Winnipeg Blue Bombers add two to roster - April 4, 2025
WINNIPEG, MB., April 4, 2025 – The Winnipeg Blue Bombers today announce the club has signed two Americans – receiver Geordon Porter and offensive lineman Aidan Hemphill.
Porter (6-1, 195; Connecticut; born: May 3, 2000, in Rancho Cucamonga, CA) joins the Blue Bombers after attending rookie camps with both the New York Giants and New York Jets in 2024.
Porter spent his college days at Arizona State (2018-21), New Mexico State (2022) and the University of Connecticut (2023) and over 42 games at those three programs pulled in 58 receptions for 775 yards and four touchdowns.
Hemphill (6-5, 290; Texas Southern; born: December 9, 1999 in Houston, TX) comes to the Blue Bombers after attending rookie minicamp with the Indianapolis Colts last spring. A tackle, Hemphill played six seasons at Texas Southern, including 11 games in 2023 when the Tigers averaged 26 points and 189 yards rushing per game. He played in the 2024 HBCU Legacy Bowl.
Good size for OL!
Quote from: Blueforlife on April 04, 2025, 06:13:43 PMGood size for OL!
He's 30 lbs lighter than Bryant but the same weight / size as Lofton. I wouldn't rule him out seeing work at LT as well during TC but I'm guessing he'll see more work at RT and even more inside at G. Imports seem to take longer to understand the CFL game with a yard off the ball.
We have a few OL returning from 2024 that will probably be closer to play OT sooner? You can never tell though.
Quote from: Blue In BC on April 04, 2025, 06:26:46 PMHe's 30 lbs lighter than Bryant but the same weight / size as Lofton. I wouldn't rule him out seeing work at LT as well during TC but I'm guessing he'll see more work at RT and even more inside at G. Imports seem to take longer to understand the CFL game with a yard off the ball.
We have a few OL returning from 2024 that will probably be closer to play OT sooner? You can never tell though.
Yes, I would say he needs to put on a few pounds.
Definitely need to start seeking out that OT replacement. It won't be long before we'll need to fill the biggest shoes ever.
If we can't do it with scouts, we'll have to buy one in FA like we did Stan & Yoshi & Lofton. And KW doesn't like to spend huge money on new FAs like that.
Quote from: TecnoGenius on April 05, 2025, 09:15:20 AMDefinitely need to start seeking out that OT replacement. It won't be long before we'll need to fill the biggest shoes ever.
If we can't do it with scouts, we'll have to buy one in FA like we did Stan & Yoshi & Lofton. And KW doesn't like to spend huge money on new FAs like that.
We'll have 3 import OL returning that were not the normal starters. A couple may take another step forward with more PR and practice time. In addition to 3 or 4 that might be at TC.
The catch is always whether they choose to remain on the PR for another season.
Quote from: TecnoGenius on April 05, 2025, 09:15:20 AMDefinitely need to start seeking out that OT replacement. It won't be long before we'll need to fill the biggest shoes ever.
If we can't do it with scouts, we'll have to buy one in FA like we did Stan & Yoshi & Lofton. And KW doesn't like to spend huge money on new FAs like that.
Most of our core was bought that way. We just haven't had to in a while because we've been focused on keeping them around.
But Stan, Harris, Demski, Willie, Bighill, etc were all bought for big money in FA by KW. I guess you can't technically count Collaros because we traded for him, but he played for 4(?) games and we had to take a pretty big risk at the time when we gave him his money at that point.
Quote from: Blue In BC on April 05, 2025, 01:51:26 PMWe'll have 3 import OL returning that were not the normal starters. A couple may take another step forward with more PR and practice time. In addition to 3 or 4 that might be at TC.
The catch is always whether they choose to remain on the PR for another season.
Randolph has a head start on the other two, they'll have to find a way to keep him on the active roster as it would be silly for him to accept a PR position when he's good enough to be a starter on most teams across the league.
Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on April 05, 2025, 04:26:49 PMRandolph has a head start on the other two, they'll have to find a way to keep him on the active roster as it would be silly for him to accept a PR position when he's good enough to be a starter on most teams across the league.
I don't disagree exactly. If he's not starting then I doubt he's on the AR because of the ratio. He could be added to the 1 game IR but that's an added cost. One miscalculation and you end up going over the SMS as we did in 2023.
If we don't draft an OL and / or he returns to college for his final year, then we're thin for Canadian OL if Wallace is starting.
So it comes down to best player, ratio and deployment of DI's. Every other team has the same issue. Every other team has a couple of import OL on their PR's as well.
Quote from: Blue In BC on April 05, 2025, 04:32:26 PMI don't disagree exactly. If he's not starting then I doubt he's on the AR because of the ratio. He could be added to the 1 game IR but that's an added cost. One miscalculation and you end up going over the SMS as we did in 2023.
