Blue Bombers Forum

Does anyone have any idea what Mafia is thinking for the other DE after letting Vaughters walk?  We tried a lot of guys in '25, especially the last few games.

Do we have any SMS left to make one last splash acquisition?  Or maybe wait to see who is on the heap after the dust settles and pick up a value play?

Or maybe there's some hen's teeth monster DE waiting to be first-rounded in the draft?

I'm not sure we've ever scouted a week-1 starter DE before, but anything is possible.

You gotta pick one, so make a wild guess!

There are a few DL left as potential free agents. I don't know if we are looking at any of them going into day 3.

I think we may see 1 of 2 late additions to the PR last year or Munier-Bailey pencilled at the top of the depth chart. We will sign more rookies that will compete and you never know when the next great player is found.

So it's really just something the team will look to resolve. Here is a list of DL remaining, not all of them are DE's and some have aged out.

COX, Bryan   A
LANIER II, Anthony   A
LAWSON, Dexter   A
LEMON, Shawn   A
MAULDIN IV, Lorenzo   A
RAY, Shane   A
WOODS, Jamal   A
DABIRE, Charbel   N
PELLEY, J-Min   N
PICKETT, Riley   N
ROMICK, Nigel   N

I think the guy listed on the depth chart will be Jaws or Jenkins.

And that they'll rotate off a lot with Ceresna on the end.

I think it's going to be a rookie. Probably one we've already picked up. Michael Dixon, Jenkins, Jaworski, Peeples... I think one or 2 of these guys will make the AR. Jenkins and Jaworski both played well in the one game last season. Dixon and Peeples stuck around on NFL practice rosters and now came up North. Peeples has the least impressive background, but he did get 2 sacks in 3 NFL preseason games, and that's enough to peak some interest!

Letting Vaughters go was smart in my opinion. Since we snagged Ceresna, we don't have money to pay Vaughters. Let's try our luck on the rookies at DE. Vaughters didn't really elevate our DL last season. We can do better! Bet on the upside!

Quote from: Tecno on February 04, 2026, 07:29:22 AMI'm not sure we've ever scouted a week-1 starter DE before, but anything is possible.

How soon Anthony Bennett is forgotten. Not sure if he was ever meant to be week one starter material but he was picked by us in the first round and they tried to work him to be a starter.

Nothing wrong with healthy competition, keep the best 2 or 3 hanging around rotating between the PR and the roster and see who rises to the top.  The key is giving them all multiple shots early and not stashed away until meaningless late season games. 

If they would have managed this situation better last year they would be further ahead coming into this season.  The same goes for the LB group, O'Shea has to loosen his iron grip on playing time and give the young players game reps to show what they can do.

Fairly confident it won't be Shawn Lemon.

Quote from: Stretch on February 04, 2026, 05:46:13 PMFairly confident it won't be Shawn Lemon.

I'll throw a party if nobody signs that loser in 2026.

Love it techno keep the polls coming fun and gets the convo started

Quote from: Blue In BC on February 04, 2026, 01:07:00 PMThere are a few DL left as potential free agents. I don't know if we are looking at any of them going into day 3.

COX, Bryan    A
LANIER II, Anthony    A
LAWSON, Dexter    A
LEMON, Shawn    A
MAULDIN IV, Lorenzo    A
RAY, Shane    A
WOODS, Jamal    A
DABIRE, Charbel    N
PELLEY, J-Min    N
PICKETT, Riley    N
ROMICK, Nigel    N

But which are natural DEs... obviously some of the well-known names are just DTs.  Is anyone familiar enough with everyone on this list to strike off the DTs so we can narrow it just to the DEs?

I find it interesting Jaworski is leading the poll right now.  I guess he's as good as anyone else on the roster at the moment.

Is Ayers not a FA?  Or was he a PR drop to end the season?  He's showing on the roster still.  Why no love for Ayers?  One would think as the multi-year dev guy that he would finally get a shot?

And if you voted "rookie IMP", is that really feasible given that I don't think we've ever started a rookie IMP DE before (have we?)?  The dev path for these guys seems pretty clear -- and long.

Quote from: Tecno on February 04, 2026, 09:32:13 PMBut which are natural DEs... obviously some of the well-known names are just DTs.  Is anyone familiar enough with everyone on this list to strike off the DTs so we can narrow it just to the DEs?

