Blue Bombers Forum

Another very important game for the Bombers (aren't they all now!). 

The standings are tight and may be even tighter following the Lions' game against the Redblacks tomorrow.

The big topic this week was ball distribution and fans will be watching this week with increased interest.  Mike O'Shea's comments in Ed Tait's 48-Hour Primer on this subject goes like this...

"Asked Thursday how much of Oliveira's workload was dictated by being in a trail position for all of the second half, or what the Roughriders were doing defensively, head coach Mike O'Shea thought for a moment and then offered this:

"Yeah... 72-28," he said with a chuckle. "No, there's a bunch of factors that go into it. It starts with the game planning and what Saskatchewan does, where we're at in the game and the time remaining, the score, all those things... the success we've had earlier on in the game and if their part of the plan has changed or not. There's so many factors that go into it.

"We love Brady. We like what he can do. We like him touching the ball whether it's running or catching the ball. There's never a number but every single week it's, 'All right, Brady needs to touch the ball' but it's not a set number. And above all that — above anybody touching the ball — is what do you need to do this week? And at halftime, what do you need to do to win that half? What do you need to do to win that quarter?

"Each game is going to look different and each game might not unfold according to the plan."

The injury list remains fairly long with 5 players - Jamal Parker, Fabien Weitz, Tanner Schmekel, Dalton Schoen and Jereth Sterns ruled out of Saturday's game and 4 players - Gabe Wallace, Micah Vanterpool, Nick Hallett and Rheda Kramdi ruled questionable.

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/G0B3TLfXwAAiVPw?format=jpg&name=small)

Bombers are at home, in front of a sold out crowd and many reasons to bring their A-game in this tilt. Depth Charts and updates will be available tomorrow so, bring it on Bombers!

Ya Mike, thanks for the insight, but run the ball more!!

IN: Kramdi, Peterson, Vanterpool, Wilson, Kornelson

OUT: Logan, Weitz, Cobb, Schoen, Schmekel

6 game for Schoen

Still no Houston

Must win. I hope Wilson has a huge game.

Kornelson who wasn't good enough for practice roster starting ahead of Woods and Adams
I swear OShea's just trying to screw with us

Quote from: Pete on September 05, 2025, 02:45:30 PMI swear OShea's just trying to screw with us

Yeah, that must be it.

Quote from: The Zipp on September 05, 2025, 02:29:41 PMIN: Kramdi, Peterson, Vanterpool, Wilson, Kornelson

OUT: Logan, Weitz, Cobb, Schoen, Schmekel

6 game for Schoen

Still no Houston

I don't mean to be critical here but why did Schoen even come back last game when clearly he wasn't at 100 percent?  And how many games did he play this season?  Not impressed.

Schoen is having a tough couple of years...

Quote from: The Zipp on September 05, 2025, 02:29:41 PMIN: Kramdi, Peterson, Vanterpool, Wilson, Kornelson

OUT: Logan, Weitz, Cobb, Schoen, Schmekel

6 game for Schoen

Still no Houston

That's a lot less changes that I thought we'd see. In particular with no Houston being added. Not sure about having Vaval having to do most of the return duties and start at CB.

What's the deal with Houston. He can't possibly be not ready physically or mentally. This is a choice made which is fine if the team feels Lawson and Vaval are better at the moment.

Vanterpool in was something I thought we might see either due to Wallace being nicked or an expected better OL combination.

No addition of either import DT. :(

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 05, 2025, 03:04:06 PMThat's a lot less changes that I thought we'd see. In particular with no Houston being added. Not sure about having Vaval having to do most of the return duties and start at CB.

What's the deal with Houston. He can't possibly be not ready physically or mentally. This is a choice made which is fine if the team feels Lawson and Vaval are better at the moment.

Vanterpool in was something I thought we might see either due to Wallace being nicked or an expected better OL combination.

No addition of either import DT. :(

I guess they won't take out a player to insert a new one...if Schoen wasn't hurt we likely wouldn't see Pokey in the lineup.

Wallace is a GTD

or Houston is just not ready and out of shape

Quote from: The Zipp on September 05, 2025, 02:56:59 PMSchoen is having a tough couple of years...

Disastrous would be the better descriptor, IMO.

Quote from: The Zipp on September 05, 2025, 03:12:06 PMI guess they won't take out a player to insert a new one...if Schoen wasn't hurt we likely wouldn't see Pokey in the lineup.

Wallace is a GTD

or Houston is just not ready and out of shape

I expect Wallace will play but limited in jumbo etc. I have no idea what the deal with Houston is thought. That's somewhat alarming.

Schoen to 6 game IR is both unfortunate and disappointing. I think his days as a Bomber are over and possibly his football career as well.  I feel badly for him with all the effort he's put into re-hab.

This is the Banjo Bowl.

The D will be operating in the most hostile stadium environment in the CFL, period. We bring the noise when the opponent is on O.

So, I understand not bringing in a guy that just got to camp into that.  Houston may need some conditioning, or may need to refresh on the playbook, might even need some attitude adjusting, but more than anything, he does not have the months of working with each other that the current DB's have.  And THAT is going to be essential when there is no chance of communication pre-snap.

We will see next game.  I don't doubt that if he's going to stay on the roster, he's going to play next game.  If he does not get elevated, I can see him getting an apple and a roadmap.  Like swerve.

houston was practicing with the number 1 unit but obviously coaches werent thrilled with what they saw. my guess is that they arent 100% sure on Kramdl is why Woodbey is still in.(I hope this isn't another case of bringing a player in when he's liable to reinjure himself)
I would have thought having another db as insurance with vaval kick returning would be smart, but once again O'Sheas guy Ayers is untouchable. (remind anyone of Jackson in 23?)
I guess 10 linebackers is a good number especially with the poor depth at db and dline.

Quote from: Pete on September 05, 2025, 04:40:42 PMhouston was practicing with the number 1 unit but obviously coaches werent thrilled with what they saw. my guess is that they arent 100% sure on Kramdl is why Woodbey is still in.(I hope this isn't another case of bringing a player in when he's liable to reinjure himself)
I would have thought having another db as insurance with vaval kick returning would be smart, but once again O'Sheas guy Ayers is untouchable. (remind anyone of Jackson in 23?)
I guess 10 linebackers is a good number especially with the poor depth at db and dline.

Maybe but Makonzo would be Canadian depth at SAM and he's been practising at full for weeks. Griffin will be next up at SAM if Kramdi struggles so we're talking next, next man up and a Canadian is preferable to an import.

Yes Woodbey looked good last week, but is he the best choice from a DI point of view that prevented us from adding an import DT?

Ask me after the game if Oullette rushing for over 100 yards.

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/G0GGKzjbAAAK_3b?format=jpg&name=4096x4096)

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/G0GJEMRacAA_u6d?format=jpg&name=large)

Vanterpool at guard can only help.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers to start Ontaria 'Pokey' Wilson against Riders in Banjo Bowl
By John Hodge -September 5, 2025

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers didn't waste any time getting Ontaria 'Pokey' Wilson into the starting lineup as he'll be at slotback when the Saskatchewan Roughriders visit for the annual Banjo Bowl on Saturday.

The 26-year-old native of Ashburn, Ga. signed with the Blue Bombers earlier this week following his release from the New York Jets. He played three preseason games with the Jets and made three catches for 38 yards before returning to Winnipeg, where he had a successful rookie CFL season in 2024.

The six-foot-one, 175-pound target caught 71 passes for 1,026 yards and three touchdowns over 18 regular-season games last year, helping the Blue Bombers reach the Grey Cup in Vancouver. He finished ninth in receiving yards league-wide and second on the team behind Nic Demski.

Wilson's return is particularly key as Dalton Schoen, who suffered a non-contact knee injury late in the Labour Day Classic, has been placed on the six-game injured list. This marks the 28-year-old's second stint on the six-game injured list this season due to a non-contact knee injury. Schoen also missed most of last year with a torn ACL.

The Blue Bombers will start Redha Kramdi at strong-side linebacker after the veteran missed last week's game due to an ankle injury.

Running back Matthew Peterson has also been promoted back to the active roster in place of American running back and return specialist Peyton Logan, who was relatively ineffective in two games since making his season debut. Logan is now on the one-game injured list as a healthy scratch.

Canadian defensive lineman Tanner Schmekel has been placed on the six-game injured list due to a leg injury he suffered last week. Local product Collin Kornelson, who was re-signed this week, will play in his spot.

Winnipeg allowed five sacks last week and all eyes will be on the offensive line where left guard Gabe Wallace is listed as a game-time decision due to a hip injury he suffered in practice on Wednesday. If he's unable to play, Micah Vanterpool will likely start in his place.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers (6-5) will host the Saskatchewan Roughriders (9-2) at Princess Auto Stadium for the annual Banjo Bowl on Saturday, September 6 with kickoff slated for 4:00 p.m. EDT. The Roughriders beat the Blue Bombers in the Labour Day Classic this past weekend, fending off a late comeback attempt to win 34-30.

The weather forecast in Winnipeg calls for a high of 20 degrees with sunny conditions. The game will be broadcast on TSN in Canada and CFL+ internationally. Radio listeners can tune-in on 620 CKRM in Regina and 680 CJOB in Winnipeg.

https://3downnation.com/2025/09/05/winnipeg-blue-bombers-to-start-ontaria-pokey-wilson-against-riders-in-banjo-bowl/

Saskatchewan Roughriders rule out DB Jaxon Ford for Banjo Bowl against Winnipeg
By 3Down Staff -September 5, 2025

The Saskatchewan Roughriders will be without Canadian defensive back Jaxon Ford when they visit the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for the annual Banjo Bowl on Saturday afternoon.

The 25-year-old native of Regina, Sask. was limited in practice on Thursday with a knee injury and was subsequently moved to the one-game injured list. The six-foot, 210-pound defender started last week's Labour Day Classic at safety with Nelson Lokombo out of the lineup due to an ankle injury.

Defensive back Kosi Onyeka, who is in his fourth season with the Roughriders, will start in Ford's place this weekend. The native of Brampton, Ont. joined the team as an undrafted rookie in 2022 and has since made four defensive tackles, 34 special teams tackles, and one forced fumble over 37 regular-season CFL games.

Ford was a second-round pick in the 2023 CFL Draft out of the University of Regina and has since recorded 19 defensive tackles and 11 special teams tackles over 31 career regular-season CFL games. His grandfather, Al Ford, won two Grey Cups with Saskatchewan — one as a player and one as the team's general manager.

