Blue Bombers Transactions - October 5

[Waffler]

This reminds me of the Terence Jeffers-Harris release in Nov. 2011.

It was the same conversation then, yes. What did the Hamilton Spectator print about that?

Jeffers-Harris, 21, will be ineligible to play for Hamilton for the remainder of the post-season but would have detailed knowledge of the Bomber game plan for Sunday.

his knowledge of the Bomber game plan for Sunday?s playoff game will certainly be helpful

What about the Winnipeg Sun on the subject?
By kickoff time, we presume Willy will have shared everything he can about Winnipeg?s offensive playbook and Heath will have handed out copies of the Argos? defensive plays.

Much ado about nothing, you say?

CFL history is riddled with former-player-rats-on-his-team spy stories, but usually they involve a spurned player who might have an axe to grind.

You don?t have to go far back in Bomber lore to find a couple examples.

The last time Winnipeg played in a division final, in 2011 ? with LaPolice the head coach ? served up a classic example.

The Bombers that week cut receiver Terence Jeffers-Harris, reportedly because he was in a snit over not being on the roster for the big game.

Hamilton, Winnipeg?s opponent, immediately scooped him up, sparking accusations of foul play from the blue and gold.

LaPolice was also involved when the Bombers pulled a similar stunt late in the 2002 season.

Before a late-season game with the Riders, then a division rival in the West, the Bombers brought in linebacker K.D. Williams, who?d just left Saskatchewan in a snit.

I can still see Williams huddled with LaPolice in the hotel lobby in Regina the day before the game, sharing what he knew of his old team.


In fact Terence Jeffers-Harris never played a down for Hammy and was signed by Sask the following July. Again, it is not a physical playbook or electronic copy they want but the player's knowledge. Agudosi has been here since the 2021 season and I would be sure he has much insider knowledge to share. Will he ever play a down for TO? Call me skeptical.

[blue_gold_84]

Again, it is not a physical playbook or electronic copy they want but the player's knowledge. Agudosi has been here since the 2021 season and I would be sure he has much insider knowledge to share.

Jeffers-Harris was signed before the 2010 season and I'm sure he had ample insider knowledge when the Ti-Cats scooped him up late in 2011. Nothing tangible ever came of it and the Ti-Cats got dismantled in the East Final that year.

This situation isn't all that different. Although, I don't think Agudosi left in a "snit" or anything of the sort.

[Pete]

Just to clarify your post, there is no longer a printout of the playbook, it would most likely be contained on a tablet which could not be copied and would have to be turned in once he left the team.  So the only useful information Agudosi could pass on to the Argos, would have to be committed to memory.

I think it would be less about the plays, but more about the keys the bombers have identified when playing the argos which was pretty recent. Ie if Ppicket or Metchie does this then we will do the following options.
Every team runs similar offensive plays, or they've seen them on film anyway, its more about determining which reads Collaros makes in certain situations.

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

I think it would be less about the plays, but more about the keys the bombers have identified when playing the argos which was pretty recent. Ie if Ppicket or Metchie does this then we will do the following options.
Every team runs similar offensive plays, or they've seen them on film anyway, its more about determining which reads Collaros makes in certain situations.

I doubt Agudosi knows much beyond his positional role and doesn't have a clue what Zach's options are in a given situation.  There's a reason the QB's get paid the big bucks.

[Pete]

pretty sure any receiver knows what the plan is if the safety is in coverage near him, or when he will be the hot route, or when he has to cut short his route depending on the coverage or if the middle lb has dropped in coverage etc. so Zac knows where to look for him. Agudosi has been on the team with Collaros for a good period of time so yes he will have that information

[theaardvark]

Just to clarify your post, there is no longer a printout of the playbook, it would most likely be contained on a tablet which could not be copied and would have to be turned in once he left the team.  So the only useful information Agudosi could pass on to the Argos, would have to be committed to memory.

If you think there is an "uncopiable" tablet, that is funny.

At worst, you can take pictures of each screen...

Anyone with a PVR has most of our "playbook".  And all it takes is a simple change to plays to make that playbook irrelevant. 

