GCn20

I agree. I think people saw the market go kaflooey last year on 3 receivers and thinks this will translate to the norm. It won't. We saw this back a few years ago too when Edmonton went kaflooey on Adarious Bowman at 250k, (highest paid non-QB) and the market adjusted back to normal after. No receiver in this league is getting North of 250k this year and I predict that Lewis will be the only guy in FA that goes north of 180k. BC and Edmonton last year really screwed the receiver market up on top end because both teams had extremely low QB salaries that almost never happen. This year there are no teams in the unique position of spending that kind of dough at receiver. Honestly, I don't get where people are suggesting that Demski had some kind of break out year either. His production and games played are almost identical to the year before. He played fantastic down the stretch for us, as opposed to being injured like the year before, but pretty much same games played and same yardage.

Fantastic news!!

The thing working against Demski making the kind of money some on here think is twofold, injury history/no big season to his credit, and the fact that the CFL's new NAT status qualification for veteran players kicks in this year and that GREATLY diminishes his passport. He has been around 7 years and has no 1000 yard seasons to his credit, but is versatile. Take away the passport from any NAT receiver with that same resume and fans would be seething if their team gave him 180+. I would hate to lose him, because he is a Winnipeg boy, but really his production and skillset is replaceable.

It's over for the PCs. Time to lick wounds and regroup.

Covid references are sooooo 2021. lol

I like Demski a lot but I think you are viewing him through blue tinted glasses. I don't think Demski is a top 5 receiver in this league, and I think that only those are the guys that are getting anywhere near a sniff of 200k+ this year. If he is offered 185-200k I hope the Bombers let him walk. That is a big overpay imo. Demski is a fantastic NAT receiver for the Bombers and brings a lot to our team, but there are only a few guys in the league that deserve 180+ and he is not one of them. For that money you have to show that you can stay on the field and produce 1100+ yards beforehand. I understand that Demski has been snake bitten by injuries the past few years, but again, that is also something a GM has to look at when calculating the cap % any player is going to get. It may not be fair but it is a factor in any sport with a SMS or salary cap. Production and reliability are massive factors in contract $.

The only way we will get good people to run is to offer them a golden parachute at the end. The pay itself is laughable.

I think 170k would easily get it done with the Bombers. I honestly don't think he would get much more on the open market. He is versatile and a great deep threat but at the end of the day he has exactly zero 1000 yard seasons to his name. A lot of that is due to missing a lot of games, but that too factors in. I think a ton of people think the receiver market will be super-heated based on know nothing comments by Herb Z and Suitor. Fact of the matter is that last year the teams who blew their brains out on receivers did not get their money's worth. GMs around the league will have taken notice of that and a market correction will happen. You look at the top 3 receivers in FA last year and absolutely no one could argue that they provided the production to justify the contracts. Yes, all 3 missed significant time with injuries but at the end of the day you tie up that kind of SMS into a player you have to get the results and when you put out 250-300k on a receiver it may not cost you on SMS if they go down, but it sure ties up a lot of cash with not much production to the team.

Clearly. Rourke and KSB as pro bowlers? Yikes. Could both men contribute to an NFL team? Probably if given a chance...but pro bowlers? WTF. I get a kick out of Rider fans. They claim Sorrells was to blame for all their OL problems, while conveniently forgetting that he has been there since Chris Jones and got exceptional mileage out of little talent for 3 years over there. Only when the OL personnel became an absolute dumpster fire of Canadian Jr. football talent did the OL struggle, but somehow it's not Ferland, Bandy, or Johnson all playing incredibly poorly that were the problem, It was Sorrells not being able to coach up Jr. level talent.

I don't think they have any choice really unless they throw gobs of money at an OL, and BLM and have an all rookie defence.

The price to us is going to be much lower than somewhere else. We will have to pay him well, but everyone else hoping to get him is at a serious disadvantage. If the Riders, or Jones, are going to throw big money at him I see no reason why we wouldn't pay him what he feels is fair to stay home. Demski is a non issue imo, one of the FAs I am least concerned about really. He said he was waiting until the last minute for the phone to ring for the NFL but was preparing to come to camp in the CFL and was ready and had worked out his numbers already with the Bombers long before he signed. He signed in mid April iirc. Teamers, even great returners, are not generally massive contracts and I don't see Grant's salary being one that will cause us any SMS issues. He will get paid well as a returner, but generally that is not a big contract in the grand scheme of things.

