Recent Posts

Biggie wasn't on the field for that play, it was Gauthier.

Correct

It just dawned on me that everyone who says Biggie is washed up and had a bad 2023 and needs to retire, needs to remember one thing about Biggie in 2023:

How many 3rd & 1's did Biggie stop in 2023?  I don't think I've ever seen a MLB stop so many.  Even Henoc when he was that beast in MTL a few years ago, wasn't stopping that many.

He'll be hard to replace, however, that doesn't mean you don't try. My concern is what I believe is a loss of foot speed. Too many times he was washed out and ineffective at stopping the run. I often found myself asking, where was Bighill on that play? Father Time is undefeated and it will be the case with many of our aging Bombers. To continue to be successful we must continue to retool. Our D is not championship calibre and hasn't been for a couple of seasons now.

Mike O'Shea is fiercely loyal to his veteran players and rightly so. That is why Wade Miller must insist on changes being made if we want to continue to vie for Grey Cups.

["We've built something amazing here in Winnipeg" - Ed Tait]

Good article on Willie Jefferson's thoughts about re-signing, living in Winnipeg, his legacy and Winnipeg fan support...

"We've built something amazing here in Winnipeg" - Ed Tait

...."When I first came into the CFL in 2014, with Edmonton - gold teeth, Southside fade - I just wanted to make a team, be on a team for a year. I just wanted to stick, make plays. I wanted to get back to the NFL. Now, I couldn't care less about the NFL. I love seeing young guys make a name for themselves, make plays, get paid in the CFL, when they haven't had the opportunity (elsewhere). But if they have the opportunity to go down south to the NFL and make a name for themselves, put the CFL on the map even more than what it is, I enjoy that."

and...

"We're trying to build something special. The culture here is great. The atmosphere here is great. The fans are great. The organization is wonderful. I'm just happy we were able to get the deal done. No dilly-dally, no hesitations. I knew what I wanted, and the team was ready to give me everything I wanted plus a little bit more. I'm happy. I'm satisfied....."

It just dawned on me that everyone who says Biggie is washed up and had a bad 2023 and needs to retire, needs to remember one thing about Biggie in 2023:

How many 3rd & 1's did Biggie stop in 2023?  I don't think I've ever seen a MLB stop so many.  Even Henoc when he was that beast in MTL a few years ago, wasn't stopping that many.

Biggie was so effective at it in 2023 the league had to "change the rules" by fining him for H2H.  So what did Biggie do?  He changed his method slightly (hands between helmets) and then kept on stopping people on SY.  This is simply amazing, and something not captured in any stats because a sneak-plunge by its nature must give the DT stat to many people.  And in any event, a +1 to DT stat doesn't capture the enormity of a 3rd down sneak stop.

I haven't watched the GC loss yet... but did Biggie get us that massive momentum-stealing goal line stand?  If so, I rest my case.

I'm 100% happy with Biggie being our MIKE in 2024, especially at cap-friendly prices.

Biggie wasn't on the field for that play, it was Gauthier.

It just dawned on me that everyone who says Biggie is washed up and had a bad 2023 and needs to retire, needs to remember one thing about Biggie in 2023:

How many 3rd & 1's did Biggie stop in 2023?  I don't think I've ever seen a MLB stop so many.  Even Henoc when he was that beast in MTL a few years ago, wasn't stopping that many.

Biggie was so effective at it in 2023 the league had to "change the rules" by fining him for H2H.  So what did Biggie do?  He changed his method slightly (hands between helmets) and then kept on stopping people on SY.  This is simply amazing, and something not captured in any stats because a sneak-plunge by its nature must give the DT stat to many people.  And in any event, a +1 to DT stat doesn't capture the enormity of a 3rd down sneak stop.

I haven't watched the GC loss yet... but did Biggie get us that massive momentum-stealing goal line stand?  If so, I rest my case.

I'm 100% happy with Biggie being our MIKE in 2024, especially at cap-friendly prices.

Just a bump, reminder this is tomorrow.  I may go for the first time!

