Noeller

How ******* hard I will LOLLLLLLLLL if Buck is the only candidate and he turns them down........

merge.......

because neither has a Labour Day match-up (could have been Montreal, too, I suppose) so they're giving them something for that weekend...

the final TD given up was because the defense was gassed and/or injured...... I am really not sure what you're watching. I'm not even fully on Booch's end of things, but you are so far gone on the OTHER end of it, it's crazy.

TD Atlantic is now TD Pacific....

Kyle Walters presser this morning; https://3downnation.com/2023/11/29/10-takeaways-from-winnipeg-blue-bombers-gm-kyle-walters-press-conference/ Kyle Walters spoke to the media on Wednesday morning after signing a contract extension to remain as the general manager of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Here are 10 takeaways from what he addressed. Two more years Walters signed a standard two-year contract extension to remain in Winnipeg, not a one-year deal plus club option as some general managers across the league are rumoured to have signed. He declined to indicate whether or not he took a pay cut due to the limitations of the CFL’s operations cap. Assistant general managers Ted Goveia and Danny McManus also signed standard two-year deals, meaning the trio will be up for extensions at the same time as head coach Mike O’Shea following the 2025 season. This also means the team’s brain trust will remain together through the 112th Grey Cup, which will be played at IG Field in Winnipeg. “(Goveia and McManus) work their tails off, they’ve been doing this for a long time and they’re good,” said Walters. “They know the type of players Mike wants and it’s critical now with more challenges getting players up here that we’ve got a good group that can be down there finding American players. They’re the kind of behind-the-scenes guys that make everything move around here in regards to the talent that comes through.” Buck watch Walters indicated that he and his colleagues can’t start making any decisions regarding player personnel until it’s determined whether or not offensive coordinator Buck Pierce will be back with the team. The veteran assistant is reportedly a finalist for the head coaching job with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, though it remains unclear if he will be hired. “That’s a question for (GM) Jeremy (O’Day) down in Saskatchewan,” said Walters. “You would think they want to get rolling for the same reason we’re talking about here, so hopefully sooner rather than later, Sask can make their decisions and get rolling because the domino effect one way or another, we’ll have to follow up with those decisions.” Pierce has been on staff in Winnipeg since 2014 when he retired as a player to become the club’s running backs coach. He was promoted to the role of quarterbacks coach in 2016 and to offensive coordinator in 2020 when Paul LaPolice left the organization to become the head coach of the Ottawa Redblacks. Key free agents Walters discussed the impending free agency of running back Brady Oliveira and receiver Dalton Schoen, who are arguably the club’s two best players currently set to hit the open market. Though negotiations have yet to take place, the veteran personnel man described his preliminary plan for approaching both players. “You kind of put a plan together with what you think is a fair offer and every time the agents think vastly differently. It’s quite a process, particularly with the high-end guys. They deserve to explore market value and they’ve earned the right to capitalize financially on the success. We’ll see. I’m sure it’ll be a fairly long process and their agents will do their due diligence and figure out what the best situation is.” Walters described Oliveira, who was named the league’s Most Outstanding Canadian after recording 2,000 yards from scrimmage this season, as “obviously the top free agent in the CFL this year.” That’s high praise, which means the Winnipeg native will assumedly come with a high price tag. For what it’s worth, league sources have indicated that Oliveira’s agent, who is based in Chicago and handles CFL and NFL clients, is a tough negotiator. Retirements Walters responded to O’Shea’s comments about “maybe a couple” players leaning towards retirement this off-season. He seemed to appear more optimistic than O’Shea that the club can get a few key veterans back for another year, though only time will tell. “The (Grey Cup) loss was so emotional that I think a lot of guys were upset and made some statements or let it be known that (retirement) potentially could be an option. I think the best is to let things settle down for a month, take a deep breath, and kind of revisit guys with what is their plan for next year because it was such a devastating loss for all of us that it does take a little bit of time to get over it. And don’t make kind of a rash decision based on the raw emotion that you’re feeling after a loss like that.” Among the players who will be at or over the age of 35 by the start of next season are offensive tackle Stanley Bryant (38), long snapper Mike Benson (37), quarterback Zach Collaros (35), linebacker Adam Bighill (35), offensive guard Patrick Neufeld (35), and special teams ace Mike Miller (35). Bryant, Neufeld, and Miller aren’t under contract for 2024, while Benson, Collaros, and Bighill are. Greater challenge Winnipeg lost veteran starters Casey Sayles and Michael Couture to free agency last off-season, though the club had replacements ready to take over both roles in Ricky Walker and Chris Kolankowski. In retrospect, Walters indicated it was pretty easy to keep the club’s core intact following last year’s Grey Cup loss to the Toronto Argonauts. With the roster now one year older, Walters expects this to be a more challenging off-season. One part of the challenge is the possibility of Pierce leaving for a head coaching opportunity, while the other is the age of the club. Walters didn’t explicitly say he considers the age of Winnipeg’s roster a problem, though it seems fair to suggest he’s less keen than O’Shea regarding having such a veteran-laden roster. “The older the players are, the generally higher risk of injury. The salaries generally are higher. All of that will go into our decision,” said Walters. “It’s not just a matter of age. Salary, on-field productivity, health, all of those things go into it, even on an individual-by-individual basis. That’ll be an interesting discussion over the next few weeks.” The salary cap is going up by $75,000 in 2024, though Walters indicated the increase won’t do much to help the Blue Bombers. “In the grand scheme of things, it’s fairly minuscule,” he said. “Certain guys have bumps already in their contracts. It’s fantastic for the players that each year the cap will go up, but from a planning standpoint, it does have a minimal impact.” Brown leaving town? Walters didn’t entirely rule out the possibility of bringing back quarterback Dru Brown in 2024, though it appears he expects to lose the pending free agent to another team. “The market will dictate that and I think Dru has certainly shown he’s earned the right to compete for a starting job,” said Walters. “I’m certain his agent will look around and try to find the best situation for Dru to compete as a starter and get paid as a starter.” The 26-year-old passer threw for 983 yards, nine touchdowns, and zero interceptions this season, going 2-0 as a starter. He set a new league record this season for most touchdown passes with zero interceptions. Frustration It’s rare for any general manager in professional sports to enter the final year of their contract without an extension, particularly when they’ve built a consistent winner. Walters was clearly frustrated about having to wait so long for an extension, which was presumably caused at least in part to the CFL’s operations cap. “It was difficult on the family having the uncertainty and with the operations cap, there needs to be some tough decisions, no different than with the salary cap. I’ve worked with the salary cap for a while and we’ve had to make some difficult decisions and that’s just the way it is now with the CFL with the salary cap for all of us downstairs, it’s I think the reality of the situation.” Walters isn’t the only one who isn’t crazy about the league’s operations cap and pointed out that the consequences of losing have remained the same, while the benefits of winning have largely been taken away. The Blue Bombers can certainly afford raises given how well they’ve done financially since the COVID-19 pandemic, though they’re not able to provide them for those who’ve earned them due to the constraints of the cap. “In the sports world, the reward of having success is an increase in pay and you get to capitalize on that — everybody — coaches, staff, scouts. And if you lose, you don’t get a contract renewal. The reality now is we’re in a situation where if we lose, we’re still going to be struggling with getting a job and the reward is not there financially,” said Walters. “You would think that the on-field product somewhat contributes to the financial success of an organization and the people that, certainly coaches and everybody else down here, is responsible for that success that, with the new setup, can’t capitalize, which is frustrating, but it’s the reality of the CFL.” NFL workouts Winnipeg hasn’t received any workout requests from NFL teams as of yet, though Walters indicated he’s not expecting those to start until December. He’s aware that Oliveira is interested in possibly pursuing the NFL, though he doesn’t appear to expect Schoen to garner significant NFL interest this off-season. “He had his opportunity coming out (of college) and he went through everything last year and didn’t get signed,” said Walters. “The probability of another opportunity is probably not very high for him because he’s had a couple.” Immediate future Frustration aside, Walters doesn’t feel as though his contract uncertainty held the club back heading into the off-season. He pointed out that a number of teams around the league are still working to finalize their coaches and personnel staff. “There’s no rush other than just letting your guys know the situation. We really do need to sit down as a staff and get input from the coaches and figure out what do we look for, what do the coaches think, get input from all of them.” Walters also feels the club has plenty of time to get into free agency, which doesn’t open until Tuesday, Feb. 13. “There’s plenty of time. Players and their agents want to see what’s going on here as well with the coaching staff, so it’s perfectly normal,” he said. “We’ve got three months now to sort things out before free agency, so once we get going and put a plan in place together regarding who’s coming back, who we can afford, what the coach’s input is, and we’ll get it going and we’ll keep it rolling.”

