Bomber starting WIL

[CrazyCanuck89]

If Gauthier isn't re-signed it would be a good idea to get Shay or Smith some reps. I'd like to see that happen before it becomes a necessity if game situations allow.

You don't even need to resign Gautier to even get all three Shay, Smith, Novak some reps.

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

If in-game, and K.Wilson still here, then K.Wilson.  If Gauthier still here, Gauthier, maybe.  In a dire situation: Shay or Cadwall.

Nothing says we won't sign a decent MLB before week 1... We did in FA25 with J.Jones.

I think the Jon Jones experiment proved they don't need to go to market to stock up on LB talent, the shelves are full. MLB has almost become interchangeable with WIL, most of these LB's weigh in around 225 lbs and a little over 6'-0", the exceptions being Tony Jones and Woodbey who are pushing 235 lbs, at that weight they're pretty much restricted to playing in the box. From this I deduce Woodbey is Jones official backup, with Shay getting some action on obvious passing downs.

As for Ayers, he played a fair bit of WIL in 2024 while Kyrie was injured, and played well enough to make more tenured Brian Cole expendable.

[Pete]

Bombers re-signed Wilson. This signing typifies what's wrong with this team
We have young guys  Woodbey Ayers and possibly even Shay who could step in, instead we're going to give most of the reps to an aging vet. 
  We're getting the old gang together for once last kick at the can. Maybe Thomas will even re-suit up

[blue_gold_84]

Bombers re-signed Wilson. This signing typifies what's wrong with this team
We have young guys  Woodbey Ayers and possibly even Shay who could step in, instead we're going to give most of the reps to an aging vet. 
  We're getting the old gang together for once last kick at the can. Maybe Thomas will even re-suit up

Thomas has already retired and has taken on a coaching role with the organization.

Wilson getting re-signed isn't the end of the world.

[Pete]

Thomas has already retired and has taken on a coaching role with the organization.

Wilson getting re-signed isn't the end of the world.

Nope its just another indicator how this team refuses to develop younger talent and continues to trend down

[kkc60]

Thomas has already retired and has taken on a coaching role with the organization.

Wilson getting re-signed isn't the end of the world.

no but it's dumb because we already have potential replacements and have bigger needs elsewhere. If MOS could actually show he can cut "his guys" or if there was no salary cap then sure, no harm no foul. But right now bringing back Wilson is a waste of resources

[Blue In BC]

no but it's dumb because we already have potential replacements and have bigger needs elsewhere. If MOS could actually show he can cut "his guys" or if there was no salary cap then sure, no harm no foul. But right now bringing back Wilson is a waste of resources

Yup. I don't get it either. Again, it's not that Wilson is a bad player. Barring injury, someone is not going to make the AR. They might be bumped to the PR or develop a fake 1 game IR injury.

[theaardvark]

Nope its just another indicator how this team refuses to develop younger talent and continues to trend down

How do you develop younger talent without giving them someone to beat out?

No downside to this.  If he's the best WIL coming out of camp, he gets a paycheque.  If a young guy can beat him out, he may end up on a couch waiting for an injury call.

He gets a chance to win a spot, young guys get a seasoned vet to learn from and try to beat.

[blue_gold_84]

Nope its just another indicator how this team refuses to develop younger talent and continues to trend down

You seem to make a lot of bold claims and baseless assumptions on here, but without any evidence.

How does this signing hinder developmental players from developing?

no but it's dumb because we already have potential replacements and have bigger needs elsewhere. If MOS could actually show he can cut "his guys" or if there was no salary cap then sure, no harm no foul. But right now bringing back Wilson is a waste of resources

"Potential replacements" doesn't really inspire confidence unless they're ready to take on the role of starter; that has to be demonstrated first. Wilson's a proven veteran who can act as a stopgap and a mentor while the replacements develop within the system.

[theaardvark]

Yup. I don't get it either. Again, it's not that Wilson is a bad player. Barring injury, someone is not going to make the AR. They might be bumped to the PR or develop a fake 1 game IR injury.

Wilson played every game last year and had his best year to date.  Literally the opposite of signing someone past their best before date.

He definitely has the inside track for WIL, but hopefully he WIL get some competition.