I find it interesting Jaworski is leading the poll right now.  I guess he's as good as anyone else on the roster at the moment.

Is Ayers not a FA?  Or was he a PR drop to end the season?  He's showing on the roster still.  Why no love for Ayers?  One would think as the multi-year dev guy that he would finally get a shot?

And if you voted "rookie IMP", is that really feasible given that I don't think we've ever started a rookie IMP DE before (have we?)?  The dev path for these guys seems pretty clear -- and long.

Ayers is not a potential free agent. He's seen few reps on defence and when he did it was as a LB in more of a 34 defence. In 2024 he may have had to sub in at WIL.

If he was going to get more reps on defence we thought he might replace K. Wilson at WIL but even that has fallen off the depth chart. He's very good on ST's but it doesn't appear he's in the plans on defence very often. Griffin and Woodbey are the ones we'll see at LB.

At DE it's the ones on the poll or a rookie signing at the moment. We don't have a veteran to use as a choice yet.

We used Haba and Garbutt as rookies on the DL in 2024 so rookies are not that unusual.

Quote from: Blue In BC on February 04, 2026, 09:42:43 PMAyers is not a potential free agent. He's seen few reps on defence and when he did it was as a LB in more of a 34 defence.

I was looking through the depth charts from '25 and Ayers was a backup DE a couple of times.  Of course, that may not mean he was used as DE, but I'm assuming he was at least a bit.

Maybe he's a bad example.  Argh, stupid WPG depth charts that mean nothing!

Quote from: Blue In BC on February 04, 2026, 09:42:43 PMWe used Haba and Garbutt as rookies on the DL in 2024 so rookies are not that unusual.

IIRC those guys were slotted in to start DE more as "tryouts" than legit starters.  We didn't seem to ever settle on a good option -- as seen in how fast we released them in FA.

By "rookie IMP" choice I mean more that we find a legit future-star one that can start fairly early in the year and keep the spot all season, and remain for the next, too.  That is something I'm not sure we've seen -- not like DB where we can strike gold with rookies.

It seems weird, but maybe DL is a position that just takes longer to develop.  You'd think it would apply more to DB, where they have to learn our insane schemes, whereas DL just needs to run straight forward and play red rover (well, kinda, simplified).

Quote from: Tecno on February 04, 2026, 09:50:47 PMIIRC those guys were slotted in to start DE more as "tryouts" than legit starters.  We didn't seem to ever settle on a good option -- as seen in how fast we released them in FA.

By "rookie IMP" choice I mean more that we find a legit future-star one that can start fairly early in the year and keep the spot all season, and remain for the next, too.  That is something I'm not sure we've seen -- not like DB where we can strike gold with rookies.

Willy, Haba and Garbutt were all they had left when they didn't bring Jeffcoat back for 2024.

Currently we show 11 DL and only 3 that weren't here in 2025. 3 that played the last game of the season. Not sure whether the rookies are DE's or DT's but that the current roster.

Quote from: Tecno on February 04, 2026, 09:50:47 PMI was looking through the depth charts from '25 and Ayers was a backup DE a couple of times.  Of course, that may not mean he was used as DE, but I'm assuming he was at least a bit.

Ayers is 100% a LB. His listing as a DE was probably because they literally couldn't fit another name under the LBs in the depth chart. And a major problem some of us had with the roster deployment last year.

Quote from: Jesse on February 04, 2026, 10:49:36 PMAyers is 100% a LB. His listing as a DE was probably because they literally couldn't fit another name under the LBs in the depth chart. And a major problem some of us had with the roster deployment last year.

Funny thing is when Ayers did line up on D he was added to the line, much as Cole did the year previously to help with the pass rush. Can't recall Ayers getting any LB reps last season, thus I think Griffin and Woodbey may have surpassed him.

forum split on this one, not surprised, will have to see when more vote, keep it up fellas

Quote from: Jesse on February 04, 2026, 10:49:36 PMAyers is 100% a LB. His listing as a DE was probably because they literally couldn't fit another name under the LBs in the depth chart.

LOL, that's actually pretty fun.  And sad at the same time.