The Roughriders haven't made any other changes to their lineup from last week's win in the Labour Day Classic.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders (9-2) will visit the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (6-5) at Princess Auto Stadium for the annual Banjo Bowl on Saturday, September 6 with kickoff slated for 4:00 p.m. EDT. The Roughriders beat the Blue Bombers in the Labour Day Classic this past weekend, fending off a late comeback attempt to win 34-30.

https://3downnation.com/2025/09/05/saskatchewan-roughriders-rule-out-db-jaxon-ford-for-banjo-bowl-against-winnipeg/

Quote from: Sir Blue and Gold on September 05, 2025, 04:53:43 PMVanterpool at guard can only help.

What are the consequences?  They're only dressing 6 real D-linemen including Kornelson, they can no longer afford to delete Person.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 05, 2025, 05:06:41 PMWhat are the consequences?  They're only dressing 6 real D-linemen including Kornelson, they can no longer afford to delete Person.

There are no consequences. We're still starting three nationals on defense and five on offense not including Wallace.

I guess you can say maybe we'd have kept Logan in if Vanterpool was out but it's not really going to have any negative effect.

I doubt Vanterpool doesn't start. It's not common to have an import OL on the AR that isn't starting. My expectation is that Wallace is just on the field for jumbo.

when you look at the dline its pretty obvious that Oshea and Younger doesn't value dts. We've always looked at that position as one you don't have to spend cap dollars esp on imports. Its like its a position where you basically just have to fill holes in our scheme
Sask obviously doesn't feel that way and have the best dline in the league

Quote from: Pete on September 05, 2025, 04:40:42 PMhouston was practicing with the number 1 unit but obviously coaches werent thrilled with what they saw. my guess is that they arent 100% sure on Kramdl is why Woodbey is still in.(I hope this isn't another case of bringing a player in when he's liable to reinjure himself)
I would have thought having another db as insurance with vaval kick returning would be smart, but once again O'Sheas guy Ayers is untouchable. (remind anyone of Jackson in 23?)
I guess 10 linebackers is a good number especially with the poor depth at db and dline.

They're piling a lot of stones on Vaval's back, if he gets wiped out on a kick return it's going to be difficult to patch up the secondary with no spare parts. Cobb and Peterson can handle return duties, I guess they'd use Kelly or Kramdi at Safety and move Allen to CB in an emergency.

That d-line is horrid.  If it's close or we lose this will be the reason.  Same as all season.

Calgary gave us the blue print yet the tall foreheads think they know better.

Maybe Brady gets 6 carries.....

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 05, 2025, 05:10:03 PMI doubt Vanterpool doesn't start. It's not common to have an import OL on the AR that isn't starting. My expectation is that Wallace is just on the field for jumbo.

What happened to the one player that would be rostered and not dress on game day, did they do away with that designation?

Quote from: Sir Blue and Gold on September 05, 2025, 05:09:22 PMThere are no consequences. We're still starting three nationals on defense and five on offense not including Wallace.

I guess you can say maybe we'd have kept Logan in if Vanterpool was out but it's not really going to have any negative effect.

Right. Surprised they deleted Logan, must be necessity, he wasn't lighting up but he also wasn't screwing up.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 05, 2025, 05:16:02 PMWhat happened to the one player that would be rostered and not dress on game day, did they do away with that designation?

Roster used to be 46 players when they did that and yes they did away with that idea. It never made any sense to pay a full SMS salary and not allow that player to play. At times that player was an import and it would have created a ratio issue potentially.

Now we " hide " that kind of player on the 1 game IR and decide whether to activate or not. It's still the same hit on the SMS though.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 05, 2025, 05:18:44 PMRight. Surprised they deleted Logan, must be necessity, he wasn't lighting up but he also wasn't screwing up.

It was a ratio choice on our imports and we choose to add Vanterpool due to Wallace being nicked. There were other choices that could also been made by bumping an import LB.

I don't know how Vaval will do needing to fill starting CB and returner from a load point of view. It's not a win win situation.

If the defence plays well, he'll be fielding a lot of punts. If the defence plays badly he'll be on the field longer as a CB and for K/O's.

Peterson might get some work on returns as well but that makes me nervous.

Banjo Bowl Game Preview...

Game 11: Roughriders (9-2) at Blue Bombers (6-5)

Kickoff: Saturday, September 6th, 3 p.m. CDT; Princess Auto Stadium, Winnipeg
TV/Streaming: TSN 1;  CFL+
Radio: 680 CJOB (pre-game begins at noon, CDT); Play-by-play: Derek Taylor/analyst: Doug Brown; Sirius XM (ch. 167)

A couple Blue Bomber-related storylines as we get ready for another sold out Banjo Bowl:

-The offence gets Pokey Wilson back after his stint with the New York Jets and just a few days after he signed a contract extension that will take him through 2026. The bad news for the attack is Dalton Schoen is down again with a knee injury and will miss Saturday's game as he has been placed on the six- game injured list.

Wilson, if you recall, was the Blue Bombers Most Outstanding Rookie last season after pulling in 71 passes for 1,026 yards and three touchdowns.

"It takes a while to learn the CFL game but with the flashes he showed last year in training camp everyone knew there was a spark there," said Demski of Wilson. "Now with him coming in here off an NFL camp, it's almost like he never left. He just walked in and started from where he left off last year. That's such a comfortable feeling, knowing you've got a receiver like that who treats practice like games.

https://www.bluebombers.com/2025/09/05/game-preview-banjo-bowl-sask-at-wpg/

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 05, 2025, 05:25:09 PMIt was a ratio choice on our imports and we choose to add Vanterpool due to Wallace being nicked. There were other choices that could also been made by bumping an import LB.

I don't know how Vaval will do needing to fill starting CB and returner from a load point of view. It's not a win win situation.

If the defence plays well, he'll be fielding a lot of punts. If the defence plays badly he'll be on the field longer as a CB and for K/O's.

Peterson might get some work on returns as well but that makes me nervous.

Adding Houston and taking off one of our million LB punt chasers would have made some sense with Vaval returning.

Get Houston on teams chasing punts.  Good insurance policy.

Quote from: gobombersgo on September 05, 2025, 04:48:11 PM(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/G0GGKzjbAAAK_3b?format=jpg&name=4096x4096)

Little disappointed that Houston isn't on the AR some wear. Also, what has happened to Adams and Woods? One of them should have been on the AR this week.

Quote from: Pigskin on September 05, 2025, 08:41:33 PMLittle disappointed that Houston isn't on the AR some wear. Also, what has happened to Adams and Woods? One of them should have been on the AR this week.

The experts on D-line play should be able to tell you all about their deficiencies.  ;D

Quote from: Pigskin on September 05, 2025, 08:41:33 PMLittle disappointed that Houston isn't on the AR some wear. Also, what has happened to Adams and Woods? One of them should have been on the AR this week.

That would be a great question for the person who has makes the final decision on the roster.

Along with why they would roster a player with a torn ACL last game. Inquiring minds....

Same person that rosters a guy that couldn't make our pr, and has been out of action for a month.
man I just realized, Smeckle is on the 6 game ..does this mean 6 games of Kornelson ?
uggggh

Quote from: Pete on September 05, 2025, 09:47:23 PMSame person that rosters a guy that couldn't make our pr, and has been out of action for a month.
man I just realized, Smeckle is on the 6 game ..does this mean 6 games of Kornelson ?
uggggh

Doesn't have to be, but yup.  What's old is new again......

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 05, 2025, 05:16:02 PMWhat happened to the one player that would be rostered and not dress on game day, did they do away with that designation?

The reserve list no longer exists. It ranged from a single player to several players over the decades.

There were times that the reserve list was a spot to stash players who had minor injuries. The short term injured list has been 30 days, 3 games, 4 games at various times.

The reserve list also served as a practice roster analog before the practice roster was established.

Most recently, the primary function of the reserve list was a place to put a player who may need to be a last minute replacement for a 'Game Time Decision'. When the reserve list was eliminated, the CFL changed the rules, allowing a player substitution for an injured player up to 30 minutes prior to kickoff. The injured player must go on an injured list and the replacement player comes from the practice roster (or a 'street free agent').

Quote from: Pete on September 05, 2025, 04:40:42 PMbut once again O'Sheas guy Ayers is untouchable. (remind anyone of Jackson in 23?)

Is Ayers an ex-seal?

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 05, 2025, 03:21:58 PMI expect Wallace will play but limited in jumbo etc. I have no idea what the deal with Houston is thought. That's somewhat alarming.

Who comes in from PR if Wallace is "nay" on GTD?  Can't be another OL.  But has to be a NAT.

Quote from: blue_gold_84 on September 05, 2025, 02:46:36 PMYeah, that must be it.

At a table deep within PAS:

MOS: "Now what can we do this week to irritate the BB Forum people.  And I'm talking REAL IRRITATION!  Oh ya, and figure out a way to stick it to DT@CJOB too."

GO BLUE!

Won't have time to hit the thread before the game.  Might have some time once I get into the stands, if I can add any in-stadium value that I spy with the binocs.

This is a must-win and I have a feeling we put up 45 on them and make them look foolish.  Yes, really!  Pokey will open up Demski who flies for 150.  And I wonder if we don't magically get 2-3 sacks with tons of pressure packages.

Need zero-mistake low-penalty football.  Hopefully the guys are dialed.  This game really might be "our GC" this year.  Make it count -- the fans deserve it.

Quote from: Pete on September 05, 2025, 02:45:30 PMKornelson who wasn't good enough for practice roster starting ahead of Woods and Adams
I swear OShea's just trying to screw with us

unreal. MOS could be the death of this season! Pathetic inexcusable move here.

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 06, 2025, 03:21:19 AMWho comes in from PR if Wallace is "nay" on GTD?  Can't be another OL.  But has to be a NAT.

Why can't it be another OL? I'd expect it to be Vibert.

wind could be a factor today.  win the toss and take the wind in the 4th

Welp Goldie gets to run out on the field with the team today for introductions. :)
Maybe this will bring some good fortune to BIG BLUE today?
Need a win!

Don't trip pal!

Just looking at our starting line up! Not all that comfortable with what we will field today. Our DL is not very good and the OL is maybe average at best. I think the Riders are far better on both sides of the ball when comparing OL and DL talent.

Riders DBacks may not be all that great, but I think their DL and LB's will put a ton of pressure on Zach and not sure if we will be able to run the ball all that well.