There is a one week window prior to FA to field offers for all players. Maybe Demski listens to a few to get his market worth, but I guarantee that he wants to be a Bomber.

Every year Grant is a late signing. He even stated that it was always going to be NFL or Winnipeg in the Sun last year. He keeps his options open as long as he can, and the Bombers seem to be alright with that. Darby can fit our SMS this year, last year we let him walk because of Maston coming back. I would think Maston is a non-issue this year, as even if he signs with us his contract will not be high after his injuries. He is in a very poor negotiating position. I really don't see Sheed, or Jeffcoat as must signs tbh. I'd love to get JJ back, but he has to come cheaper than last year.

Yoshi is almost guaranteed as well. Dude loves Winnipeg.

Chris Streveler is not nearly as bad as SpeedFlex makes him out to be, and not nearly as good as Wbbfan is suggesting imo. I think Strev is a guy with average arm strength, that lacks some touch and accuracy. I think Strev could be a solid but not spectacular number one QB in the CFL but is highly unlikely to ever break any passing records. That's his top end. His low end would be as a really good number two QB, and package QB that any CFL team would consider an upgrade. Strev needs to work on his passing to ever be elite in the CFL. Speedflex is right on that. He could be effective as is though and WBBfan is right about that. His passing needs work but he could get by with it given all the tools he has. For sure. Strev isn't an elite passer, I think that if you look around the CFL starting QBs few can be called that. I think he could be an upgrade to a number of teams.

Stan is always a late signing, usually in the last week before FA. Demski has been a late signing historically too. Don't sweat it unless they are unsigned on the eve of FA. The 2022 season only officially ended 4 days ago.

I agree. You could announce Bighill and Jefferson and get a ton of their fans out, or you could announce mystery guests get people talking about it, curiousity up, and not exclude any fan from maybe seeing their favorite player. Then you get the diehard fans who think the mystery might be tied to a surprise signing and want to check out who it might be. Maybe they haven't really nailed down who it will be? Bombers told them they will get two players there for the event and that's all they know right now.

I am not at all worried about losing anyone except Stan and Yoshi, and I have a feeling the next few days will sort that all out. Everyone else is replaceable.

Yep...totally agree.

Except that is not at all what he said. He specifically mentioned this season. Nice try though....those goal posts move quick with you. McEvoy specifically stated that he promised Rourke during the season that he would renegotiate his contract FOR THIS COMING SEASON and that he felt he could offer a competitive salary and playing reps to him. Unless you feel that 81k is competitive salary then your little morning brainstorm is all for nothing.

I am sorry I quoted the article. I thought he could comprehend what he reads and would slink away into the night on this topic. Instead he is calling McEvoy a liar, and reaching by playing verbal gymnastics to alter what McEvoy was very clearly stating. Honestly, I don't know of a single person who reads that article and still doesn't believe that the Lions are going to give Rourke a big raise if he stays.

I wish Rourke well in the NFL, but I wish the interest would have come one year later so that TBurg could finally admit he was wrong. Reaching does not even begin to cover this level of forum Waterloo. He is like Napoleon making his last stand and choosing the hill he wishes to die on.

I am thinking that the wolves are at Putin's door and he is doing his best to keep them away. I feel that Putin is murdering people that are probably out to get him. However, what he is failing to realize is that killing the wolves at your door only tends to attract more wolves. If the Wagner group is not being paid they will simply leave. Mercs are mercs...there was never any loyalty.

Putin is going to be villified in the pages of history, and his own people will view him as a colossal failure over time. His ambition to secure his legacy has completely backfired. He will get what is coming to him, it will just take some time. He could have went down as one of Russia's greatest leaders had he not lost his marbles. Unfortunate.

From what is being said in Regina, many of their top FAs have also informed the Riders they intend to test FA. Riderfans sees this as not an issue, they will re-sign, but I have not seen a ton of players say they are going to test FA because they want to stay. Riders can get players, but they will have to do it the hard way by massively overpaying.