Oilers and Jets going in opposite directions right now, unfortunately.... should be an interesting one Thursday.

Lack of depth and no bulldozer NT (both) on the DL have resulted in a lack of cups the last two chances... Not coincidence.

Lock it up. /Thread.

Randomly showed up on Twitter....

This. When people show you who they are, believe them.

I'm curious if Costello is ready for the role. I don't know enough about him, but I know he is beloved by the offense...

someone is going to WILDLY overpay for those stats, and I'm praying it's not us....

unless they literally do get him hurt........

if anyone would do it, it'd be him....

100% this...

Dunk I trust more than Ball....

Also, Cory Mace just announced as Riders HC.........

I'm not trying to be mean, but how do you not understand?? One of the biggest reasons gave up the game winning TD is because everyone along the line was absolutely gassed, and we needed another body in the secondary after Parker got dinged on specials. There's several examples of why we needed more bodies on the field, especially on defense.

Wasn't minor come Grey Cup, when we could have desperately used Rose, Haba, and Fox on the roster........

it's really funny to me how people seem to think that Buck has made it to the final 2 somehow against his will..... if he's made it this far, he REALLY wants the job.

They are in so much as they take up a roster spot which could otherwise go to a useful rotational piece, like a desperately-needed DL-er.......

**** everyone who ain't us...

Whew.... I still respect you JBR, but I'm really glad you were wrong about this.

If they've made it to this point of the hiring process, they obviously both want the job. And they want it because they want to be HCs and they want and deserve pay raises. Because of the management SMS, they can't be properly bumped with their current teams so they have to go elsewhere and take promotions to get what they deserve.