I have to say and this is just my opinion only, this 2025 addition of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers is the weakest I have seen in several years. Our draft and how we are managing the roster is very suspect in my opinion.

Crowd needs to and will be the difference maker this afternoon.

I always get out my biggest voice whenever we play the Riders.

Quote from: BBRT on September 06, 2025, 04:01:19 PMJust looking at our starting line up! Not all that comfortable with what we will field today. Our DL is not very good and the OL is maybe average at best. I think the Riders are far better on both sides of the ball when comparing OL and DL talent.

Riders DBacks may not be all that great, but I think their DL and LB's will put a ton of pressure on Zach and not sure if we will be able to run the ball all that well.

I have to say and this is just my opinion only, this 2025 addition of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers is the weakest I have seen in several years. Our draft and how we are managing the roster is very suspect in my opinion.

really only difference from last week is smeckle out Kornelson in and he wont see many reps.
And Kramdi in, who does make a difference with his communication and ability to read plays

Quote from: Pete on September 06, 2025, 06:16:25 PMreally only difference from last week is smeckle out Kornelson in and he wont see many reps.
And Kramdi in, who does make a difference with his communication and ability to read plays

Also no Schoen and Wilson in so that's a big change. It may take Wilson a little longer to get up to speed with the new playbook.

Wallace warming up looks fine. He'll start. He's so big he doesn't even look human

Vant looks great, too

Pokey looking good in practice catch drills

Sergio easily making 52s with the wind

Wind blowing towards the south, but only in the south ez. The north flags are dead this entire time

I'm not sure I'd prioritize wind today. Down in the bowl it's probably minimal

Blue Bombers have released an updated depth chart.

Micah Vanterpool will now start at LG in place of Wallace (GTD). Wallace now listed as a backup.

https://bsky.app/profile/statsjunkie.bsky.social/post/3ly6wiiujyc2s (https://bsky.app/profile/statsjunkie.bsky.social/post/3ly6wiiujyc2s)

Strev still has the knee brace. It's hidden under his pants

That explains the lack of speed and acceleration

Wonder if he'll ever be able to take it off?

Goldie spotted walking into the tunnel. Full gold getup

I guess looking good in stretches and drills isn't enough! Makes sense he's good enough to backup

But... Does that mean he can't play jumbo? I wonder if we didn't want to start Vant anyhow. I would!

o line just overwhelmed - zach took a pounding 

Passing makes sense if they can give zach time

sask is no. 1 stopping the run

no answers for the heat sask brings

if they don't zach can/will complete passes

Need to replace Kolankowski next season... seems to not have enough quickness

we need to have more plays to counter the blitz pressure. Zach seems to have difficulty just dumping off

JT watching for afar again lol.

same problem. back takes it to the outside

outside run is beating us up

can't tackle Aj When he gets in space

The JT drive.  Just run baby.  Sask's secret weapon.  95 in blue lol.

that was the right call - ajou never had the ball

Pokeys Back!!

wilson and demski.....thank gawd!!!

what is it about the last minute of the half and Zac throwing interceptions

collapse at the end of the half gives up 3

give  zach time and he is playing well.

some questionable play calls again that half 

giving up 3 should never have happened

Guaranteed 3 with JT.  Gets to the QB late on his one big play lol.

Washed out on the rest.  The 2 N set is a killer.

Quote from: Pete on September 06, 2025, 09:19:12 PMwhat is it about the last minute of the half and Zac throwing interceptions

Drives me nuts.  I would've cheered if it was successful, but why the high risk like that?  We still had time, short-medium, work our way up to at least field goal range.  Take a shot into the end zone and if not there, take the 3.

Don't give up the 3...

Quote from: The Zipp on September 06, 2025, 09:20:13 PMcollapse at the end of the half gives up 3

give  zach time and he is playing well.

some questionable play calls again that half 

This is what kills me! very questionable calls again and the Bomber OL better figure out how to protect Zach. I know we are up by 7 but the 3rd quarter always kills us.

The shot was fine, but pokey should not have been the target. He's not comfortable yet

And don't throw to Milligan, sayles side. Throw to the field. The middle isn't working because they hbs are fast enough to get over from the other side. Field corner is the place to attack, just like on the pokey td

Great day for lauther to decide not to suck!

Quote from: Big Daddy on September 06, 2025, 09:26:00 PMDrives me nuts.  I would've cheered if it was successful, but why the high risk like that?  We still had time, short-medium, work our way up to at least field goal range.  Take a shot into the end zone and if not there, take the 3.

Don't give up the 3...

Absolutely dumb, they could have marched the ball into FG range and killed the clock, Zach can't seem to connect the dots between making dumb decisions in the first half and and losing games in the second.

pity about shoen....guess he should have had surgery the first time

sask taking the ball and the wind in the third

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 06, 2025, 09:34:16 PMAbsolutely dumb, they could have marched the ball into FG range and killed the clock, Zach can't seem to connect the dots between making dumb decisions in the first half and and losing games in the second.

Exactly what they should have done.  Are we sure, though, that it wasn't a called play by OC?  I know Zach is making decisions out there as well and it may well have been his call, but isn't it possible this was specifically the call that OC made?  I don't have rewind where I am so I can't look at it again.

Playing Korn, JT free would put this team over the top.  They are looking good, a few weak links.

Easy peasy.

floater by zach - game changer

curse of the third continues

Oh crap.  Here we go again.

lazy play calling....dumb time to throw an IT

Who is Zach playing for? Sask or us?

Tie game. Or not.

Why are the only using 3 receivers and a RB dont we have 5 receivers

bombers never learn...gotta run the ball to win....wait till october...gonna be tuff for the bombers to get any wins

9 points off zach interceptions

Quote from: The Zipp on September 06, 2025, 09:53:23 PM9 points off zach interceptions

And counting!!

Quote from: Horseman on September 06, 2025, 09:51:53 PMTie game. Or not.

You (like everyone, including me) overestimated Lauther

Quote from: Horseman on September 06, 2025, 09:51:53 PMTie game.

for now but I expect to see the Bombers die in the 3rd as per normal.

Thank god lauther sucks, missed pat means we're up by 1

we've pretty much been going with a 3 lineman 4 lb scheme all night. Leaves the middle open

Quote from: The Zipp on September 06, 2025, 09:53:23 PM9 points off zach interceptions

This. This is what's killing us. Quit turning the stinking ball over!! I d rather us go 2 and out vs turn it over for easy points. Augggggh!!

must be the third quarter and we'll abandon the run. When we do run its a basic off tackle

Quote from: Pete on September 06, 2025, 09:55:05 PMwe've pretty much been going with a 3 lineman 4 lb scheme all night. Leaves the middle open

I don't mind the 3 DL but we have to send at least 4 every passing down, virtually no pressure with only rushing 3.

I saw that blitz coming a mile away but Zach didn't and now he is hurt. #rd quarter blues. Strevy time I guess.

we are done. poor zach 

our  o line is hot garbage and we can't call a game plan

I'm afraid to ask, can this get any worse?!

you could see this coming a mile away

Another turnover and Collaros is out . Brutal!! Cheap shot to the head ta boot. He's got to get his head out of the way making that tackle. Man I hate the riders!!

You could see this coming weeks ago.

Quote from: The Zipp on September 06, 2025, 09:59:20 PMwe are done. poor zach 

our  o line is hot garbage and we can't call a game plan

It was a blitz from outside on the right side outside of the tackle. not the OL fault, Brady went to the left and didn't see the blitz from the right.

Reavis with the dirty hit.

Zacks got to pick the blitz up and get rid of the ball. He didn't pickup the outside blitzer and got smoked because of that

I dont see how zach can come back next season

3rd and 1 coming up. 

strev staying in

CJOB said Zach ran off to the tunnel for the dressing room and waved to the fans that he was okay.

Oh yeah he's completely a ok.

Yeah Sask has been dirty for a while now.

Quote from: markf on September 06, 2025, 10:07:31 PMOh yeah he's completely a ok.

Just saying what I heard, don't shoot the messenger.

we are being outcoached and its not close. And our execution is terrible a lethal combination

Quote from: Go_Big_D on September 06, 2025, 10:05:08 PMI dont see how zach can come back next season

IF (a big if) we can put together a good O-line next year, it could be a very different story 

castillo with a shank

Edit

and another useless third quarter for the offence. The lack of adjustments is awful

we need to sign Elgersma asap and get him starting to learn the cfl game

Don't matter what we do.  With Korn and JT we are playing short handed. 

Our D used to be fierce.

Quote from: Horseman on September 06, 2025, 10:08:10 PMJust saying what I heard, don't shoot the messenger.

Oh Sorry, didn't mean to slight you at all..

I just meant, he is not ok at all. No matter what he himself thinks.

Quote from: Big Daddy on September 06, 2025, 10:08:57 PMIF (a big if) we can put together a good O-line next year, it could be a very different story 

I doubt we will do much other than keep all the old best before boys around! Typical 3rd Quarter for the Bombers - did absolutely nothing.

Quote from: Pete on September 06, 2025, 10:12:37 PMand another useless third quarter for the offence. The lack of adjustments is awful

It has been all year. Hogan is in waaay over his head and MOS is to stubborn to admit he's wrong with his OC decision . We were dead before the season began

Quote from: markf on September 06, 2025, 10:13:54 PMOh Sorry, didn't mean to slight you at all..

I just meant, he is not ok at all.

No worries.

Quote from: BBRT on September 06, 2025, 10:14:00 PMI doubt we will do much other than keep all the old best before boys around! Typical 3rd Quarter for the Bombers - did absolutely nothing.

That's the Hogan way!!

We are watching the game slip away right before our eyes, poor tackling.

Quote from: Pete on September 06, 2025, 10:12:37 PMand another useless third quarter for the offence. The lack of adjustments is awful

Bad OC will do that to you.  Hogan should have been replaced week 3.

beginning of the end

Little hitch screen goes for 15, brutal tackling

Quote from: Horseman on September 06, 2025, 10:15:18 PMWe are watching the game slip away right before our eyes, poor tackling.

Adams, Woods, J.Jones.  Watching, laughing.  Poor roster management.

0 points again in the 3rd quarter.

thats not pi . it has to be obvious

Quote from: The Zipp on September 06, 2025, 10:12:51 PMwe need to sign Elgersma asap and get him starting to learn the cfl game

where is he?...he was release and no one picked him dont think he was put on the PR

I'm a bit surprised, Vaval was never looking back at all and was hand-fighting a bit - albeit not right when the ball arrived, but still

D has to get to harris...need sacks!