Now, on the other hand, might this be a plant?  Do the WFC think the Argos will utilize this intel, and reverse psychology and show an alignment that they will recognize, only to run a completely different play?

We do not see them again until the GC, and only then if both teams make it that far.

Had this been before our only game against them, and had we lost, then OMG.  But...

[Jesse]

Jeffers-Harris was signed before the 2010 season and I'm sure he had ample insider knowledge when the Ti-Cats scooped him up late in 2011. Nothing tangible ever came of it and the Ti-Cats got dismantled in the East Final that year.

This situation isn't all that different. Although, I don't think Agudosi left in a "snit" or anything of the sort.

I remember some rumoured comments from players at the time laughing at the suggestion, saying that if Jeffers-Harris knew anything about the offense, he would still be on the team.

[TecnoGenius]

This reminds me of the Terence Jeffers-Harris release in Nov. 2011. The only difference is our resident conspiracy theorist wasn't around back then to sully threads.

I wasn't the first one in the thread to suspect foul play.

You and Jesse still haven't answered the key question: if signing Agudosi is useless or worthless or easily countered... then why did TOR sign him?  Give us a reason.  Waiting.

FYI, TOR has on their (fake) IR these WRs: Gittens, Johnson, Philips; on PR Haydel, Byrd, Parker, Marshall.  Many of those guys have been there all season.  Gittens and Philips are fake IR's to hide until the playoffs.  They have been happy with their main WR guys all season, and there has been no big injury to any single one going into the post-season.  They are far more stacked at WR than we are.  We have McCrae as IMP backup, and that's basically it.

So TOR put Agudosi on their "extended PR".  I assume we also get an "extended PR".  So why he is not on our e-PR??  Why did we outright release him before the postseason started to give TOR this chance?  Are you telling me we risked all of this (even if it's just optics) to save $3 or $4k a week, like that will amount to a hill of beans for our year end SMS?

[TecnoGenius]

Just to clarify your post, there is no longer a printout of the playbook, it would most likely be contained on a tablet which could not be copied and would have to be turned in once he left the team.  So the only useful information Agudosi could pass on to the Argos, would have to be committed to memory.

I'm not talking about stealing a copy of the tablet info or printouts, as that would be a bridge too far for most players, and possibly illegal in the CFL under penalty of expulsion.  But yes, if the guy isn't dumb as a doornail, what's in his head could be very valuable.  And I've never seen any indication Agudosi is dumb.  KW/MOS tend to favor the high football IQ players.

He certainly would know his particular position (wide out I think) backwards and forwards, including all looks and reads they had discussed and practiced.  He would also know something of the looks and reads and general rules for reacting to schemes as the others here have said.  Being a rarely-targeted guy he'd also know the blocking schemes to a high degree.  All of this he could share.

There's also all the closed-practice trick plays that Buck hasn't called yet this year, like the TOR Kenny sweep and the BC fake-Kenny sweep reprise.

He doesn't have to be totally disgruntled or bitter, he could just see it as a business transaction.  You hire me for way more than I'm worth at the moment for a few weeks and I'll spill the beans because you are paying the bills, and the CFL doesn't make it illegal.  Agudosi certainly can't be pleased with the end result of his time here!  Starting a few games and getting very few targets except one game.  Being stuck on the PR, and then outright released at a time of year most people want to stock up on backups, especially ones who know the book!!

Again, I'm really cheering for HAM to beat TOR in EDF and ruin their whole year and make all of this moot.  If any DL and LB corps can beat the Liver King, it's HAM.

[Jesse]

You and Jesse still haven't answered the key question: if signing Agudosi is useless or worthless or easily countered... then why did TOR sign him?  Give us a reason.  Waiting.

For the same reason we signed him and kept him around for 3 years, through injury. There's a **** -load of potential there.

He probably does get active roster time on quite a few teams. And may have been contacted by multiple teams. But if you're Agudosi, don't you sign with the team that's already guaranteed to be in the play-offs? If you're Agudosi, isn't it possible that you ASKED for your release from a team that is too stacked at WR to play you?

You're only looking at this from the Toronto angle. Imagining the most tin foil hat scenario. You're not looking at the player, who ultimately makes the decision of where to sign.