If we don't draft an OL and / or he returns to college for his final year, then we're thin for Canadian OL if Wallace is starting.
So it comes down to best player, ratio and deployment of DI's. Every other team has the same issue. Every other team has a couple of import OL on their PR's as well.
That's a problem with letting Bryant string out his career, it's difficult to placate his replacement if he never gets to play, they've lost 2 of them to retirement. For that reason alone I think this should be Stan's last season, move on, save money, get on with it.
Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on April 05, 2025, 04:54:37 PMThat's a problem with letting Bryant string out his career, it's difficult to placate his replacement if he never gets to play, they've lost 2 of them to retirement. For that reason alone I think this should be Stan's last season, move on, save money, get on with it.
He may the best LT that has ever played in the CFL, at least in the last decade or so. Performance and then his reliability for staying healthy.
I agree this should be and will probably be his last season one way or the other. Randolph is in his 2nd and last year on his current contract. If Bryant does decide to retire, then there is a good chance of re-signing Randolph. If we don't and he doesn't play much in 2025, then we risk losing him as well.
OTOH, it wouldn't surprise me to see Bryant continue to play another couple of years. Whether we need to reshuffle how we spend our SMS is just another question. At some point a team decides to move forward and it's not always just a reflection of performance.
I have no idea how this will work out aside from guesstimates across the board.
Stanely had a pretty good health scare last season, I hope he's good to go this year.
On our OL this year, I have Bryant, Wallace, KO, Neufeld and Randolph
Quote from: Blue In BC on April 05, 2025, 01:51:26 PMWe'll have 3 import OL returning that were not the normal starters. A couple may take another step forward with more PR and practice time. In addition to 3 or 4 that might be at TC.
But none were better than Randolph to start those couple of games at LT. And we think one will magically be able to fill Big Stan's shoes next season? That's long odds indeed because I don't even think Randolph is good enough.
That means it's up to the scouts to find the next real deal. Or FA. But hey, you never know.
Quote from: Jesse on April 05, 2025, 03:12:00 PMBut Stan, Harris, Demski, Willie, Bighill, etc were all bought for big money in FA by KW. I guess you can't technically count Collaros because we traded for him, but he played for 4(?) games and we had to take a pretty big risk at the time when we gave him his money at that point.
Ya, but that's basically one big FA splash on a non-previous-Bomber every 2 seasons (during Mafia rule). KW is really the least FA-big-$ GM out there. He will spend big on re-signing and also getting a guy back (like Kenny)... but brand new guys, not so much.
And IIRC Yoshi & Demski weren't big money. They were not highly valued at the time. It's us who made the stars. That's more KW's M.O., find the value pick you think will turn into a star.
Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on April 05, 2025, 04:26:49 PMRandolph has a head start on the other two, they'll have to find a way to keep him on the active roster as it would be silly for him to accept a PR position when he's good enough to be a starter on most teams across the league.
100% disagree. Randolph is only good enough to start at OG right now, and no team wants an IMP OG. How quickly people forget how bad Randolph and our whole OL was when Randolph came in at LT! Ya, it's not all on him, because the whole line stunk at the time, but he definitely didn't make it better at OT.
Where he shone was RG, which means LG should be similar.
Quote from: dd on April 05, 2025, 08:47:14 PMOn our OL this year, I have Bryant, Wallace, KO, Neufeld and Randolph
No way in heck Randolph beats out Lofton at RT. None. Lofton was as good as Yoshi at pass-pro by mid-season. (Hopefully he improves at run block.)
And Lofton is inexpensive and stayed healthy all season. He also seems to gel with his RB and RECs, and is the new Gray -- getting downfield fast to celebrate big plays.
Week 1 we are:
Stan - Randolph - Ko-man - Neuf - Lofton
with maybe 30% chance Wallace beats Randolph for LG (always better to start a NAT).
(barring injury!)
I really warmed up to Lofton last season after worrying about the loss of Yoshi, but it was the best move ever if the same fate had befallen Yoshi here as occurred in SSK. Lofton is legit and really a great pick-up by KW and I'm very pleased he is here. For the money I can't think of any better RT. ... and ... Maybe Lofton is the future LT!! hmmm
MY hope last year was that Randolph would be able to come into 2026 and beat out Lofton at RT, but Techno is right that it won't happen.
Lofton will be written in to the depth chart in pen and it won't even be questioned. And a little consistency isn't necessarily a bad thing. I'm still 50/50 on Randolph vs. Wallace for guard. Hopefully they both come into camp in shape and ready to battle.
Geordon Porter looks alright, seems to have good speed.
Quote from: TecnoGenius on April 06, 2025, 10:29:35 AMNo way in heck Randolph beats out Lofton at RT. None. Lofton was as good as Yoshi at pass-pro by mid-season. (Hopefully he improves at run block.)