Boy, I sure wish the FA chart and the rosters always specified DE or DT, instead of just the semi-useless DL designation.  Otherwise we have to wrack our memories to figure out who potential DEs are.

Defensive end can be a little more forgiving for new Americans getting used to the CFL game. At least in terms of understanding assignments. Still an uphill battle if they're coming right from college.

The ideal pairing is probably a younger, physical American who can provide a very different look from the one we get from Willie.

I don't know. Jaworski looked good in one game but it was like a pre season back ups against back ups. He looked aggressive, fast quick and all that.

The issue if there is one is that a defensive player can be over aggressive at times. Young players can tend to fall into that problem and end up giving up gaps by over pursuit.

I'm not suggesting that is the case with these players but our sample size is so small.

Oline is a ballet, the players need to both be on the exact same page and know what the guy beside them is going to do, both good and bad.

Dline is anarchy, chaos.  A new Dlineman can drop in and be effective day one. play one.  It can even enhance his effectiveness, because the Oline will have game planned for something else.

Oline must be nurtured and grown.

Dline, get the best players you can and plug them in.

The one yard is the only big difference, and like the waggle, once an American figures that out, it can be an advantage.  Like Schoen who was nothing in 4 down, but using the waggle, excelled up here.

Quote from: theaardvark on February 05, 2026, 03:48:56 PMOline is a ballet, the players need to both be on the exact same page and know what the guy beside them is going to do, both good and bad.

Dline is anarchy, chaos.  A new Dlineman can drop in and be effective day one. play one.  It can even enhance his effectiveness, because the Oline will have game planned for something else.

Oline must be nurtured and grown.

Dline, get the best players you can and plug them in.

The one yard is the only big difference, and like the waggle, once an American figures that out, it can be an advantage.  Like Schoen who was nothing in 4 down, but using the waggle, excelled up here.

Yes a new DL player can be effective play one. OTOH, the motion, 12 man, speed of the game and field size are something that is an adjustment to their US experience.

Yes it's an easier transition than on the OL.

Like any position, some players adapt immediately and some never do. Finding athletic individuals that have shown high football IQ's is a good starting point.

Jaworski and Jenkins only joined the PR on Oct 6. That gives them a very slight edge but both could just as easily be surpassed by new rookies in TC.

There is no real way to tell just yet. At least Munier-Bailey was here all year and was a high global draft pick. Realistically he probably makes the AR as a rotation player, almost by default. When we draft new global players this year the trend is a kicker and a LB. Even if one is a DE he'll be more raw than Bailey.

Since I don't see many veteran options in free agency it will be a free for all in TC with the last man standing winning a starting role.

Quote from: theaardvark on February 05, 2026, 03:48:56 PMOline is a ballet, the players need to both be on the exact same page and know what the guy beside them is going to do, both good and bad.

Dline is anarchy, chaos.  A new Dlineman can drop in and be effective day one. play one.  It can even enhance his effectiveness, because the Oline will have game planned for something else.

Oline must be nurtured and grown.

Dline, get the best players you can and plug them in.

The one yard is the only big difference, and like the waggle, once an American figures that out, it can be an advantage.  Like Schoen who was nothing in 4 down, but using the waggle, excelled up here.

I disagree, the D-line isn't all freelancing, they have gaps to fill and boundaries to set to contain the QB, any player that continually goes off script isn't going to last long. Pretty clear one of Jake's jobs in the last few years was relaying the play to the D-line keeping them organized and on the same page.

Quote from: theaardvark on February 05, 2026, 03:48:56 PMOline must be nurtured and grown.

Dline, get the best players you can and plug them in.

I think any GM worth his salt can and should apply both strategies to either side of the trenches.

Ceresna and Willie will be our DEs.

Quote from: GCn19 on February 05, 2026, 07:16:03 PMCeresna and Willie will be our DEs.

Not on a regular basis. He weighs 295 lbs. He's perfect for a DT collapsing the pocket and run stuffing.

Quote from: GCn19 on February 05, 2026, 07:16:03 PMCeresna and Willie will be our DEs.

