Mr Dee

To go with our organization now saying our plan b or c was always our plan a. Historically this is what most organizations do because their not going to promote a signing as their third choice. I don't believe that for a second. That's why it's called plan a, plan b etc. Everything I've seen from the Bombers was a) Collaros Burris c) Willy Looks like we're moving on to plan b. On the surface, and in theory, the plan of acquiring a vet QB along with a young upstart, has more merit than acquiring a somewhat new, less experienced QB, no matter our personal opinions on said QBs.

Face, meet the hand of bitching fate once again laughing at us. Another blow to the psyche of the Winnipeg Football Fan. Not necessarily because we lost on the bid on Collaros, but because we lost out again on a QB. Although the circumstances are way different, I believe the loss of Reilly was worse because he's a better QB. The loss of Collaros stings, but I believe he made a personal decision and for that, he can't be blamed. And we have options that don't include Buck. As to Hamilton going all in on their QB stable…that still puzzles me, and nothing would please me more than watching Austin's unshaven face grimace with the realization that maybe Burris wasn't such a bad option after all.

gary lawless ‏@garylawless 2h Don't be shocked if Collaros agrees to a deal with either #bombers or #Ticats as early as Thursday or Friday. Not much left to do but decide

Low round pick for Korey Banks? Yes.

The only thing I could disagree with here is the Buck line and I know why you've said it. It was that asinine decision to have a protective package to "shield" Buck from getting hit. Instead, he got hit worse than ever because...because he is a scrambling QB who was told not to scramble. Duh. The fact that that offence was directed by a HC who played not to lose was the final straw. Buck couldn't last more than 3 games…Burris played in all 18 games last year, so there's the difference.

Man, I step out for awhile, come back and read all the negativity here on this thread, I thought I was back on that old site, sourbombers or something like that. Right now, at this point in time, I think we're making it a bigger issue than it needs to be.

Well, if they blow that much smoke up their asses, they'll be screaming for an entirely different reason. Besides, there's always butt plugs like Mr Ruleless that casual fans can be directed to.

In your statement, does that make Drew Willy the nothing? And "or else"? Yikes! **** Personally, I wouldn't mind the Drew Willy (alone) scenario, and yes that would mean less experience, but if Hamilton doesn't sign Burris, how is their situation going to be any different?

Sounds like a move made simply to move forward with the direction they are going and really, just a parting of the ways. Barker feels as strong about Harris as Collaros, and I have to wonder if we are all over-valuing Collaros a little bit? Don't get me wrong, I'd still like to see him here, but I'm not convinced that O'Shea feels as strongly as some.

This is a very peculiar situation. The most obvious reason would have been NFL interest, but I just can't see that…no complete resume. Toronto's motive should have been to move him out West, even for peanuts, but to give Hamilton a clear shot is odd. You'd think they knew something. As to the interest from the Bombers... It seemed to me, from the very start, that the Bombers have only had a passing interest, npi, in Collaros. Could this stem from the relationship with the new HC or are they playing this really cool? Perhaps, through their contacts, they are aware of the ongoings and are preparing to go all in…or not. One thing for sure, we won't have to wait 'til Feb 15th and that should definitely be a plus one way or another to settle our QB situation.

Bucknor for Aprile works for me as it seems interest from Aprile plummeted after the failed switch-to-safety fiasco. Now we can better see the behind the scenes backdrop for signing NI receivers Brescacin and Feoll-Gudino.

Arash Madani ‏@ArashMadani7h Again, filed to Sportsnet.ca: Kerry Joseph will be retiring from the #CFL. The story on his decorated career is here: http://www.sportsnet.ca/football/cfl/eskimos-qb-joseph-to-retire-from-pro-football/ …

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Nah bro Or in this case...no brah.

CFL Official Feed ‏@CFL 2m After a nine-year career, Marc Parenteau (@Tubz57) has announced his retirement - http://ow.ly/t2Miy #CFL

Very interesting indeed..or more musings from Penton.. Kirk Penton ‏@PentonKirk No defensive co-ordinator for #Eskimos. Looks like Chris Jones will run his own defence.

Yikes... * And I might add…I'm not a fan of Burris, but there's no way I'd want another year like last year.