And Lofton is inexpensive and stayed healthy all season. He also seems to gel with his RB and RECs, and is the new Gray -- getting downfield fast to celebrate big plays.
Week 1 we are:
Stan - Randolph - Ko-man - Neuf - Lofton
with maybe 30% chance Wallace beats Randolph for LG (always better to start a NAT).
(barring injury!)
I really warmed up to Lofton last season after worrying about the loss of Yoshi, but it was the best move ever if the same fate had befallen Yoshi here as occurred in SSK. Lofton is legit and really a great pick-up by KW and I'm very pleased he is here. For the money I can't think of any better RT. ... and ... Maybe Lofton is the future LT!! hmmm
Maybe but the knock of Lofton has always been that he's not a great run blocker (his PFF analytics support that) but he's better than average in pass protection. I think it depends on how different our offense looks this year now that Buck's gone. I can certainly see a scenario where Lofton is on the bubble.
Quote from: Sir Blue and Gold on April 07, 2025, 02:42:05 PMMaybe but the knock of Lofton has always been that he's not a great run blocker (his PFF analytics support that) but he's better than average in pass protection. I think it depends on how different our offense looks this year now that Buck's gone. I can certainly see a scenario where Lofton is on the bubble.
The Elks had three running backs that got over five hundred yards last season...
What do you think about lightening the load on Brady? He takes a pounding.
Quote from: markf on April 07, 2025, 03:02:40 PMThe Elks had three running backs that got over five hundred yards last season...
What do you think about lightening the load on Brady? He takes a pounding.
Agree totally. It keeps him fresher and allows him to heal the nicks and ticks you get during the season. Don't know why we didn't use JA27 more when we had him for this specific reason. Seems we were more concerned that BO wins the rushing title than asset management.
I think the Brady Brady Brady approach we use is best for Brady and the team. He's like AH33 and Cornish before him. All 3 would plow down D's all game long. They all almost never got plays off.
It always struck me as odd that TOR would always take Oullette out all the time like it was the NFL or something, and put in a sub-par RB. And the dual/triple RB teams like TOR was, CGY/SSK are, etc, never seem to have anywhere near as effective a run game as we do.
Except for the early season issues, Brady was healthy all season and post-season in '24. I say keep doing it that way.
I'm in the Give Brady The Rock Camp as well.
Quote from: markf on April 07, 2025, 03:02:40 PMThe Elks had three running backs that got over five hundred yards last season...
What do you think about lightening the load on Brady? He takes a pounding.
There's a lot of theory and
some data out there that NFL running backs (as a whole) tend to begin decline at age 27. Oliveria is 28 in August.
Then there's the idea that there is a correlation between the number of carries a running back gets in a season and the risk of injury or decrease in performance afterwards. However, there's an often sited study done in 2017 published in the National Library of Medicine (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5347429) that actually appears to show the opposite. That is, there is no link between the number of running back carries per season as a predictor of increased injury... and that it might even be the inverse.
Clearly, regardless of where you fall on science the individual player has much more to do with it than some kind of 'age x equals injury y' rationale.
If it were me, I'd keep feeding him but I'd be quick to give him a week off when he needs it during the regular season. It's a marathon and what the data is very clear on is running backs get hurt more than most positions overall. Easy to understand why.
Quote from: Sir Blue and Gold on April 08, 2025, 01:33:02 PMThere's a lot of theory and some data out there that NFL running backs (as a whole) tend to begin decline at age 27. Oliveria is 28 in August.
Then there's the idea that there is a correlation between the number of carries a running back gets in a season and the risk of injury or decrease in performance afterwards. However, there's an often sited study done in 2017 published in the National Library of Medicine (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5347429) that actually appears to show the opposite. That is, there is no link between the number of running back carries per season as a predictor of increased injury... and that it might even be the inverse.
Clearly, regardless of where you fall on science the individual player has much more to do with it than some kind of 'age x equals injury y' rationale.
If it were me, I'd keep feeding him but I'd be quick to give him a week off when he needs it during the regular season. It's a marathon and what the data is very clear on is running backs get hurt more than most positions overall. Easy to understand why.
Thanks, I read the article at the link...
"This may simply be explained by the fact that RBs with a high number of carries (group B, 300+ carries in 1 season) are not only among the most talented athletes in the game (only 63 players in this category over an 11-season span), but they also have demonstrated an innate ability to perform in a way that minimizes injury risk.
And yet the baseball pitchers are strictly limited. Which is boring.
Thanks a lot.
..Pound the rock with Brady it is!
We're seeing a few mock drafts which is interesting but have to be taken with a grain of salt.
Obviously OL are a high priority for most teams but whether they are the best player available when choosing is always just speculation.