Well that maybe the game folks.

I really miss how we used to be the more physical team.

Does anyone have confidence in our O now to score ANY points.

Quote from: Big Daddy on September 06, 2025, 10:18:33 PMI'm a bit surprised, Vaval was never looking back at all and was hand-fighting a bit - albeit not right when the ball arrived, but still

if it had been called pi originally that would have been upheld as well

I don't. ZERO confidence . We are dead with Strev at Qb. This game is over!!

Quote from: Pete on September 06, 2025, 10:20:37 PMif it had been called pi originally that would have been upheld as well

Fair enough - I'm always noticing that where the D isn't looking at the ball at all and thinking even putting up the hands to block the ball (not touching the receiver) used to be called PI all the time.  I agree - this play would've been upheld either way it was called.

Quote from: Horseman on September 06, 2025, 10:19:56 PMDoes anyone have confidence in our O now to score ANY points.

Streveller had a good game this season, first game whe. Zach was suspended. Chris three td passes.

Since then, when he goes in, there is no offence. Nothing happens at all.

shank number 2 for sergio, coupled with the miss last week he isn't doing very well

Castillo is highly over rated

6 points missed by Sergio.

we keep finding ways to shoot ourselves in the foot

Boneheaded play by Alford, but we'll take it. now get a 2 and out, if 2nd and extra send the blitz.

Quote from: markf on September 06, 2025, 10:26:56 PMStreveller had a good game this season, first game whe. Zach was suspended. Chris three td passes.

Since then, when he goes in, there is no offence. Nothing happens at all.

Nothing. Just a complete waste of time, why are we not bringing more QBs in?? We only 50 linebackers on our PR, oh ya, our HC is a linebacker !!

torched - vaval burnt

what the hell!!!

Well that is a dagger!

Let's refrain from bringing in the manure truck, okay?  (regarding Castillo, of course...)

Picking on Vavel now.

Vaval gets torched , riders out of trouble. Game changing play right there , field just got flipped

Yep DPI he held Ajou's right arm.

mos should have replaced vaval with houston

Quote from: dd on September 06, 2025, 10:31:18 PMVaval gets torched , riders out of trouble. Game changing play right there , field just got flipped

game set and match to the Riders - now all we can hope for is a cross over and that is a big maybe!

looks like its gonna be next year/season  time

castillo wears this one

0 points this half, pathetic.

Houston should be in.  Too bad he wasn't a Navy Seal.  Roster management is bad.  HC is over his head.

can strev actually throw the ball ?

Quote from: BBRT on September 06, 2025, 10:32:10 PMgame set and match to the Riders - now all we can hope for is a cross over and that is a big maybe!

I hope we do crossover, I think it would be an easier path for us to the GC than staying in the West.

we knew before the season that our oline was going to be an issue and we didnt address it. Also our interior dline

Sask just running the run blitz now.

Wasted 3 minutes for 25 yards

I don't think the Bombers trust Strev to throw it down field. But if they can take time off the clock and score a TD (LOL) I am okay with that.

Quote from: The Zipp on September 06, 2025, 10:35:17 PMcan strev actually throw the ball ?

nope no he can't

we are a pro football team trying to have a person who can't throw a football pretend to be a QB

Another Pic, last one here please shut the light off when you leave. Thanks.

terrible throw, just cost us the game

its starts with the O Line....need a lot of changes

Riders are picking in vaval and are killing us!!

strev is not a pro QB

We ran every play possible to not have him throw - cause he can't throw

My God streveller,  is that the best you can do to pass?? Why is he our second string quarterback?? He is absolutely atrocious.

did i say that we're being outcoached

We have to have the worst OC/coaching in the league, why are we only rushing 3 guys on D most games when guys are standing around in the back field. our A and B gaps are closed and we still try to run there,

Quote from: Pete on September 06, 2025, 10:42:32 PMterrible throw, just cost us the game

Te be fair...there were a lot of other plays that cost us the game as well

JT, Korn

Quote from: Big Daddy on September 06, 2025, 10:45:38 PMTe be fair...there were a lot of other plays that cost us the game as well

JT, Korn, HC, OC.

15 points in the 2nd half for Sask, 0 for us.

You go into the season with a mediocre o line, and no real back up QB behind a 37 year old concussion prone QB, you deserve what you get.

i cant remember a game that we were outcoached so badly. Our execution, our play calling , and the lack of physicality is disappointing

Quote from: Pete on September 06, 2025, 10:51:45 PMi cant remember a game that we were outcoached so badly. Our execution, our play calling , and the lack of physicality is disappointing

Agreed. and based on how this season has gone, that is saying something.  We've been outcoached a number of times this year.

Hello, Taylor Elgersma, where are you?

Quote from: bunker on September 06, 2025, 10:51:29 PMYou go into the season with a mediocre o line, and no real back up QB behind a 37 year old concussion prone QB, you deserve what you get.

This is it.

Kolankowski  is just slow. Guys are by him before he even seems to register that they were there. Zach is skittish for good reason.

And the blitz that took him out.... As far as I can remember he didn't look that way at all I mean does he look over the defence before the snap to see what the other team might be doing?

Not sure.

And he has been making plays for a while now that he probably shouldn't do.... When the one and a half seconds he gets before the d lineman arrive, he's been taking off..

It's worked, but, not great for a guy his age and history.

No doubt he'll be back for the next game. "Cleared to play"

OC play calling and poor execution by Collaros cost us the game by in large. You don't win many games scoring 13 points when you give the opponent 10 points on turnovers.

Defence did not have a great 4th Q. Riders on their 1 yard line and we give up the deep shot and then a PI for a total of about 80 yard? That was another 3 points that shouldn't have happened.

Castillo missed 2 FG's this week and 1 last week. Last week that might have been the difference between winning and losing.

Regardless. Predictable play calling. A 2nd string QB that can't throw beyond 10 yards.

How many games has Collaros been knocked out of this season in particular and last season? Obviously a player gets taken out for Concussion Protocol. Whether he actually had a concussion today or any of those times is for doctors to say.

However, it might be time for him to consider his long term health and family life. Too many hits and this is not good.

I think it is time to tell Zach, man for your health, you are done, then we need to trade for Fajardo in the off season. Hopefully Elgersma comes back from the NFL and he then understudies all of next year.

Stegall making a big statement that Collaros should never play another football game.  Even saying the medical and coaching staff will make the right decision, but those higher up (mentioning the board) should now want him playing again for Zach's own good.

Collaros is done, for his long term health he should retire, he's going to sustain long term damage if he hasn't done so already

And we are dead without him. Dead.

As others have posted, the roster moves we didn't make this year are killing us- personal losses at receiver  O line, D line, cornerback and no backup Qb are all coming to haunt us now. You get what you deserve. Every other team improved there roster while ours took massive steps backwards.

With collaros out, we are now the weakest team in the west hands down, Edmonton will kill us

We came into this season knowing we were a third place team.
Bring in the NFL Cuts For next year.

Should have challenged that Strev pick for roughing passer

Quote from: Sway on September 06, 2025, 11:04:58 PMShould have challenged that Strev pick for roughing passer

Couldn't no time outs left.

I don't know that adding Houston instead of Vaval would have made any difference. That series only cost us another 3 points. I had no confidence that Streveler would score even a FG.

Our play calling is so predictable and vanilla. I don't think we threw to Wheatfall or Clercius in the 1st half. Mitchell had 1 catch IIRC.

Edit: Just checked stats and they had 5 passes thrown their way and caught 1 each. Total of 16 yards.

I don't know if Sterns is healthy or what Echols looks like in practice but IMO Mitchell time should be done.

Never seen a team with worse plays on 2nd and 4 in my life

Zack's head bounced off the ground. It was easy to see. Then he just lay there.


Time to call it a career.

Good for Milt for saying that.

Why is it always the Riders? They tore up Streveler's knee last year and now they've taken out our #1 QB with a high, concussive hit. Karma can't come too soon for that dirtbag team.

Quote from: Bomber Diehard on September 06, 2025, 11:04:20 PMWe came into this season knowing we were a third place team.
Bring in the NFL Cuts For next year.

Agreed. We need to restock our talent shelves and may as well start now

I'm not picking on Ayers but all our ST's were by the Canadian LB's. I think I saw Ayers on 3rd and short a couple of time but he was essentially invisible. Tell me again why we've been wasting a DI spot on him? 

Woodbey was on the field all night. I couldn't always tell who he was replacing in a given series but he's shown well in his 1st 2 games.

I see Thomas has 2 DT's. I noticed one where the RB fell down and he landed on him about 10 yards downfield. Didn't notice the other one.

Didn't notice Kornelson on the field?

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 06, 2025, 11:11:42 PMOur play calling is so predictable and vanilla. I don't think we threw to Wheatfall or Clercius in the 1st half. Mitchell had 1 catch IIRC.

Edit: Just checked stats and they had 5 passes thrown their way and caught 1 each. Total of 16 yards.

Yeah that is wierd. Both of them showed they can play. Ignored.

Hard to see the team fighting its way back to being any good now.

Quote from: markf on September 06, 2025, 11:20:10 PMYeah that is wierd. Both of them showed they can play. Ignored.

OC play calling.

Riders didn't have a spectacular game last week or this week but they made plays when they had to. That's what Winnipeg used to do as a team. Now we're the ones that happens to.

2 turnovers, 2 missed FG's, a few penalties and constant pressure on our QB.

Our defence chased Harris around but they didn't really prevent him from controlling the game. Would having Adams or Woods have helped? I don't know but I'd sit Ayers for either one of them to find out next week.

Can't blame the defence for points on turnovers so they didn't give up much.

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 06, 2025, 10:59:27 PMOC play calling and poor execution by Collaros cost us the game by in large. You don't win many games scoring 13 points when you give the opponent 10 points on turnovers.

Defence did not have a great 4th Q. Riders on their 1 yard line and we give up the deep shot and then a PI for a total of about 80 yard? That was another 3 points that shouldn't have happened.

Castillo missed 2 FG's this week and 1 last week. Last week that might have been the difference between winning and losing.

Regardless. Predictable play calling. A 2nd string QB that can't throw beyond 10 yards.

How many games has Collaros been knocked out of this season in particular and last season? Obviously a player gets taken out for Concussion Protocol. Whether he actually had a concussion today or any of those times is for doctors to say.

However, it might be time for him to consider his long term health and family life. Too many hits and this is not good.