Is this a STH-only thing, or open to everyone?  I recall in the past there was some special STH thing (maybe early access?).

[Sankey and Lemon]

Interesting to note that Mtrl signed first the keys to success in grey cup..Fajardo and Sankey and Lemon, two of which Riders didn't resign and the third they could have signed. Yet ODay is still there

So how did every GM in the league miss the boat on Lemon for 2/3rds of the 2023 season?  If he's the best thing since sliced bread instead of being a washed up couch-sitter, why did everyone take a pass?  Was he really holding out for too much $$?  How much did MTL pay him for that 1/3rd of a season?

Why did everyone think he was washed up and done and then he comes in and plays some of the best ball of his life?

I'm not sure I recall a scenario like this occurring to such an extent.  Usually it's just one GM like Buono screwing up (i.e. AH33), not the entire league's worth of GMs... including our own KW!

[Schoen will be $300,000]

Schoen will be $300,000+

He's not worth $300k.

Schoen, to my eyes and memory without looking at any stats, had a bit of a sophomore slump.  Teams figured out his/Zach's 2022 scramble magic and made sure he wasn't open in that same way this season.

Schoen is not the best route runner.  He's not that fast.  He doesn't make the circus catches like Kenny/Lewis/Mack.  He was mostly invisible in the GC.  In fact, both GCs!

What Schoen does do well is: know the QB and what he wants, knows the scramble drill and how to get open, can take punishment and hold on and get back up, is very smart, what he's not "best" at (above) he is decent/good at.

In regards to Shoen no way does he get more than 225k. Lawler and Lewis are special in terms of their ability to make catches. How many highlight reel catches did Schoen make?
His success is how he fits into our scheme and Collaros . If another team signs him for big dollars he may find it difficult to replicate his last 2 seasons

Bingo.  Everything you said is truth.  A team would have to be crazy to offer him >$225k.  He may, MAY, get $200k offers, and we'd probably offer him $160k tops.  We might offer more, except we totally can't afford it with Kenny.  Why not offer Schoen a lower $150 on a 3-year with auto-bumps of $25k/year + performance?  (But with no vet guarantee so we can cut if underperforming.)

If you asked me at this moment, do you take Kenny at $280k or Schoen at $160k, I'd be hard-pressed to answer, but would likely take Schoen.  If you say Kenny $250 and Schoen $200 then I'm taking Kenny all day long.  If their prices are anywhere close, I'm taking Kenny all the way.  But Kenny needs to re-prove himself by playing a full and impactful year in 2024.

I think SSK fans will demand they make the playoffs in Mace Year 1.  Because nothing changed at GM the fans will just see this as a continuation of the same regime, and won't have the patience for 3 years of failure with a promise of future success.

No matter what, Mace won't have the kind of time to fail for years like MOS did when he first arrived.  And if for some strange reason Mace turns into Claybrooks, he may not even last 2 seasons.  If both Mace and JOD suck really badly in year 1 maybe the fans will run the whole lot out of town early; the coach cap be darned.  I'm not predicting that, but it would be incredibly amusing.

I can easily see that happening. Sask doesn't have the talent level to be a 500+ team. Their O line sucks, **** near killed Fajardo, injured Harris, injured Hine, and I see the same thing happening again this year.

Sankey is 29, has at least 4-5 years left in his 6'2 250 lb tank. Bighill is 35, and at 5'10 230, doesn't bring the wood like he used to, Sankey will kill you

With Lawler already at close to $300k, how many other receivers can we pay that much?

This is going to be a painful off season.  There are going to be a lot of players we cannot afford.  It will require a judicious use of offers and watching out for who is willing to stay for less (like Bailey or Bighill) and who is worth matching offers on.  And who we have in the "next man up" category. 

Walters has been a wonder the last 5 years, but this year, he's going to need to be a magician.

We will sign some players early, and we will sign some players after everyone else has spent thier budget.

And we will have a great recruitment year.

Meh, people have said the same thing every year since 2019. Some players have walked for better deals on the open market, but we a) haven't had trouble replacing them and b) have had a couple of them come back after a year.