GCn20

Helle's ability to be successful in the playoffs will depend entirely on our ability to keep the front of the net clear. Last year that Oak tree Russian just camped out right on top of him all playoffs and we couldn't move him. A goalie has to be able to see the puck in order to stop it. Nonsense that Helle isn't a playoff goalie, last year we got beat by Colorado's speed and physicality in the slot. Blaming Helle for that is not fair.

We can still add some really good players once the NFL starts weeding out their futures and PR guys

I honestly think sometimes addition by subtraction can't be discounted. We lost some star power but I think we are deeper this year and some guys we moved on from were good moves. I hope we have a signing or two that moves the needle before or during the season as well.

True...would be a gold mine.

They wouldn't be the only ones. Would be a PR disaster for the CFL....probably try turn the game into two hand touch.

I will agree that pass pro was a problem across the entire OL and that Kolo didn't help matters. Yea...my main point is that I am not all that sad to see him go at that price. Imo, he's another Sukh Chungh.

Sorry man, I will agree to disagree. You have to be able to get semi in the way. His footwork was absolutely awful in pass pro. That is not the mark of an elite OG. Was he passable? Sure. All-star....not in a 1000 years. I have watched a **** ton of interior OL play, and a lot of his play, and it was not good. He is slow off the snap in pass pro and tries to block with his arms only far too often because he lacks footwork and speed. He was great in the run block but he is a huge reason why ZC never settled in last year, and a HUGE reason why we lost the Grey Cup. There is a reason teams went at him. I get what you are saying about him being a first year starter that improved, but his achilles is his footwork and that is fundamentals not an experience problem. If he sheds 15-20 lbs maybe he's got a shot at fixing that and being an elite OG but right now he is not there. I will admit that I do have a bias against Dobson types who are big for nothing and much prefer an athletic OG even if they come in a bit lighter. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Dobson was useless....just over rated....and I stand by that.

Not even close to the truth imo. He was regularly and routinely beaten like a rented mule 1v1 against the league's better DTs. Could he handle 70% of the league's DTs sure....but he was absolutely our worst OL against the better DLs of the league and I'm not talking about him having to cover for Kolo....straight up 1v1. Ceresna absolutely dominated him like I've never seen an professional OG get dominated before. It was pitiful.

Dobson was easily the most over rated OG in the league last year, and yes, I was saying this when he was a Bomber still.

Give them some credit, that will be accomplished by next Saturday.

I totally agree that you don't send the world to Commonwealth. However, Edmonton is a far better place to send the world than Toronto from a people perspective. Toronto is just a bunch of ****** nozzles who think they are somehow more important than the rest of Canada and from what I understand, most people don't like going to cities like that.

The HC will only very occasionally over ride an OC's play call and it is almost always in a decision like you described above. 2nd and short and the OC wants to go into the bag of tricks or something and the HC will dash his dreams by over riding. Specific play calling on 2nd and long for instance...nope...doubt the HC even knows the offensive playbook well enough to do so. Growing pains is my way of saying that we couldn't run the complexities of our offence totally because of unfamiliarity with the playbook, and that chemistry was not there yet either. Those first few games last year the timing was brutal as well. Just out of synch and it is my opinion it is because players were somewhat confused and just not enough reps to get comfortable yet.

Yes and no. Buck didn't do a great job last year but it was a mix of things, personnel being one issue as well. We went into last year trying to get younger. Realistically, anyone should have expected some growing pains early in the season to allow us to do that. MOS gave the benefit of the doubt to an OC, that up to last year, did a decent job. Also, not a single one of us knows what conversations MOS did/didn't have with Buck last year regarding the offensive inconsistency. Our offence got better as the season progressed so there is that as well. The GC game....short of MOS running upstairs and kicking Buck out of the booth there was little he could have done.

Should you blame a cold virus for a runny nose? Yes. Throwing into double coverage is a symptom of a weak offensive scheme. Should the QB do it? No....obviously not, but he is paid to make plays and when he is throwing into double coverage one has to ask why the QB felt that was his best/only option. Also, he may have thrown into double coverage 3-4 times all season. Don't exaggerate to try and make your point, we've all watched the games and know this was not something that happened game in and game out. Did he throw into tight coverage often, yes, and that is the DB reading the route far easier than he should have been able to. That's on the OC mostly, and partly on the receiver not recognizing his route tree options based on the DB positioning.

I just hope that at the trade deadline we don't make moves that will compromise our team speed like last year. Monahan and Toffoli, while good players, brought down our ability to roll 4 lines that play with speed. That is key to our success thus far this year, and will be in the playoffs.

Yes, that definitely was a factor in the loss. Kelly was a far more mobile QB and we lost contain often.

Running game certainly helps, but it's pretty straight forward really and doesn't really simplify the passing playbook. You are right that it does allow the passing playbook to be simplified though. The last 2 years we ran the ball more than anyone. We can't blame our offensive woes last year on a lack of running. It was the fact that half our offence were new players and we didn't simplify the play book to reflect the fact that there would be inevitable growing pains because of that imo.

An issue that can't be understated from last year for sure. Buck is a very good OC if you give him what he had to start with. the second we started to rebuild our offensive player group the wheels fell off. That's not a knock on Buck's offence, just that it needs continuity of personnel and perhaps a slight criticism of his ability to tweak his offence to accommodate a bit of a rebuild of our receiving corps.

I think that clip board holders, and QBs that are not highly athletic, usually HAVE to be more well versed in the X's and O's. However, personality and ability to lead is just as important. Anyone think that a guy like MBT would make a great coach?

MOS's roster work and who is kept/released is fair game in-season. Right now roster composition is on KW. There is no pro coach in the history of pro coaching that has ever told a GM to not sign talent for training camp. Anything being done right now is on the GM.

Yep. Even when it's undeserved, coaches wear their record for good or for bad, that's how they are judged. The GM gets the talent assembled. That's his job, he gets the praise/fault for it. The HC doesn't sign the players. The HC is then responsible for taking the assembled talent, evaluating them, and then putting out a winning lineup and putting the talent in a position to win. Anyone suggesting otherwise is talking out their ass. Does the GM and HC talk to each other. Absolutely. At the end of the day though KW decides who stays, who goes, and who to sign and MOS decides how to use them. That is their respective job. KW has an SMS in which HE has to decide the best use of the dollars. MOS has input but the person deciding any players fate is KW in the offseason, and MOS during the season.

I'm not ignoring anything. Jake Maier is not a starting quality QB in this league, Good back up...but that is all.

Nick Arbuckle? Now you are just arguing in bad faith. One win, or one season, does not a QB make and that is why you look at the past several years when looking at a QB's winning pedigree. Harris is not a winner, Collaros is that is why the Bombers can give ZC a little extra rope and why the Riders should have moved on. Simple as that really. How does Zac give us a better chance to win? Really? He's a demonstrated winner. Harris is a demonstrated loser. As to whether the Riders could have made a better offer for Adams? Look at what Calgary gave up and then ask that question again.

I think Harris was a good QB, not great, but certainly passable. What he is now is 40. I don't care if he's Peyton Manning, running it back with a 40+ QB is not a good idea. Could it work out? Sure. However, there was a ton of QB movement this year and the Riders decided to run it back with an ancient QB. If there were no options whatsover, sure bring him back. However, there were options....many of them.

Once again, the right move would have been to pick up the phone and make a better offer for Adams than Calgary did. Hell, half of me thinks we should have done that as well. However, Zac gives us a far better chance to win than Harris gives the Riders. At the end of the day you can put the stat sheet up for Harris but he is aged out. Bottom line is that every time you start a 40 year old QB you are taking significant risk in losing your season.