for him.

Just don't go crying about all the I told you sos that are coming. 

Nope, won't be crying. If it does happen I'll be happy for him to the extent he's a Rider so it'll be with just passing interest. You think he's the first player to go somewhere & have success if he does? Won't really make a difference to me one way or the other.

The guy is going into his fourth year so if he doesn't get better at least a little bit then why is he even playing so he better improve. More important to me that the Bombers find other receivers & develop them now. So if Etienne does have success it won't matter. But to suggest I'll be crying about it? No,I won't.

What if on February 11th Etienne had walked away & signed with the Riders & we got nothing? Would that have been any better? At least he was still an asset we could use to trade for a qb. We couldn't have done that in 2 more days. 

what a cop out, you flat out declared him a bust, if he goes somewhere else and has success it only goes to show that you were wrong and that those of us saying he's young and a project, give him time were correct. 

Wait until Rider fans get a hold of him. Local boy thing only gets you in the door - poor play real or imagined and Jade will be dying to be just a mere dissapointment in WPG again.

 

A lot of folks around here were pulling for him and would try to shout down everyone who said otherwise.  

what we were actually trying to shout down was this ridiculous notion that he was a failure before he even stepped onto the field. Don't pretend that the hate (yes hate) that some of you showed for the kid was based on anything other than where he was picked in the draft and what your imaginary draft board looked like. 

 

It may have started out that way, but you kept it up for 3 freaking years.  I personally never hated the kid, but he was a huge stretch where he was picked and he ended up playing 2 good games in 3 years.  Every time he caught a ball, the 'I told you so's' came out.  You were wrong.  I know you won't admit it even now when Jade's not a Bomber.  

 

Too many people hated on Jade simply because they wanted him to play to their expectations of a fourth overall pick instead of simply playing like a capable member of our roster.

That wasn't Jade hate.  It was Mack hate for wasting the 4th overall pick.

 

 

A lot of folks around here were pulling for him and would try to shout down everyone who said otherwise.  

what we were actually trying to shout down was this ridiculous notion that he was a failure before he even stepped onto the field. Don't pretend that the hate (yes hate) that some of you showed for the kid was based on anything other than where he was picked in the draft and what your imaginary draft board looked like. 

 

It may have started out that way, but you kept it up for 3 freaking years.  I personally never hated the kid, but he was a huge stretch where he was picked and he ended up playing 2 good games in 3 years.  Every time he caught a ball, the 'I told you so's' came out.  You were wrong.  I know you won't admit it even now when Jade's not a Bomber.  

 

Too many people hated on Jade simply because they wanted him to play to their expectations of a fourth overall pick instead of simply playing like a capable member of our roster.

That wasn't Jade hate.  It was Mack hate for wasting the 4th overall pick.

 

Flat out lies. I only kept it going for 3 years because you guys kept it going. I am never the instigator, I just don't back down to ignorant thoughts. Some of you seem to think you can just keep repeating it often enough that it'll become fact, I will never let that stand. 

.....and it turned out nice again.........assuming of course Willy is our qb of the future.

Too many people hated on Jade simply because they wanted him to play to their expectations of a fourth overall pick instead of simply playing like a capable member of our roster.

 

Nope.  I hated on him because he couldn't play as a capable member of our roster, whether or not he was getting reps as a receiver.  I knew he wouldn't be able to live up to his draft slot as a Blue Bomber, and I knew that by the time he was even an average player he'd be at the end of his lifespan as a Blue Bomber, so even if he ends up being a good player, he's not a good player for us.  It's pretty easy to tell the guys that are receivers in CIS, and the guys like Parker and Etienne who just blow by inferior athletes but don't have enough game to be useful pros.  To Etienne's credit, he has come a lot farther than Parker has in that respect, but he'll always lose when he has to battle to gain leverage on DB's.

 

Regardless of what Etienne does in Saskatchewan, just a horrendous draft pick for the Bombers.  At least it only cost us Jyles.

Look at it this way...we ended up trading Steven Jyles for Drew Willy.

what a cop out, you flat out declared him a bust, if he goes somewhere else and has success it only goes to show that you were wrong and that those of us saying he's young and a project, give him time were correct. 

What is it you don't understand? I don't care. He's a bust. JBR summed it up completely.

We actually didn't trade Etienne for WIlly... we traded Etienne for a conversation with Willy.  That equals bust.

 

Everyone would have lost it if we traded a first round pick to talk to a guy who we could sign a week later...  desperate times.

 

what a cop out, you flat out declared him a bust, if he goes somewhere else and has success it only goes to show that you were wrong and that those of us saying he's young and a project, give him time were correct. 

What is it you don't understand? I don't care. He's a bust. JBR summed it up completely.

 

Except that JBR has always displayed a different attitude than you two. You guys have hated Etienne moreso than slagging on the pick. JBR actually does focus on use of the draft pick, you guys are too busy trying to run down Etienne any chance you get. 

We actually didn't trade Etienne for WIlly... we traded Etienne for a conversation with Willy.  That equals bust.

 

Everyone would have lost it if we traded a first round pick to talk to a guy who we could sign a week later...  desperate times.

 

Well, actually, actually we traded a conversation with Etienne for a conversation with Willy.  That does not equal bust.

 

 

what a cop out, you flat out declared him a bust, if he goes somewhere else and has success it only goes to show that you were wrong and that those of us saying he's young and a project, give him time were correct. 

What is it you don't understand? I don't care. He's a bust. JBR summed it up completely.

 

Except that JBR has always displayed a different attitude than you two. You guys have hated Etienne moreso than slagging on the pick. JBR actually does focus on use of the draft pick, you guys are too busy trying to run down Etienne any chance you get. 