My worst nightmare regarding Zach's 2019 signing has finally come true after providing many great years of leadership, he's become a one hit glass QB. It's impossible to game-plan for that level of risk, it's time for Walters to read the writing on the wall and prepare for the future, there's no way Zach should be invited back next season.

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 06, 2025, 11:21:15 PMOC play calling.

Wonder if we change OC's at the end of the season. I think MOS is too stubborn to admit he was wrong and won't 'cut' one of his home boys. But the rate we are nose diving, maybe MOS retires after this season !

Quote from: The Zipp on September 06, 2025, 10:44:22 PMstrev is not a pro QB

We ran every play possible to not have him throw - cause he can't throw

No he can't and everybody knows that including the riders !! He's awful.

Quote from: dd on September 06, 2025, 11:26:43 PMWonder if we change OC's at the end of the season. I think MOS is too stubborn to admit he was wrong and won't 'cut' one of his home boys. But the rate we are nose diving, maybe MOS retires after this season !

Can't see how any of the mistakes made in this game were Hogan's fault, can you please elaborate?

Not that I think we'll go anywhere in the playoffs, but we gotta hope BC continues to stink.  After this week, we are, at best, the third worst team in the league with the least upside potential of those three.

Too many years of holding onto guys because we're all still in love with the 2019 team.  Zach is done.  Strev needs to be cut.  Hogan isn't ready and I doubt we'll ever be.  MOS  loyalty used to be commendable - now it is dragging us down.

And we're not going to do a one year turnaround all the Stamps - we are going to suck for a while.

Quote from: Horseman on September 06, 2025, 10:51:05 PM15 points in the 2nd half for Sask, 0 for us.

Outcoached AGAIN. Team cannot make adjustments.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 06, 2025, 11:41:26 PMCan't see how any of the mistakes made in this game were Hogan's fault, can you please elaborate?

To end the 1st half we just needed to protect the ball with 38 seconds left. We had a chance to kill the clock and possibly get a couple of quick 1st downs to kick a FG. Obviously poor decision / read / execution by Collaros but that cost us 3 points and the momentum.

I'd say the 2nd int was another over reach decision which shouldn't have been made.

Predictable play calling, over focus on Wilson and Demski. If those other receivers aren't any good make a change.

What did play calling produce once Streveler went in? Zero, Zip.

Yeah, a lot falls on our OC all year so far.

It's pretty simple:

4 turnovers
2 missed FGs
Robustelli beating Vaval on the deep pass getting the Riders off there goal line.
DL with ZERO pressure.

Quote from: Pigskin on September 06, 2025, 11:52:36 PMIt's pretty simple:

4 turnovers
2 missed FGs
Robustelli beating Vaval on the deep pass getting the Riders off there goal line.
DL with ZERO pressure.

I agree and the reason for most of the errors and related is just a plain lack of talent across the board and that is all on Bomber Management.

Collaros has almost as many interceptions as TDs. Embarrassing as ****. Stuff should get you benched. Trouble is there is no backup.

Really hope Elgersma comes back to Canada.

Quote from: Ducky on September 07, 2025, 12:03:13 AMCollaros has almost as many interceptions as TDs. Embarrassing as ****. Stuff should get you benched. Trouble is there is no backup.

Really hope Elgersma comes back to Canada.

Behind that OL and only 2 receivers in any game worth their salt, he's lucky to end a game standing. Noting that he didn't several times this season.

I said before TC that re-signing Streveler was a huge mistake. Nice guy, fan favorite but not a starting QB.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 06, 2025, 11:41:26 PMCan't see how any of the mistakes made in this game were Hogan's fault, can you please elaborate?

Start using ALL of your receivers just not 2 of them for starters. Teams know they have to key on demski Wilson and brady and nobody else plays a significant role in the offense. Wheatie and clercius may as well have stayed on the bench today. Look at riders offense, yes they run the ball with outlets but they also pass to ALL of their receivers because they are scheming that the defense is going to be keying on receiver #1 and 2, we don't go beyond that,

Our offense is sooooo predictable with Steve and his RPO only play it's pathetic, simply pathetic. Empty the backfield and make the linebackers cover , roll Strev out of the pocket and quit making him a sitting dead duck, he rolls out, 2 receivers run deep 4 on short passing routes, dunk and dunk the ball and worse case Strev has to pull it down and run but he can under that scheme because he's rolling out of the pocket ready to open field and he's a runner. Nope, we let him sit back with a bogus o line run the rpo to Brady or pass flat footed. It's truly sad that that's all we have for creativity offensively. We rebgoing nowhere with him at OC . Nowhere

Quote from: Sway on September 06, 2025, 11:12:58 PMNever seen a team with worse plays on 2nd and 4 in my life

Our quick short game, things like curls, is the worst in the league.  They almost never work out.  It's embarrassing.  We're better off going for 25Y on 2nd & 4, at least the D won't expect that.  We'd have a higher conversion rate.

Not only do teams stop our short pass, they are often only a hair away from an INT, the big failure one today.

Our short pass has been pathetic and awful since '22 when the inability to get 2nd & 4 probably cost us the GC.  Buck made an effort in '23 to try to build up our short game, to mixed success.  Lost the '23 GC again because we couldn't convert with a pass on 2nd & short.  Our short effort has petered out ever since then.  Under Hogan it's probably even worse.

Compare our short pass game to SSK, who clearly prioritize it as job #1.

I don't want to make it our bread & butter, but I do want to be able to make it work a few times a game when you need it, because you can't just run on 2nd & short every time.

Quote from: dd on September 07, 2025, 01:00:51 AMStart using ALL of your receivers just not 2 of them for starters. Teams know they have to key on demski Wilson and brady and nobody else plays a significant role in the offense. Wheatie and clercius may as well have stayed on the bench today. Look at riders offense, yes they run the ball with outlets but they also pass to ALL of their receivers because they are scheming that the defense is going to be keying on receiver #1 and 2, we don't go beyond that,

Our offense is sooooo predictable with Steve and his RPO only play it's pathetic, simply pathetic. Empty the backfield and make the linebackers cover , roll Strev out of the pocket and quit making him a sitting dead duck, he rolls out, 2 receivers run deep 4 on short passing routes, dunk and dunk the ball and worse case Strev has to pull it down and run but he can under that scheme because he's rolling out of the pocket ready to open field and he's a runner. Nope, we let him sit back with a bogus o line run the rpo to Brady or pass flat footed. It's truly sad that that's all we have for creativity offensively. We rebgoing nowhere with him at OC . Nowhere

add to that the lack of second half adjustments (not just this game)

Hand it to SSK, they looked at what worked for us last week and adjusted the entire D to get blanket deep coverage and 2 guys on every deep route by the time the ball arrives.

What I find aggravating is that after we saw this is what they had done, we (Hogan) kept just doing the same thing!  If they were taking away the deep, we should have been going mid & short (haha), and more Brady dumps and hitches.

SSK adjusted during the week.  We didn't.

Oh wait!  We did adjust!  On D.  We went from a 4 man pass rush that worked fairly well last week to a lotsa-3-man-rush scheme that clearly wasn't working!

Oh ya, and we let the Liver King run outside on us again over and over again with little resistance again.  If I could see they were abusing the DEs and the outside, surely our DC(s) did?  Did you guys see Yoshi strutting around demoralizing our players at every opportunity (and pancaking his junk on players on the turf)?

I really think Hogan & Younger are not putting in the effort, brains, or hours required to win these games.  And if this is the max their brains can do, we need smarter coordinators.  At least it didn't come down to another vanilla, pathetic 2PAT...

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 07, 2025, 01:33:08 AMHand it to SSK, they looked at what worked for us last week and adjusted the entire D to get blanket deep coverage and 2 guys on every deep route by the time the ball arrives.

What I find aggravating is that after we saw this is what they had done, we (Hogan) kept just doing the same thing!  If they were taking away the deep, we should have been going mid & short (haha), and more Brady dumps and hitches.

SSK adjusted during the week.  We didn't.

Oh wait!  We did adjust!  On D.  We went from a 4 man pass rush that worked fairly well last week to a lotsa-3-man-rush scheme that clearly wasn't working!

Oh ya, and we let the Liver King run outside on us again over and over again with little resistance again.  If I could see they were abusing the DEs and the outside, surely our DC(s) did?  Did you guys see Yoshi strutting around demoralizing our players at every opportunity (and pancaking his junk on players on the turf)?

I really think Hogan & Younger are not putting in the effort, brains, or hours required to win these games.  And if this is the max their brains can do, we need smarter coordinators.  At least it didn't come down to another vanilla, pathetic 2PAT...

potentially we have gotten "fat n sassy"

Quote from: GOLDMEMBER on September 06, 2025, 02:47:17 PMWelp Goldie gets to run out on the field with the team today for introductions. :)
Maybe this will bring some good fortune to BIG BLUE today?
Need a win!

Love your dance moves on the sidelines during warm ups...  I had my eyes on you LOL

Quote from: barbk on September 07, 2025, 01:38:04 AMLove your dance moves on the sidelines during warm ups...  I had my eyes on you LOL

What was funny was Goldie still doing dances in the middle of the field when everyone wanted to get the O announcements going!  I thought for a sec the P.A. guy was going to say "Goldie, get off the field!".

;D  ;D  ;D  ;D

Quote from: Strevy on September 06, 2025, 10:50:05 PMJT, Korn
JT, Korn, HC, OC.

Why don't you have Strevy on that list?  My grandson could do a better job throwing the ball and he is 10 years old.

Quote from: The Zipp on September 07, 2025, 01:37:16 AMpotentially we have gotten "fat n sassy"

This saying doesn't accurately describe our situation and is a generalization imo
We have gotten average, came back down to earth after an epic run, the fat lady hasn't sung yet, believe

Quote from: Big Daddy on September 06, 2025, 11:02:23 PMStegall making a big statement that Collaros should never play another football game.  Even saying the medical and coaching staff will make the right decision, but those higher up (mentioning the board) should now want him playing again for Zach's own good.

And they didn't make the right decision on Dalton Schoen....  O'Shea has no respect in lying to the fans/media on the coach's show on Tuesday and stated Schoen was good.

After they creamed Zach, we should have run some pressure packages to let the guys get revenge.  At least give them a couple of blitz looks to give Tony & Kyrie a shot.  Instead we go... 3 man rush.

No worries Trev!