[Blue In BC]

Wilson played every game last year and had his best year to date.  Literally the opposite of signing someone past their best before date.

He definitely has the inside track for WIL, but hopefully he WIL get some competition.

I never suggested he was past his prime and suggested he's a good player. The question is always when is the best time to move on from a veteran player? Is there a succession plan and how does that fit into the equation.

[Jesse]

Wilson is not a bad player, but like we've said before, he never developed into the impact player that he showed the promise of becoming before his injury trouble.

Now, at 33 years old, it made sense to allow some of our several younger players that we've invested in to take over that role.

I think it's fairly clear that Wilson is going to arrive at camp and be the Day 1 starter even if he doesn't practice throughout TC. We've seen that to be the case with many returning vets on this team. So posters saying that the young guys can beat him out simply aren't discussing the situation in good faith, imo.

This move doesn't hurt the team or make it worse than last year, but removes some of the potential for upside that fans were hoping would mean an improvement from the last two years. Both in terms of play and salary cap usage.

Now, all that said. The defense played well last year and it's still on the offensive side of the ball to make real changes.

[Tecno]

Yup. I don't get it either. Again, it's not that Wilson is a bad player. Barring injury, someone is not going to make the AR. They might be bumped to the PR or develop a fake 1 game IR injury.

Then you're not listening to all the pressers, looking at what they are telling you point blank, and also reading between the lines.

Anyone who understands MOS & Mafia is not surprised by W.Wilson re-upping.  This is the "keep the old vet around to be the unit mentor / vet / wise man".  We do this for most every unit; certainly at least 2 guys on each side of the ball.

In the worst case Wilson gets injured and goes 6-G and mentors from the sideline.  I see zero problem with this.  It's better than letting Biggie take off to help mentor CGY (who went from zero to hero-kicking-our-butts in 1 year).

And we all know it was very budget.  No downside.

[Blue In BC]

Then you're not listening to all the pressers, looking at what they are telling you point blank, and also reading between the lines.

Anyone who understands MOS & Mafia is not surprised by W.Wilson re-upping.  This is the "keep the old vet around to be the unit mentor / vet / wise man".  We do this for most every unit; certainly at least 2 guys on each side of the ball.

In the worst case Wilson gets injured and goes 6-G and mentors from the sideline.  I see zero problem with this.  It's better than letting Biggie take off to help mentor CGY (who went from zero to hero-kicking-our-butts in 1 year).

And we all know it was very budget.  No downside.

Many have mentioned O'Shea roster management and sticking with some players that should be moved on from.

Of course there is a downside. He may play nearly every down in 2026 and the others don't get a chance to progress.

I've repeatedly said or questions which other LB won't make the roster due to an excess of players and ratio and roster constraints.

Barring injury I'd expect Woodbey to be pushed to the PR or released. Griffin has the lock at the moment.

Similarly to Wilson, we can't expect O'Shea to move on from Ayers either.

Pick your poison. Do you expect fair competition?

[Tecno]

Of course there is a downside. He may play nearly every down in 2026 and the others don't get a chance to progress.

Meh.  Getting the new kids reps at the expense of your best guy out there winning the snaps right now is a tough sell.  We tried that with Kelly and he got burned nearly every snap.

I've repeatedly said or questions which other LB won't make the roster due to an excess of players and ratio and roster constraints.

There's also the aspect of good known quantity vs hoping for an emerging star.  Kyrie will do his job well (see his '25 stats) but he may not make the "play the ball" hunch move that will get him a splash stat or win the game by himself.  Is that a bad thing?

For every 4 guys we give chances to (like Kelly) we'll maybe find one Ty Ford, Kramdi, or Holm.  Said another way: Kyrie gives you more chances to win now, not the hope of winning "better"/more later.  What do we value more?  Who we start will answer that question.

Pick your poison. Do you expect fair competition?

Of course not.

But remember what we did with Biggie when we acquired T.Jones.  We started using Jones more.  We started keeping Biggie on IR for way longer than normal.  We had Jones take more snaps even with Biggie was dressed.  Then we just let Biggie walk in FA.

That could very well be what happens with WILL.  More a natural progression than a cliff.