Captain Blue

I went back and re-watched his preseason game again. I'm pretty excited, though he is going to have a bunch of mistakes for sure. His running ability against BC was probably overlooked. I think you can craft an offense for him.

I actually prefer more threads rather than less. I find the long, all-encompassing threads difficult to follow, especially if I haven't checked in over a few days. Having a big thread, for example "Bombers News," actually slows discussion, in my opinion. There are various topics to discuss, but they all get smashed together so none really gain traction. Plus, big news such as Streveler being named starter gets pushed a few pages back very quickly. I think any major news should warrant its own thread. Chris Streveler named starter for Week 1, for instance, is a major topic that can carry its own thread. For those of us who want to chat about that news, having it centralized in one spot would be great. That way other news can also get its own attention. There have been times when I've wanted to discuss a topic but by the time I've got to it other CFL/Bomber news has taken over that thread. I don't think there is a need for so many opinion threads - because if you have an opinion about a topic its most likely that the topic itself warrants a thread. Again, your opinion on Streveler would go under that category. We don't need a thread for someone to personally state they are happy or unhappy about it, 'cause then it'll just be 50 different small threads on it.

Finishing up a few more things from camp today (saw almost all of it except the first 3 minutes of drills): Streveler was much more comfortable as practice progressed. They finished the practice with 10 minutes of scrimmage drills. Streveler started and got about the first 3-4 minutes, then gave way to Ross for a few minutes. Bennett got one throw and then Streveler finished the rest of the drill, probably another 4ish minutes. Streveler had a really ugly screen throw to Dressler that went straight to the ground early on. The rest was mostly positive. Had a really nice ball to Bowman on a comeback route that he put low and away from the DB. Another play he went over the middle for Dressler, and he put the ball nicely ahead of Dressler and away from the diving defender. A few check downs and short throws. One play where he scrambled but if the DL was allowed to hit he would have been clobbered. I would expect that we will use him creatively in the run game as well, so that should take some pressure off.

It would be interesting to see how the league has progressed since then. Especially now with most NCAA offenses featuring much more CFL-friendly offenses, that would seem to at least give these new QBs more of a shot at earlier success. I'm not expecting much from Streveler, I just don't think the comparison to Calvillo is relevant. Its a fun footnote though.

If Ross is the starter then this would be one hell of a surprise. Streveler has gotten all of the first team reps and the occasional second team ones. Ross has had all second string work. All I can say is that I'm excited. I don't think Streveler would have been my choice, but this is going to be a wild ride. He is going to have a bunch of splash plays - both positive and negative.

For a really fair assessment, you'd have to compare Walters' "original finds" to every other GM in the league. That would give you an indicator of how well each GM finds original talent - and then also look at how those guys are playing in the CFL. It would seem really hard to quantify. Walters' has had his fair share of misses, but overall, I still think our scouting has come a long way. I think GMs can sometimes have 'blind spots' - positions they continually struggle with. For instance, Walters and new American WRs. So many of these guys bounce around several teams and then find the right fit (opportunity, coach, scheme, etc). We obviously want to bring in our own talent, but a large portion of the roster will always have players that tried out elsewhere.

Looked into this a bit more...still can't cast to a TV and doesn't appear to provide old games if you miss them live.

Ross also took way more snaps as the QB2 for the most of camp, though I'm not sure if that changed this week.

Meh, of the 4 practices I have seen so far Ross has been the better of the two every time. If Ross plays horribly again then I don't think you can start him. But if the sum of their 2 preseason games puts Ross and Streveler close, I can't fault him for choosing Ross.

Really all I care about now is Streveler vs Ross, so tomorrow has become extremely important. I still think they see Ross as QB2, but unless he actually shows it in a game then it'll be real hard to make that case.

About time, but that price is pretty high. I would want the ability to go back and watch old streams of games. If I could do that with the Bombers then cable cutting becomes much easier.

Per Twitter, Vernon Adams was not on the field today for Hamilton and was healthy yesterday. Could be nothing, could be something.

Honestly, this injury just sucks so much for the team and Nichols. I'd be really interested in Vernon Adams and think he could be had for cheap. I've always been a fan of his and think he's a good CFL fit. He isn't much different than any other guy we've got here, which is to say mostly unknown. But, I am fine with the guys we have. This is just life in the CFL. I don't see many good backups out there unfortunately and nobody is going to send one of them here and risk their team ending in this position as well. Crossing my fingers it isn't serious and Nichols is back for the season. Otherwise, most likely you're going with Streveler, Ross and Bennett - in some order.