[TecnoGenius]

For the same reason we signed him and kept him around for 3 years, through injury. There's a **** -load of potential there.

He probably does get active roster time on quite a few teams. And may have been contacted by multiple teams. But if you're Agudosi, don't you sign with the team that's already guaranteed to be in the play-offs? If you're Agudosi, isn't it possible that you ASKED for your release from a team that is too stacked at WR to play you?

I see Agudosi as a LDW-type.  Promise and attributes but fails to pan out, often due to (missing) effort, and (missing) ability to just beat his man.

Agudosi's main selling point is he's 6'-zillion and big body so people think he'll be the next (ex-CGY) Rogers who'll just bully people for the ball and block out DBs with his huge body.  But he hasn't shown that even once.  All he did here was catch balls 7'6" in the air because he's the only one up there.  But QBs can't consistently throw to a specific height, or at least Zach couldn't.

We're in dire need for decent IMP backup R's and we let him walk at a critical time even knowing a critical rival could pick him up... that tells me all I need to know.  And I still think it may be the worst Mafia decision of the season even if he tells TOR nothing.  From a game theory standpoint it has no upsides (name one) and all downsides.

Agudosi might make a basement team's AR, but not immediately, and that's more a testament to the disgusting state of some team WR rosters (OTT, CGY, mostly).  But maybe he can't even beat out the young kids those people are fielding.  At least the rookies haven't shown they are useless for 3 seasons already, so there's always hope.

TOR is stocked at R on AR, IR, PR.  Many have been there all season.  Besides any garbage-game TOR plays, Agudosi doesn't see the field.  And I would bet the farm that he'll be released in the off-season.  And I would make a small bet he pulls a LDW and he's not in the CFL next season.  Maybe if all that happens you can check back with me in 6 months and then re-evaluate the apparent motives of TOR.  And if I'm wrong, I'll eat crow.  But if you're a strategic-thinking man I don't see how you botch the thought process and let the current scenario unfold.

I can hear Pinball saying it right now: "Agudosi is a gift"... the gift that will keep on giving through all 60:00 of the GC.  For some reason it's always WFC sending Pinball gifts.  Are we just mesmerized by his big smile?  Does he get KW free Jays tickets?  Buck better get ready with all the "new wrinkles" you guys think will make Agudosi's knowledge worthless, or I'm going to be plenty angry after Liver King gets 3 TDs and 150Y on us, and our O produces under 250Y net.

[blue_gold_84]

I wasn't the first one in the thread to suspect foul play.

You and Jesse still haven't answered the key question: if signing Agudosi is useless or worthless or easily countered... then why did TOR sign him?  Give us a reason.  Waiting.

You were the first one to don the tinfoil hat, though.

I mean, how does someone outside of the Argos organization answer such a question? It'd be speculation on my part and nothing more - same as anyone else here.

The Bombers have a superior and deeper group of receivers and considering how little and mediocre Agudosi has played the last two seasons despite what potential might be there, he was likely deemed expendable.

If the Argos did scoop him up to get knowledge of an opponent's playbook, that smacks of weird and needless desperation to me. I don't buy that, though. They're too good of a team to rely on such antics.

[Pete]

Currently argos now have  5 wr on practice roster, they eill have to cut down soon They also have several injured.
. Not sure why other than the conspiracy theory they felt need for Agudosi other than a look see
We may see shortly when they have to reduce the practice roster.

[Pigskin]

Currently argos now have  5 wr on practice roster, they eill have to cut down soon They also have several injured.
. Not sure why other than the conspiracy theory they felt need for Agudosi other than a look see
We may see shortly when they have to reduce the practice roster.

I think it was more for the look see. The kid had one very good game. He also makes some great catches in practice. But, he does have some issues with injuries.

[GCn19]

There is absolutely nothing that Adugosi can tell the Argos about our offence that the Argos DC can't figure out in a few hours of film study. Anyone who has played or coached football can tell you that whatever nuggets of information you might get are pretty inconsequential. The Argos brought him in because he is a 6'6" red zone threat that they feel might be worth a look.