You do all realize we'll likely keep Zach out 2 weeks, right?  From what I saw at the stadium he was out cold.  That isn't going to be a back-next-week thing.  This will be the miss-1-or-2-games thing.

Serious question, did we blitz even once on a passing down?  I didn't see it.

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 07, 2025, 01:56:42 AMAfter they creamed Zach, we should have run some pressure packages to let the guys get revenge.  At least give them a couple of blitz looks to give Tony & Kyrie a shot.  Instead we go... 3 man rush.

No worries Trev!

You do all realize we'll likely keep Zach out 2 weeks, right?  From what I saw at the stadium he was out cold.  That isn't going to be a back-next-week thing.  This will be the miss-1-or-2-games thing.

And we aren't making the playoffs. This season is over

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 07, 2025, 01:48:39 AMWhat was funny was Goldie still doing dances in the middle of the field when everyone wanted to get the O announcements going!  I thought for a sec the P.A. guy was going to say "Goldie, get off the field!".

;D  ;D  ;D  ;D

:D

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 07, 2025, 01:58:01 AMSerious question, did we blitz even once on a passing down?  I didn't see it.

No we didn't. Our offensive and defensive schemes have got to be questioned/challenged both are getting worse not better

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 07, 2025, 01:56:42 AMYou do all realize we'll likely keep Zach out 2 weeks, right?  From what I saw at the stadium he was out cold.  That isn't going to be a back-next-week thing.  This will be the miss-1-or-2-games thing.

I bet a dollar Zach will, play next game.

Watching ALL of the other teams look better than us this week, is a bummer.

Why they tried to pass, end of the first half, interception then three points to Sask. I don't get it. Go into half time on a downer. That is one hundred percent on the Offensive coach.

Quote from: markf on September 07, 2025, 02:18:57 AMI bet a dollar Zach will, play next game.

Watching ALL of the other teams look better than us this week, is a bummer.

Why they tried to pass, end of the first half, interception then three points to Sask. I don't get it. Go into half time on a downer. That is one hundred percent on the Offensive coach.

I have a feeling he will be fine

Not all on the OC imo

My orders of issues today is:
OL
OC
Qb

Many teams look on the positive swing

We still working on our swing and one chain broke today

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 07, 2025, 01:33:08 AMHand it to SSK, they looked at what worked for us last week and adjusted the entire D to get blanket deep coverage and 2 guys on every deep route by the time the ball arrives.

What I find aggravating is that after we saw this is what they had done, we (Hogan) kept just doing the same thing!  If they were taking away the deep, we should have been going mid & short (haha), and more Brady dumps and hitches.

SSK adjusted during the week.  We didn't.

Oh wait!  We did adjust!  On D.  We went from a 4 man pass rush that worked fairly well last week to a lotsa-3-man-rush scheme that clearly wasn't working!

Oh ya, and we let the Liver King run outside on us again over and over again with little resistance again.  If I could see they were abusing the DEs and the outside, surely our DC(s) did?  Did you guys see Yoshi strutting around demoralizing our players at every opportunity (and pancaking his junk on players on the turf)?

I really think Hogan & Younger are not putting in the effort, brains, or hours required to win these games.  And if this is the max their brains can do, we need smarter coordinators.  At least it didn't come down to another vanilla, pathetic 2PAT...

I think younger and Hogan are in waaay over their heads and it shows every game. Every game we watch other teams adjust to what we're running on O and D while we continue to run the same stuff that ain't working. I d like to see our 3rd quarter stats for the season, I would be we are a league low offensively and defensively. And when you combine ooor coaching with poor talent, you get what we watch every week.

But hey, we had a good run, but it's clearly over and now we are back upon tough times where we will be licks to be a 500 ball club. I have no illusion or expectation of us making the playoffs this year, management gets a 'F' on heir report card this year.

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 06, 2025, 11:48:46 PMTo end the 1st half we just needed to protect the ball with 38 seconds left. We had a chance to kill the clock and possibly get a couple of quick 1st downs to kick a FG. Obviously poor decision / read / execution by Collaros but that cost us 3 points and the momentum.

I'd say the 2nd int was another over reach decision which shouldn't have been made.

Predictable play calling, over focus on Wilson and Demski. If those other receivers aren't any good make a change.

What did play calling produce once Streveler went in? Zero, Zip.

Yeah, a lot falls on our OC all year so far.

Every one of those errors look like typical Zach tendencies to me, I've seen him make the same mistakes countless times before. On the first interception he had 2 uncovered receivers to his right along the sideline that would have picked up the first down easily, instead he goes for the home run pass to Demski.
Too bad, they almost completed it but the Riders were expecting the deep ball and baited him into throwing into a danger zone, they knew he couldn't resist.

Quote from: dd on September 07, 2025, 02:45:24 AMI think younger and Hogan are in waaay over their heads and it shows every game. Every game we watch other teams adjust to what we're running on O and D while we continue to run the same stuff that ain't working. I d like to see our 3rd quarter stats for the season, I would be we are a league low offensively and defensively. And when you combine ooor coaching with poor talent, you get what we watch every week.

But hey, we had a good run, but it's clearly over and now we are back upon tough times where we will be licks to be a 500 ball club. I have no illusion or expectation of us making the playoffs this year, management gets a 'F' on heir report card this year.

Younger is a mid to top DC backed by an all time legend maybe even better than Dave Ritchie, Mr. Hall
Hogan too early to know but yes has had a few mistakes as of late
Yeah we fell half way down the mountain but we can still see the peak

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 07, 2025, 01:58:01 AMSerious question, did we blitz even once on a passing down?  I didn't see it.

Couldn't tell because even then there's no pressure.

Quote from: dd on September 07, 2025, 02:45:24 AMI think younger and Hogan are in waaay over their heads and it shows every game. Every game we watch other teams adjust to what we're running on O and D while we continue to run the same stuff that ain't working. I d like to see our 3rd quarter stats for the season, I would be we are a league low offensively and defensively. And when you combine ooor coaching with poor talent, you get what we watch every week.

But hey, we had a good run, but it's clearly over and now we are back upon tough times where we will be licks to be a 500 ball club. I have no illusion or expectation of us making the playoffs this year, management gets a 'F' on heir report card this year.

I feel sorry for younger. He just doesn't have the talent. Our DTs are not very good.

Quote from: TecnoGenius on September 07, 2025, 01:58:01 AMSerious question, did we blitz even once on a passing down?  I didn't see it.

Yes
One we got burnt when we sent the house
One Jake hammered Harris but can't recall how many we sent to be honest

Walters and scouts did a poor job constructing this roster.

Quote from: Blueforlife on September 07, 2025, 02:32:30 AMI have a feeling he will be fine

Not all on the OC imo

My orders of issues today is:
OL
OC
Qb

Many teams look on the positive swing

We still working on our swing and one chain broke today

One chain? Isn't it difficult to be this positive when things are this bad?

Quote from: dd on September 06, 2025, 10:14:10 PMIt has been all year. Hogan is in waaay over his head and MOS is to stubborn to admit he's wrong with his OC decision . We were dead before the season began

Osh said he doesn't fire Coordinators mid season.  Doesn't mean he won't.  I doubt it.. but hey.. not midseason.  Makes sense though..give them a chance..but yeah, kinda wish it would happen.  At least Brady got touches yesterday..behind a pathetic Oline.

Quote from: dd on September 06, 2025, 11:03:30 PMCollaros is done, for his long term health he should retire, he's going to sustain long term damage if he hasn't done so already

And we are dead without him. Dead.

As others have posted, the roster moves we didn't make this year are killing us- personal losses at receiver  O line, D line, cornerback and no backup Qb are all coming to haunt us now. You get what you deserve. Every other team improved there roster while ours took massive steps backwards.

With collaros out, we are now the weakest team in the west hands down, Edmonton will kill us

This is on Walters and the scouts..who have done nothing to upgrade us.   Walters doesn't have a contract for next season does he?  Does MOS? Although I'm not as worried about MOS..Walters is more mysterious.

Quote from: Pigskin on September 07, 2025, 03:48:46 AMI feel sorry for younger. He just doesn't have the talent. Our DTs are not very good.

He doesn't, the roster doesn't or both?

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 01:09:21 PMOne chain? Isn't it difficult to be this positive when things are this bad?

I don't think things are that bad, other than Zach's injury which I will react to once we know it's severtiy or duration.  I am not being "this positive".  Hopeful Zach is ok.  Not positive at all if he isn't.  Just calling it like I see it.  On a swing there are two chains, lost one, we are a 500 team hanging on our the one chain with eyes on mending the otherside imo.

Quote from: dd on September 06, 2025, 10:14:10 PMIt has been all year. Hogan is in waaay over his head and MOS is to stubborn to admit he's wrong with his OC decision . We were dead before the season began

We were not dead before the season began.  We are an average club that had their leader go down yesterday again.  When healthy this is a good ball club.  Good enough to make the playoffs.

Quote from: dd on September 07, 2025, 02:12:01 AMNo we didn't. Our offensive and defensive schemes have got to be questioned/challenged both are getting worse not better

It IS like the entire coaching staff is coaching to lose.
Aside from having the privilege to run out on the field and be on camera for T . Jones ring honours I really didn't want to be there to witness this futile effort by the coaching staff.

I think they are throwing the season.
How else would you explain this trash professionalism?

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 07, 2025, 02:54:28 AMEvery one of those errors look like typical Zach tendencies to me, I've seen him make the same mistakes countless times before. On the first interception he had 2 uncovered receivers to his right along the sideline that would have picked up the first down easily, instead he goes for the home run pass to Demski.
Too bad, they almost completed it but the Riders were expecting the deep ball and baited him into throwing into a danger zone, they knew he couldn't resist.

I think we're playing desperation football on offence. I mentioned that Wheatfall, Clercius and Mitchell had a combined 3 catches for 16 yards. There has to be a lack of confidence, talent and play calling for that to happen.

I'd be showing Mitchell the door Monday morning. Put in Echols as the only viable option and start bringing in NFL cuts.

I'd also say that if the receiver in many of those situations was Lawler,half or more would have been caught. Great receivers catch passes in coverage.

Quote from: GOLDMEMBER on September 07, 2025, 11:58:19 AMWalters and scouts did a poor job constructing this roster.

Yes Yes Yes - Agree 100% Walters and scouts did a horrible job constructing this roster. Maybe Mr. Walters is already shopping his resume around!