To be honest, I find the continual Manziel Watch from TSN pretty disappointing. Like, I get that having him come up here is worthy of headlines. But the constant update of every tiny detail of his practices or games rubs me the wrong way. Makes it seem like the CFL and its fans are desperate. The CFL was good before Manziel and it'll be good after he's gone. We have got to stop treating these ex-NFLers as royalty, in my opinion. Still waiting for Vince Young to win his first MOP award...

Streveler certainly sounds like he is having a hell of a game. Apparently I have also pronounced his name wrong.

Neufeld will always be a problem. His injury last time changed the trajectory of the team...in a good way.

Couple of notes from today's practice, was able to attend: Defense was all over the offense today. Nichols had two interceptions and should have had a third. Streveler looked pretty poor. He had an interception where the DB undercut the RB's out route. Next play he scrambled left, tried to hit a receiver but put it in the turf. Seemed slow on his progressions but obviously hard to tell. The defense sacked him on a blitz and he had another ball batted down. Bighill blew up Harris on one run play that scared the heck out of me. Kyrie Wilson was still "starting" over JSK, who dressed today. Wilson had a really nice pick, reading Nichols' eyes on the 8-on-8 drill. Dropped back into coverage and just snagged it. They put the subs in for the next play and JSK picked off Nichols immediately too. Those were Nichols' two interceptions, as mentioned above. Gaitor almost had a third later on in the red zone. I know almost nothing about punting but Menard-Briere had some nice punts today. Medlock still had more hang time.

One more note: Refs were at practice the whole time. Team and coaches do push ups when there is a flag. They got called a few times when the team practiced the no huddle with crowd noise being pumped in. Richie Hall does impressive one-legged push ups. Good to see him back in full health.

Went to camp today. Ended a bit early. Simonise and Petermann were in the starting lineup with Demski and Wolitarsky out. Both looked pretty good. QBs were hard to separate. Mahoney didn't throw as much as the others. Bennett was there but not dressed or taking reps yet. Saw Streveler run a couple of times and with those long legs he can really move. I still think he is behind Ross but I wonder if he gets in the game for some LeFevour-type runs. Bighill was fitting right in, pointing things out and talking to a bunch of the defense. Apparently he had a very nice near-INT but I missed it. Kyrie Wilson and Chandler Fenner were beside him as the outside guys most commonly. Fenner had an interception off Nichols today, with Alexander deflecting the pass that led to it. Fogg also had a really nice pick, diving to the sideline for the ball.

I got there today around 9:45 and stayed till the end. Our "starting" five receivers are fun to watch: Adams, Bowman, Dressler, Demski and Wolitarsky. That is a really solid group and Wolitarsky again looked good today. Surprise receiving star was Daniel Petermann. His speed was evident early on. He made four really nice catches, the last being in the scrimmage where he jumped up in the middle of the field to nab a high crossing throw. Of the new QBs, Ross was a real pleasant surprise. Streveler looks the part and I was expecting him to really shine but it was Ross who stood out more. Way more arm strength than I anticipated. Had some nice deep completions in the drills.

I was there today in the morning, but it was hard to come away with much info. Everybody looked roughly the same at the start. I had read Tait's preview article before going so I must admit that I focused more on some of those guys. Out of the new QBs, I thought Philip Nelson was the best. In the 7 on 7s he started with a ball in the turf on a short out to an RB, but then was on fire after that. Had a huge completion down the middle to a WR that had everyone excited. Nelson himself was fist-pumping after that one. Had some nice deep ball throws too. Lankford had a nice deep catch and beat some of the new CBs pretty handily with his speed. Washington reeled in a few short tosses. The surprise of the day for me was watching Wolitarsky more. His routes were excellent, leading to a bunch of crisp catches. I couldn't pick out much from the new DBs. Plenty still learning the game and rules, so there were a lot of receiver wins in the one-on-ones.

There are a bunch of arguments for firing Hall but let's not start this narrative that O'Shea chose loyalty over winning. He has fired an OC, DC, and STC in his stay here. Loyalty isn't the issue.

I am oddly okay with this.

I love this schedule. Less weekday games is great. I personally find Thursday games awful for work schedules.

Wade Miller, Kyle Walters, Mike O'Shea and this group of players should be proud of their season. They've come along away and the best is still yet to come. O'Shea has created a winning culture and system and I think that will bode well for the future. Can't wait for more Bomber football. Here's a fun fact: over the past two years, only Calgary has more regular season wins than Winnipeg (28 to 23). Next step is to start winning playoff games obviously, but if you build a continual winner than those will come too. Go Bombers.