Looking at our roster and trying to figure out what the team might decide if certain players are available changes every time someone drafts a player we may have wanted.
There are some interesting players at the DB and RB position that have had some good press but haven't shown up in any mock drafts I've seen for the most part.
I won't be surprised if we choose OL with our 1st pick and then look at those positions in the 2nd round for at least one of our picks.
A receiver in the 2nd round would be a best player versus a higher need choice.
I don't really expect to choose a DL or LB in the 1st 2 rounds.
Quote from: Sir Blue and Gold on April 08, 2025, 01:33:02 PMIf it were me, I'd keep feeding him but I'd be quick to give him a week off when he needs it during the regular season. It's a marathon and what the data is very clear on is running backs get hurt more than most positions overall. Easy to understand why.
I remember watching the "NFL FILM" series years back and it was on running backs. I still remember the quote from the piece, it was "A running back and his body are like an outlaw and his horse, he's got to ride that nag until it drops".
Quote from: dd on April 07, 2025, 05:32:39 PMAgree totally. It keeps him fresher and allows him to heal the nicks and ticks you get during the season. Don't know why we didn't use JA27 more when we had him for this specific reason. Seems we were more concerned that BO wins the rushing title than asset management.
Brady has remained remarkably healthy since his rookie season when he broke his leg, but he's not indestructible and could easily miss a half dozen or more games if unlucky with injuries. Now that Augustine is gone they need to find a good Import RB that would be willing to hang around all season on the PR if necessary, a player with enough raw skill to back up Brady and Logan on returns. Maybe MCI could step in as Brady's backup but we've seen no evidence he can.
We added another import OL today.
2025-04-07 WPG Kickel, Matt OL A Aurora
Quote from: Blue In BC on April 08, 2025, 10:55:53 PMWe added another import OL today.
2025-04-07 WPG Kickel, Matt OL A Aurora
Winnipeg Blue Bombers sign offensive lineman Matt KickelThe Winnipeg Blue Bombers signed offensive lineman
Matt Kickel on Monday according to the CFL Transactions page.
Matt Kickel is six foot four and weighs 300 pounds. A native of Bolingbrook, Illinois, Kickel started 11 games on the offensive line for the Spartans in 2024. In 2024, Aurora averaged 46.64 points per game, 169.9 rushing yards per game, 294.36 passing yards per game, 464.3 total yards per game, 72 touchdowns, and allowed 13 sacks finishing 9-2 for the season and appearing in the second round of the 2024 NCAA Division III playoffs losing to Hope College 49-21.
Kickel was named Second Team CSC Academic All-American, Second Team All-American by D3football.com, Associated Press (AP), and the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA). He was also named NACC Offensive Lineman of the Year and First Team All-NACC.
Collegiately, Kickel started as a redshirt Freshman at Arizona State in 2019 as a walk-out prospect and serving on the scouting team for the Sun Devils. Then, he transferred to Aurora University (2020-24) playing 34 games on the offensive line for the Spartans.
In 2023, he played 12 games. Aurora averaged 53.25 points per game, 234.8 rushing yards per game, 269.92 passing yards per game, 504.7 total yards per game, 88 touchdowns, and allowed 21 sacks finishing 11-1 for the season losing to Wisconsin-La Crosse in the 2023 NCAA Division III playoffs quarterfinals.
Kickel was named a five-time All-American (2024 D3football.com, AP and AFCA, and 2023 AP and D3football.com), and a three-time First Team All-NACC.
Quote from: Sir Blue and Gold on April 08, 2025, 01:33:02 PMThere's a lot of theory and some data out there that NFL running backs (as a whole) tend to begin decline at age 27. Oliveria is 28 in August.
<Laughs in Andrew Harris>
(or Cornish)
I'm not sure the NFL rules apply up here.
Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on April 08, 2025, 05:01:06 PMBrady has remained remarkably healthy since his rookie season when he broke his leg, but he's not indestructible
Have you noticed the beef Brady adds every season now? Recall what he looked like that game where he broke his leg. He was like a scrawny little kid compared to what he is now.
And he doesn't put on the beef in the useless areas like Oullette does: no outrageous pipes or chest that doesn't do much for a RB. Brady's trainer should get top marks for prioritizing even-all-over beef and lower body/core strength.
Not saying he can't get injured, but he sure knows how to do all the right things. I think he got all the "know when to tighten, know when to loosen" tricks from AH when their times here overlapped.
We have been lucky injury wise. I am pleases Zac has stayed healthy.
Quote from: TecnoGenius on April 09, 2025, 08:10:05 AM<Laughs in Andrew Harris>
(or Cornish)
I'm not sure the NFL rules apply up here.
There's many examples of NFL running backs who are very productive well into their 30s too -- and I absolutely wasn't suggesting it was a 'rule' because I don't think it is one.