 

Again, I don't care.

I've never seen such a level of ... hatred ... for a player.

 

Too many people hated on Jade simply because they wanted him to play to their expectations of a fourth overall pick instead of simply playing like a capable member of our roster.

 

Nope.  I hated on him because he couldn't play as a capable member of our roster, whether or not he was getting reps as a receiver.  I knew he wouldn't be able to live up to his draft slot as a Blue Bomber, and I knew that by the time he was even an average player he'd be at the end of his lifespan as a Blue Bomber, so even if he ends up being a good player, he's not a good player for us.  It's pretty easy to tell the guys that are receivers in CIS, and the guys like Parker and Etienne who just blow by inferior athletes but don't have enough game to be useful pros.  To Etienne's credit, he has come a lot farther than Parker has in that respect, but he'll always lose when he has to battle to gain leverage on DB's.

 

Regardless of what Etienne does in Saskatchewan, just a horrendous draft pick for the Bombers.  At least it only cost us Jyles.

 

 

Never would have included you in my statement, you've always had a reasonable and respectable opinion on the issue.

I don't hate the player per se. I hate the fact Joe Mack drafted him so high to begin with which amounted to a waste of a pick. He was a late third round or early fourth round projection. Mack set him up to fail. What bothered me is every other Canadian player has to play special teams except him. He was incapable of being on a CFL field doing anything relating to special teams & helping the team win. So, the first 2 years the Bombers would dress the kid & he'd never play & just took up a roster spot. Had he been a fourth rounder he never would have stuck around. He was given more than enough chances to play so Mack could save face & he never lived up to it. Not Etienne's fault. So, I don't hate Etienne. I hate the pick. Besides, the Bombers weren't looking to re-sign him anyway. He was gone Tuesday had we not traded him.

But Mike & especially 17 know that already. They just want to shout down anyone who has a dissenting opinion to theirs about this kid. Now that he's gone, I don't care about him. He's Saskatchewan's problem now.

I don't hate the player per se. I hate the fact Joe Mack drafted him so high to begin with which amounted to a waste of a pick. He was a late third round or early fourth round projection. Mack set him up to fail. What bothered me is every other Canadian player has to play special teams except him. He was incapable of being on a CFL field doing anything relating to special teams & helping the team win. So, the first 2 years the Bombers would dress the kid & he'd never play & just took up a roster spot. Had he been a fourth rounder he never would have stuck around. He was given more than enough chances to play so Mack could save face & he never lived up to it. Not Etienne's fault. So, I don't hate Etienne. I hate the pick. Besides, the Bombers weren't looking to re-sign him anyway. He was gone Tuesday had we not traded him.

But Mike & especially 17 know that already. They just want to shout down anyone who has a dissenting opinion to theirs about this kid. Now that he's gone, I don't care about him. He's Saskatchewan's problem now.

 

You sure have an interesting viewpoint on those who don't agree with you. It seems like you don't actually read what people are saying once you figure out they are disagreeing with you, you just assume they are being rude and "shouting you down"

 

I've never said anything different about Etienne. I've always said people just need to be patient and that when he actually got a chance in 2013, he started to show why he was worth being drafted. Certain people just weren't willing to be patient because of their expectations due to his draft position.

 

Anyways, that's all I'll try and say to you on the subject. I don't want to be accused of "shouting you down" just because I explain my opinion.

I'll shout him down, he either doesn't read what people says or he doesn't type what he thinks. More likely he's trying to backtrack and hoping no one calls him on it, but I have a very good memory and I don't let people get away with that either. Couple of those guys have hated Etienne and directed their anger at him rather than the fact that it was a 4th overall pick used to take him. There is a BIG difference between the two attitudes. 

Etienne was useless as a Bomber and as a first round pick..........think I got them both covered off.

Mind you, so was Poblah.

Hey 17, Etienne is gone. You can always memorialize him in a Rider jersey.

 

I don't hate the player per se. I hate the fact Joe Mack drafted him so high to begin with which amounted to a waste of a pick. He was a late third round or early fourth round projection. Mack set him up to fail. What bothered me is every other Canadian player has to play special teams except him. He was incapable of being on a CFL field doing anything relating to special teams & helping the team win. So, the first 2 years the Bombers would dress the kid & he'd never play & just took up a roster spot. Had he been a fourth rounder he never would have stuck around. He was given more than enough chances to play so Mack could save face & he never lived up to it. Not Etienne's fault. So, I don't hate Etienne. I hate the pick. Besides, the Bombers weren't looking to re-sign him anyway. He was gone Tuesday had we not traded him.

But Mike & especially 17 know that already. They just want to shout down anyone who has a dissenting opinion to theirs about this kid. Now that he's gone, I don't care about him. He's Saskatchewan's problem now.

 

You sure have an interesting viewpoint on those who don't agree with you. It seems like you don't actually read what people are saying once you figure out they are disagreeing with you, you just assume they are being rude and "shouting you down".

 

I've never said anything different about Etienne. I've always said people just need to be patient and that when he actually got a chance in 2013, he started to show why he was worth being drafted. Certain people just weren't willing to be patient because of their expectations due to his draft position.

 

Anyways, that's all I'll try and say to you on the subject. I don't want to be accused of "shouting you down" just because I explain my opinion.

 

Yeah, maybe I was bit harsh on you, sorry. My apologies. 

I am interested in what Brescacin brings to the table. Methinks that he's a guy Walters wanted in the 2012 draft but was over-ruled by Mack. We've now dumped Aprile, Poblah, Dicroce, Etienne and may not get Kohlert back.  With Watson usually getting banged up by week five, there's a lot of room at NI receiver right now.  Maybe Ismael Bamba gets another shot?