Quote from: Blueforlife on September 07, 2025, 03:31:55 PMI don't think things are that bad, other than Zach's injury which I will react to once we know it's severtiy or duration.  I am not being "this positive".  Hopeful Zach is ok.  Not positive at all if he isn't.  Just calling it like I see it.  On a swing there are two chains, lost one, we are a 500 team hanging on our the one chain with eyes on mending the otherside imo.
We were not dead before the season began.  We are an average club that had their leader go down yesterday again.  When healthy this is a good ball club.  Good enough to make the playoffs.

We're 6 - 6. The Elks and Lions may be playing better than us. It's seems very unlikely we finish higher than 3rd in the west and will not have a home play off game. Loss of revenue and home crowd is very important in the playoffs and in general.

We might be fighting for a cross over as the Elks and Lions have softer schedules. We have a slight edge on them but it's not insurmountable. That's true whether Collaros can or can't play.

You don't think that's as bad as we've seen since 2018 or before?

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 04:50:38 PMI think we're playing desperation football on offence. I mentioned that Wheatfall, Clercius and Mitchell had a combined 3 catches for 16 yards. There has to be a lack of confidence, talent and play calling for that to happen.

I'd be showing Mitchell the door Monday morning. Put in Echols as the only viable option and start bringing in NFL cuts.

I'd also say that if the receiver in many of those situations was Lawler,half or more would have been caught. Great receivers catch passes in coverage.

Can't see why you're blaming reciviers that didn't have many passes thrown their way, Clercius, and Wheatfall have demonstrated they have the talent to succeed when given the chance, especially as the 3rd or 5th options behind Demski, Wilson, Sterns or Echols.

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 05:05:31 PMWe're 6 - 6. The Elks and Lions may be playing better than us. It's seems very unlikely we finish higher than 3rd in the west and will not have a home play off game. Loss of revenue and home crowd is very important in the playoffs and in general.

We might be fighting for a cross over as the Elks and Lions have softer schedules. We have a slight edge on them but it's not insurmountable. That's true whether Collaros can or can't play.

You don't think that's as bad as we've seen since 2018 or before?

We are an average club, as good as our record and have a chance to make the playoffs
We obviously have fallen from our previously high which is ok.  If Zach comes back and the OL and get get healthy and gel, I think we can beat all teams but won't be easy.  BC and Edm about the same level as us.  Sask and Cgy the only top tier teams until the East gets their QBs back.  Hammy also very good as Bo is back slinging nasty.  I am not overly negative, worried or panicking at this time.  All about our QB and OL, which could fix itself.  We shall see.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 07, 2025, 05:13:30 PMCan't see why you're blaming reciviers that didn't have many passes thrown their way, Clercius, and Wheatfall have demonstrated they have the talent to succeed when given the chance, especially as the 3rd or 5th options behind Demski, Wilson, Sterns or Echols.

There has to be something to the fact we aren't throwing to them. Maybe someone that goes to the game at the stadium can provide further insight.

It defies logic that we aren't throwing to them if the are open. Everyone of them might be the 1st read on some designed plays.

Wilson was targeted 8 times and had 5 catches for 89 yards in his first game after a short week of practice. That's more yardage than Mitchell in 5 games.

Collaros has been known for spreading the ball around in previous years. Why isn't that happening now?  Wheatfall should be a 1st or 2nd read often, not 3rd to 5th.  This is not just from yesterdays game but many games.

Clercius will be a 4th or 5th read often and he's Canadian so he gets a pass. No excuse like that exists for Mitchell that replaced Sterns who was productive. It's a comparative statement.

Riders had 4 receivers with 3 or more receptions we had 2. Ouellette had 1 for 9 yards which was just slightly less than combined yardage of Wheatfall, Clercius and Mitchell.

This can't all be on Collaros. Who did Streveler try to throw to when he went in?  It's hardly worth checking 9 attempts, 2 int's 5 completions for 39 yards.

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 04:50:38 PMI think we're playing desperation football on offence. I mentioned that Wheatfall, Clercius and Mitchell had a combined 3 catches for 16 yards. There has to be a lack of confidence, talent and play calling for that to happen.

I'd be showing Mitchell the door Monday morning. Put in Echols as the only viable option and start bringing in NFL cuts.

I'd also say that if the receiver in many of those situations was Lawler,half or more would have been caught. Great receivers catch passes in coverage.

Over stated on the negative
Terrible idea to cut Mitchell at this stage imo

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 07, 2025, 05:13:30 PMCan't see why you're blaming reciviers that didn't have many passes thrown their way, Clercius, and Wheatfall have demonstrated they have the talent to succeed when given the chance, especially as the 3rd or 5th options behind Demski, Wilson, Sterns or Echols.

Agree all

Our receivers are not our problem at the moment but need to be more consistent and getting Sterns back is key

Quote from: Blueforlife on September 07, 2025, 05:22:12 PMOver stated on the negative
Terrible idea to cut Mitchell at this stage imo
Agree all

Our receivers are not our problem at the moment but need to be more consistent and getting Sterns back is key

Over stated on the positive once again. Getting Sterns back is an improvement which is the exact reason Mitchell should be shown the door. Patience doesn't always pay off.

If Sterns is healthy this week or anytime soon, he gets added and Mitchell gets bumped. We all know that is the expectation he'd be pushed back to PR or released. Echols can't be any worse so take it a step further and would make that change next week if Sterns can't play.

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 05:30:13 PMOver stated on the positive once again. Getting Sterns back is an improvement which is the exact reason Mitchell should be shown the door. Patience doesn't always pay off.

If Sterns is healthy this week or anytime soon, he gets added and Mitchell gets bumped. We all know that is the expectation he'd be pushed back to PR or released. Echols can't be any worse so take it a step further and would make that change next week if Sterns can't play.

Painting me as one dimensional and only positive isn't fair, it has nothing to do with patience, it's about rostering our best options and not worrying about a positional group that isn't our biggest issue
Our receivers are good.  Mitchell is decent and isn't getting cut imo.
I believe Mitchell > Echols for now
That said I would like most of our players to get a sniff to evaluate them
I see Mitchell on the up swing.  Not a huge fan but he might be ok.
We don't all know what Mitchell would get cut, that's just what you would do, some would agree, I don't

its not the receivers' our they do as well as anyone in hanging on to the ball. Zac is not making great decisions and the Oline just has to be better. We improved this game, but not nearly good enough and to me is the main reason our offence sputtered. Well that and hogans play calling to offset the rush was dismal.
I will say we could use some faster receivers' ie like Philpot to give us more options and maybe echols for Mitchell makes sense until Stern returns

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 05:21:52 PMThere has to be something to the fact we aren't throwing to them. Maybe someone that goes to the game at the stadium can provide further insight.

It defies logic that we aren't throwing to them if the are open. Everyone of them might be the 1st read on some designed plays.

Wilson was targeted 8 times and had 5 catches for 89 yards in his first game after a short week of practice. That's more yardage than Mitchell in 5 games.

Collaros has been known for spreading the ball around in previous years. Why isn't that happening now?  Wheatfall should be a 1st or 2nd read often, not 3rd to 5th.  This is not just from yesterdays game but many games.

Clercius will be a 4th or 5th read often and he's Canadian so he gets a pass. No excuse like that exists for Mitchell that replaced Sterns who was productive. It's a comparative statement.

Riders had 4 receivers with 3 or more receptions we had 2. Ouellette had 1 for 9 yards which was just slightly less than combined yardage of Wheatfall, Clercius and Mitchell.

This can't all be on Collaros. Who did Streveler try to throw to when he went in?  It's hardly worth checking 9 attempts, 2 int's 5 completions for 39 yards.

You must be mixing up Zach for some other QB like Nichols, Zach has been known to play favourites and completely ignores certain receivers for games on end. You may be right about recievers route running ability as that is usually supported by YAC ability, which seems to be limited to Demski and Wilson presently.

Hard to compare the Rider receiving corps, they're 9 strides ahead of the Bombers currently in planning and depth, and Harris is playing the best football of his life.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 07, 2025, 06:07:02 PMYou must be mixing up Zach for some other QB like Nichols, Zach has been known to play favourites and completely ignores certain receivers for games on end. You may be right about recievers route running ability as that is usually supported by YAC ability, which seems to be limited to Demski and Wilson presently.

Hard to compare the Rider receiving corps, they're 9 strides ahead of the Bombers currently in planning and depth, and Harris is playing the best football of his life.

Every QB has favourite receivers but the good ones use all their offensive weapons. Is it Collaros, Hogan, the receivers or all of the above?

In Montreal, Morgan threw to 7 different receivers and 6 had 2 or more receptions.

Our head office has been decimated over the recent years, BC and Hamilton each have GM's now that were part of our original Canadian Mafia scouting staff.

Our lists of potential players for recruitment was decimated along with the loss of those men.  Not an excuse, we needed to build up that pipeline again, both of potential recruits, neg list players as well as the scouts themselves.

That doesn't happen overnight, but it should get better as time goes by.

Quote from: theaardvark on September 07, 2025, 08:32:21 PMOur head office has been decimated over the recent years, BC and Hamilton each have GM's now that were part of our original Canadian Mafia scouting staff.

Our lists of potential players for recruitment was decimated along with the loss of those men.  Not an excuse, we needed to build up that pipeline again, both of potential recruits, neg list players as well as the scouts themselves.

That doesn't happen overnight, but it should get better as time goes by.

They hired replacements last off-season, time to see what the new scouts can produce.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 07, 2025, 09:38:02 PMThey hired replacements last off-season, time to see what the new scouts can produce.

Sure, there are bodies in the chairs, but replacing 2 guys (and the people they took with them) that have moved on to GM duties running clubs is NOT a simple thing...

Quote from: Blueforlife on September 07, 2025, 05:42:50 PMPainting me as one dimensional and only positive isn't fair, it has nothing to do with patience, it's about rostering our best options and not worrying about a positional group that isn't our biggest issue
Our receivers are good.  Mitchell is decent and isn't getting cut imo.
I believe Mitchell > Echols for now
That said I would like most of our players to get a sniff to evaluate them
I see Mitchell on the up swing.  Not a huge fan but he might be ok.
We don't all know what Mitchell would get cut, that's just what you would do, some would agree, I don't

Beige :)

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 10:34:03 PMBeige :)

No idea what this means, nor do I care.  One word responses are against the forum rules.  Best to talk ball and I enjoy when we stick to that.