I take the article for what it is worth…at this time of year…with not much else happening, and it sounds pretty much like we would say right here on this board. People are talking in the exact way he is describing…on fan boards, so although the credibility may be lacking, there is some substance behind these rumours because whether we like it or not, it makes sense. The one part I do find intriguing is the question of Collaros being a sure fire #1 QB. Ever since O'Shea has been hired as HC I'm sure Walters, Miller have been all over O'Shea on the merits of going heavily after Collaros. I'd find it interesting to hear what O'Shea had to O'Say about him. Is he not totally sold on him? Of course we'll never know but I'm sure our QB plans include an A plan, B plan etc. I sure as hell want a QB that we can finally say is our #1 and I would hope it's this year, but I'm willing to wait a bit longer as long as the end message doesn't include "we're sticking with what we have and are scheming an offence around them."

Not counting Sundays, there are 17 days left to sign our own FAs. Do the Bombers have a say in all the FAs we have to sign or do circumstances exist where we have no chance? For me, at least to get to TC: Desirable signings - Some for obvious reasons, some for NI content, some for experience: Henoc Muamba, Chris Matthews, Jade Etienne, Brandon Stewart, Will Ford, Jovon Johnson, Akeem Foster, Kenny Mainor, Justin Sorensen, Marc Parenteau. Signings if it makes sense - Again, ratio-wise and depth, new signings: JT Gilmore, , Ryan Lucas, Chris Cvetkovic, Chris Kowalczuk, Dan West. Not a Priority - Injuries…. Chad Simpson, Andre Douglas. For comparison: (not including retired, suspended or released) BC - …………..0 - 5 signings Edmonton…….4 - 11 Calgary……….10 - 17 ​Sask…………..3 - 17 ​WBB…………..6 - 18 Hamilton………1 -6 ​Toronto……….1 - 10 ​Montreal………8 -17 The Bombers have 79 60 players listed on their roster page including all eligible FAs. There are 34 imports and 32 26 NIs. However, I can't imagine injured players like Sims-Walker will be back nor Bo Smith, nor Boltus (but that's just my wish)

As they say in the commercials, size isn't everything. How many times have you seen size worthy defenders get beaten by placement of the ball or reaction by the receiver rather than height of the defender? I would say the presence of dynamic defenders is at the low end of the spectrum as is the presence of poor defenders. By far, the greatest number of defenders fall into the middle spectrum of "good" defenders and, how they do falls much more in the scheming of the defence and their reliance on fellow players than on their skill level alone. That's where I would place Suber…in the middle. But, I just love how determined Suber is as he's getting ready on defence and he places himself well and he's a very good tackler. As JBR says, his tracking ability is just average and his speed to recover just isn't there, and that may be size-related. Nevertheless, it's a solid signing.

That describes a heck of a lot of DBs in this league.

With Zach Collaros, you know you're going to see a QB who, when being chased, will stand a good chance of making a play, by either running or scrambling to throw. With Drew Willy (that just doesn't sound right) I think you'll see him look for a passing outlet first, then scramble. But he does have good presence in the pocket, and more experience will help him in…ahem, not evacuating prematurely.

I recently started to wonder about how their construction was going and when I went to take a look online, I was very much surprised to see how much work there's left to do. They've already dismantled Guelph seats as far as I know and they want several games on the road to start, but whoa*zza how are they going to finish it for the season? Trouble's a-brewing at Tim Horton's Field.

To reiterate: ***The Tampa tryout camp is set for January 25th from 9AM to 3PM at Skyway Park, 3901 George Rd., Tampa, FL. The Los Angeles tryout camp will be held on January 19th starting at 9AM, the exact location is to be determined. Dying to find out what, if anything, came out of the LA camp and tomorrow, the Tampa campa. More signings please. ***"They will also be hosting free agent tryout camps in other locations across the United States this February and March. We will provide you with the information for these tryout camps as soon as they are confirmed."

Good gravy, it doesn't matter to me one way or the other about AC and his career, but to deny anybody or any team for that matter its due, because they have played against weaker teams, in weaker divisions, would put asterisks on all kinds of performances of individuals and teams. No, you take the whole picture together, weak teams, strong teams. Good performances over a period of years and years should be one criteria in determining how well one has performed. AC has done that and much more. He deserves the credit he gets.