I think both wi11 move around on the 1ine so teams can't just doub1e the edges or chip b1ock with the RB. Offense is going to setup and then the D 1ine wi11 setup and attack. It's not going to be the straight rush 3 BS from 1ast year, we can ATTACK now. Not sure if Thomas knows what or how to generate pressure from the 1ine
 

Quote from: dd on February 05, 2026, 11:05:04 PMI think both wi11 move around on the 1ine so teams can't just doub1e the edges or chip b1ock with the RB. Offense is going to setup and then the D 1ine wi11 setup and attack. It's not going to be the straight rush 3 BS from 1ast year, we can ATTACK now. Not sure if Thomas knows what or how to generate pressure from the 1ine
 

Thomas has played too long in this league, for too many great coaches, to not bring a lot to the table.  And he's been given 2 of the best at their positions to start with.

He will be fine.

Probably start with Jaworski or Jenkins, then end up with someone else new.

Quote from: theaardvark on February 06, 2026, 04:17:13 PMThomas has played too long in this league, for too many great coaches, to not bring a lot to the table.  And he's been given 2 of the best at their positions to start with.

He will be fine.

Ya he was here when we had Jeffcoat Stove and Wi11ie generating massive pressure every snap. We have Ceresna to rep1ace Jeffcoat, sti11 1ooking for Stove's rep1acement...

Quote from: dd on February 07, 2026, 12:59:54 AMYa he was here when we had Jeffcoat Stove and Wi11ie generating massive pressure every snap. We have Ceresna to rep1ace Jeffcoat, sti11 1ooking for Stove's rep1acement...

Did your 'l' key die?

The DL is still a work in progress. Ceresna is a great addition. Lawson is an upgrade over Thomas but Schmekel and Kornelson have to step up as depth.

It's almost moot whether we see Ceresna replacing Vaughters more often than Woods. Ultimately we still have 1 " starter " to determine.

While we had some candidates with minimal time with the Bombers as DE types, we had nothing at DT. New rookies will be fighting to win a role at both DE and DT roles.

The new signings always sound promising but there may be more focus on recruitment knowing there is a real competition this TC?

IMO there is only a remote chance we find part of the solution in what remains of free agency. Possible but looking at the free agent list and list of rookie candidates, it looks like a rookie makes the AR on the DL. Noting that I include the 3 from 2025 that played the last game as essentailly rookies as well.

Quote from: Blue In BC on February 07, 2026, 03:16:07 PMThe DL is still a work in progress. Ceresna is a great addition. Lawson is an upgrade over Thomas but Schmekel and Kornelson have to step up as depth.

It's almost moot whether we see Ceresna replacing Vaughters more often than Woods. Ultimately we still have 1 " starter " to determine.

While we had some candidates with minimal time with the Bombers as DE types, we had nothing at DT. New rookies will be fighting to win a role at both DE and DT roles.

The new signings always sound promising but there may be more focus on recruitment knowing there is a real competition this TC?

IMO there is only a remote chance we find part of the solution in what remains of free agency. Possible but looking at the free agent list and list of rookie candidates, it looks like a rookie makes the AR on the DL. Noting that I include the 3 from 2025 that played the last game as essentailly rookies as well.

I expect Schmeck to be a big part of the 3 man DT rotation this year, he's going into his 4th season and this should be is his make it or break it phase whether he'll become a starter or remain a marginal contributor in certain situations.  Both Schmeck and Lawson have had injury problems in the past so it remains to be seen if this rotation will work or if they'll have to add more bodies to keep it going.  Don't expect much from Korny, but they keep bringing him back so never know.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on February 07, 2026, 05:31:16 PMI expect Schmeck to be a big part of the 3 man DT rotation this year, he's going into his 4th season and this should be is his make it or break it phase whether he'll become a starter or remain a marginal contributor in certain situations.  Both Schmeck and Lawson have had injury problems in the past so it remains to be seen if this rotation will work or if they'll have to add more bodies to keep it going.  Don't expect much from Korny, but they keep bringing him back so never know.

We'll probably draft another DL in the 1st 3 rounds this year. That's just a guess on where we are the least deep. I was surprised we brought Kornelson back but yes it's a break or make it season.

Younger will trick us all and have a four man D line.

Quote from: markf on February 07, 2026, 07:09:40 PMYounger will trick us all and have a four man D line.

hopefully our roster decision making allows for us to utilize a 4 man front, especially when the 3 man isnt working. We also need to find an adequate backup import to Ceresna and not put all our eggs in one basket