Here's my opinion -
Coaches - I don't think they got stupid over the off season - sure I've questioned some of their decisions BUT this is close to the same group of coaches- yes I know Hogan wasn't our OC lady year but I recall many posters questioning Buck's game calling. I also have to remind myself that any given call has multiple options depending on what the D is doing - also things like depth of the route run by receivers, Oline blocking etc factor into the success of any given call- I am not the guy to judge a good play call since I know nothing about what each call involves. Have I been surprised/disappointing calls yes but have to go back to what I was just pointing out.
Ditto for our D - personally I would like to have a our D line be dominate as that also affects how well our backend plays. I also would like some better disguises of our blitzes as I- for the most part can see them coming. I also saw Sask was blitzing from both edges before Collaros got hurt - surprised he didn't pick that up BUT who knows what he was thinking in that moment.

Having said all that I don't think we did a good job in free agency or recruiting but as a poster noted - we lost alot of experience and knowledge this off season. Better to judge after next year.

I am however still optimistic that we will make the playoffs and can do some damage. Time will tell.

Did anybody else at stadium see Zach get clobbered in first quarter, after he got up he looked lost, staring at Sask sideline?

It was a second down, he tossed it to Brady for incomplete pass.

TV cameras don't show Zach so it wasn't talked about.

I think he was messed up on that play and the Reavis hit really knocked him out.

Yes I remember that he was slow getting up after a hit. My wife noticed it first.

Quote from: Sway on September 08, 2025, 01:19:36 AMDid anybody else at stadium see Zach get clobbered in first quarter, after he got up he looked lost, staring at Sask sideline?

On any big hit or injury I use the binocs to watch the player (on any team).  I remember worrying about Zach (any tap gets that reaction from me).  However, I didn't notice him wobbly (no zombie walk!!) or anything.

His staring at SSK could have just been him yelling at them for taking cheap shots at him.  He knew they were trying to knock him out all game.  It's what they do.

And yes, the early hit could have made the "kill shot" worse.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 07, 2025, 06:07:02 PMYou must be mixing up Zach for some other QB like Nichols, Zach has been known to play favourites and completely ignores certain receivers for games on end. You may be right about recievers route running ability as that is usually supported by YAC ability, which seems to be limited to Demski and Wilson presently.

Zach (and Buck) would look for the hot hand of the game, then focus on them.  The hot hand in this game was Pokey, and that is why they were trying to force questionable balls into Pokey the rest of the game.

It's not always a bad idea.  Look at Kenny in the last WDF, eh?

But yes, back in the day (Lapo?) we'd spread it around more and seem to have more success.  You need to make the D somewhat scared of every REC.  It's good if every one can get a TD at least once every 5 games.  Make them all a threat.  We used to do that!

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 07, 2025, 06:07:02 PMHard to compare the Rider receiving corps, they're 9 strides ahead of the Bombers currently in planning and depth, and Harris is playing the best football of his life.

Riders RECs actually suck donkey nads.  Total no-name nobodies.  Only Johnson is any good.  Well, and KSB and Emilus, but they are 6GIR.  Our current RECs are 10X better on paper (20X if Schoen was healthy).  Seriously.

SSK O is such a powerhouse because of that OL (that only CGY can dent) and the absolute perfection that is their scheme and calling to suit Trevor.  And Trevor himself.  And their better-than-average run game that can punish you if you forget about it (and that's 75% their OL, not just their RB).  And their hold-always REC corps.  And they mix things up, balance the targets, complete 1-2 deep shots a game when you don't expect it, and keep you guessing all the time.  They are putting out 100X our brain power right now.

Give us their OL and their brains and our RECs would win the same # of games as SSK.  Yes, even Mitchell.  Hard to get these tall lanky deep/wide RECs balls when Zach has 1.7s at best, and is always worried about the untouched guy who is about to paste him.

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 05:21:52 PMIt defies logic that we aren't throwing to them if the are open. Everyone of them might be the 1st read on some designed plays.
[...]
This can't all be on Collaros. Who did Streveler try to throw to when he went in?  It's hardly worth checking 9 attempts, 2 int's 5 completions for 39 yards.

Zach has no time.  And the rare time he gets some time he still thinks he has no time.  Look at how long Trevor, VAJ & BLM have to throw... literally all day.  And the odd time they face someone who can get to them regularly, they also start sucking.

Simply time.  Time is OL (#1 issue), then protection scheme (Hogan), then balanced/confusing play calling (Hogan + RB/OL making run game viable).

If Zach had the time VAJ & BLM do then Zach would be lighting it up to our 4 home run capable RECs.  Guaranteed.

As you said, did Strev have any more time, or was he getting D in his face after 1.7s.  Even with his run threat they just came and pasted him.

Embarrassing.  Our OL, OL coach, and OC (and GM!) should be very very ashamed of themselves.  Wallace and Randolph are butt.  Should have been Stan Vant Ko Neuf Lofton from day 1 and for every single game.  Trying to force guys into positions they aren't ready / capable for has possibly cost us the entire season.

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 05:05:31 PMLoss of revenue and home crowd is very important in the playoffs and in general.

I don't think they give a rat's butt about WSF/WDF revenue in a home GC year.  They actually are "off the hook" on this one.

And they locked us all into 2 more years of STH even if they start to lose every game for 2.5 years.  Yay!  (Though I'd go & cheer anyhow, I started in '12, I know pain... but many others don't!)

Quote from: Blue In BC on September 07, 2025, 04:50:38 PMThere has to be a lack of confidence, talent and play calling for that to happen.

You better believe morale & confidence is in the toilet right now.  Even if they "talk tough" they are all in the middle of "we suck so bad" mode right now.

Losing 3 games to CGY by week 10 was devastating.  It may have destroyed their headspace.  Losing the season series to SSK, and now letting SSK paste Zach into oblivion and clearly having the worst OL in 6+ years, must be insurmountable.

It'll take some crazy leadership to pull out of this funk.  And I'm not sure we have the leaders anymore.

I watch the pre-game post-warmup pep talks with the binocs every game and Willie J always does them.  One thing I've noticed is they are crazy short.  Like 30-45s.  That's not good enough.  And no one is hyped up like AH's "you got my back" thing.

It must be hell for the newer guys, who never felt what our team had before.  I bet guys like Mitchell are just destroyed -- thinking that this is like EDM in their darkest days.

Wallace ended up playing some jumbo.  How much, I'll have to see when I rewatch.

So... was he always ok, and doing the GTD thing was just a ploy to throw SSK off?  Make them think Wallace is LG, then put in Vant who you wanted all along, then also keep in Wallace as jumbo!

It's like having your cake, eating it to, and having 5 leftover for your buddies.

Although, it doesn't really buy us much.  Doubt SSK cares who our LG is.

And, isn't it a bit strange having a GTD be a "nay" but stays in the game and just doesn't "start"?

Quote from: Blueforlife on September 07, 2025, 05:22:12 PMOver stated on the negative
Terrible idea to cut Mitchell at this stage imo
Agree all

Our receivers are not our problem at the moment but need to be more consistent and getting Sterns back is key

After Labour Day, you would still have to pay Mitchell his salary, doesn't make financial sense.

Quote from: Sway on September 08, 2025, 01:19:36 AMDid anybody else at stadium see Zach get clobbered in first quarter, after he got up he looked lost, staring at Sask sideline?

It was a second down, he tossed it to Brady for incomplete pass.

TV cameras don't show Zach so it wasn't talked about.

I think he was messed up on that play and the Reavis hit really knocked him out.

I think he got hurt on Micah Johnsons' sack early in the 3rd. 

Quote from: Sway on September 08, 2025, 01:19:36 AMDid anybody else at stadium see Zach get clobbered in first quarter, after he got up he looked lost, staring at Sask sideline?

It was a second down, he tossed it to Brady for incomplete pass.

TV cameras don't show Zach so it wasn't talked about.

I think he was messed up on that play and the Reavis hit really knocked him out.

saw it and noticed as well.  said to my son "he doesn't know where he is and what sideline to go to"

"How was the game on Saturday?"

(https://y.yarn.co/86652bd6-f500-4aa8-84b0-503c38333c95_text.gif)

Quote from: Ridermania on September 08, 2025, 12:01:07 PMAfter Labour Day, you would still have to pay Mitchell his salary, doesn't make financial sense.

Suggesting to keep a player on the AR that doesn't deserve to be there for financial reasons? That should never come into the equation. We can debate whether he should be there or not but money is irrelevant. He got a substantial SMS up front so his remaining money is not that much.

Quote from: The Zipp on September 08, 2025, 12:17:32 PMsaw it and noticed as well.  said to my son "he doesn't know where he is and what sideline to go to"

I said exact same thing,

Then he started throwing his usual interceptions.

I am worried this team won't make playoffs now. And maybe only win 1 more game

Weird thing, I know the GC will be a sellout regardless if we are in it or not, its just the way it goes.

But it could be the smallest actual attendance of any game of the year if we aren't in it.

Ticket sales are great, but concessions are also a big part, and butts in seats gotta eats.  And drink.

I have all my Grey Cup Events and game tickets purchased and will attend with whomever is in the game!  Or is it whoever??

Quote from: Ridermania on September 08, 2025, 12:01:07 PMAfter Labour Day, you would still have to pay Mitchell his salary, doesn't make financial sense.

I guess they can't cut Mitchell now, but there is a difference if they pay him PR salary vs roster salary. They already PR'd him once, so don't think they will protect him on the 1 game IR.

Hope to get a look at Echols for a game or two before Sterns returns, to see if he'll be a useful addition for next season.  Strange but with every new receiver I long to see a glimmer of Bailey, tough, hard-nosed and an explosive runner.

Quote from: Throw Long Bannatyne on September 08, 2025, 06:21:22 PMI guess they can't cut Mitchell now, but there is a difference if they pay him PR salary vs roster salary. They already PR'd him once, so don't think they will protect him on the 1 game IR.

Hope to get a look at Echols for a game or two before Sterns returns, to see if he'll be a useful addition for next season.  Strange but with every new receiver I long to see a glimmer of Bailey, tough, hard-nosed and an explosive runner.

You have to cut him to put him on the PR. If you can do that then you can release him outright. I'm not sure if he qualifies for the veteran cut down date rule. Maybe someone knows for sure.

Whether they choose to make a roster move in that regard is another story.

Quote from: Ridermania on September 08, 2025, 12:01:07 PMAfter Labour Day, you would still have to pay Mitchell his salary, doesn't make financial sense.

O I thought we were already on the hook for that
I am not sure regardless we want to cut receivers

Unless Sterns is 100% I keep him

Has shown a little promise but was cold last game