Booch

It looking like, and may be their only QB options next year are going to be a Bridge/Glenn combo...and that's scary....and not the good kind of scary. Bridge is a long ways off, and I'm not certain he is going to be a successful QB at all from what he has shown yet. I don't think he reads defenses well, or if he has ability to, and looks to have the mindset that he can always make something happen with his arm and is going to force a lot of balls, make a lot of bad decisions and be a turnover machine more than Jenning's was/is. Some guys just can't shake that trait when the bullets are flying...but time will tell. Once or if he is anointed the starter, teams will solve him pretty quickly and he is going to struggle.

Good hire...I may go as far as to say actually a very smart hire....good football mind there. If he has a couple experienced assistants in the Canadian game to help him along with the nuances of some of the odd things coming from American to Canadian ball he will be fine. He also has a pretty good connection network in the U.S so player recruitment there will be pretty good IMPORT wise, as much as Mack is a bit of a putz in a lot of areas he is well connected down south and can bring in decent American guys, just keep him away from the Canadian aspect of recruitment and drafting

That's pretty much a ridiculous statement one year removed from that draft. Ekakitie is developing fine and will see much more use this year, Spooner as well could push for a roster spot and I bet he ends up when all said and done becoming the best 0-lineman from that draft if Gray never shows up. Conteh as well is gonna be another Derick Jones but I predict better and a possible starter doen the road...uber talent and physical ability there, not to mention we grabbed arguably the best punter to come out of the CIS in many many years

That's kind of what I was saying all along too...we sacrificed traditional scheme and philosophy to compensate for inadequate personnel elsewhere...mainly linebacker and the other halfback spot. Our safety was used to help out in the box more so than in the secondary and was rarely there to give over top help or to help in coverage...a lot of times he recognized it and tried to get there, but 9 times out of 10 could't and no fault of his but would make it seem like a coverage bust, or him missing an assignment..which it wasn't Same with the DB's at times...the veterans would at times cheat or overcompensate to "help" but in football it takes 12 guys doing a specific thing to be successful and when one breaks down to help another spot..well then you get exploited. I can bet teams schemed specifically against us to bait certain guys in knowing the veteran will recognize and over compensate and then attacked his vacated spot..some games I was able to call it before it even happened as the play developed. The notion that the DB's couldn't play man is garbage as well. Also our apparent use of the middle linebacker position was basically a wasted guy on the field with no purpose and teams schemed it. Was a total scheme issue the past year due to personnel and it compounded all over the defense. What ails this defense would be fixed with the traditional use of the MLB as has been seen since the constant use of the 5 reliever set offence, with a player who can play sideline to sideline...have the loose hips to turn and run with a receiver and cover as well as be stout enough to step up and take on the run. Those guys are a dime a dozen down south and we have to lose the mentality that we want to run that position as a Canadian spot...because those guys are more like $10 a dozen and don't come around that often

Yes....everyone wants to play for Jones...it's a given lol

Harris extends in Ottawa....another possible QB for the Rider's the fan base was possibly hoping for down...Hello again Kevin Glenn for them haha

Not in same category by any means..thats not what I meant..People here are so hung up on size for certain spots was just saying he is basically same as Singleton size and testing wise. He played all the positions in College so would not be foreign to him, also from my experience playing in the middle is probably the easiest to step into...tho that's just my opinion from playing linebacker but I am sure many here will love to disagree

Stats are so misleading...never a proper barometer. To truly assess you need to know the assignment and watch game film...not TV feeds. This defense was a victim of a ridiculous scheme/philosophy and the lack of the linchpin type guy in the middle..plain and simple. And when you get others over compensating for a weakness..well other parts break down as a result. A good majority of the deep ball and mid to deep middle stuff was a result of the safety pulled out of there to tend to other duties, and no over the top help. For 2 -3 years now we have had to alter and adjust to compensate for the oversight/overvaluing of what we had in the middle..and it is the sole reason we have gone 0ne and out the last 2 post seasons. Good thing we had the talent we did on defense, or else it would have been real ugly. We are basically a middle linebacker and a scheme adjustment away from being very strong, and really I bet Santos-Knox could do the job as he is basically physically the same as Singleton body wise..just doesn't carry a National Birth Certificate

Why would you upset the apple cart if you don't have to? With the possibility of Bond being out now you would then have 2 spots to fill on the line, which could lead to problems with cohesion/continuity/consistency right off the back. As it is now we have our entire starting line back from the last 3 games of the year and the play-oof game...so this is good. Also I'm pretty sure Hardrick wouldn't command huge bucks re-upping yet...have another really strong year or two perhaps then

Big add...and 2 years too...Basically has offence solidly back in place...now to just get that one impact receiver...can't emphasize how much continuity counts for especially on an offensive line

If I was the ARGO'S I would convince him to come on as a "player coach" as the back-up or 3rd stringer at a back-up salary which would be more than an entry level coach salary by a big amount. That way they can go after Franklin..or whomever comes free in free agency to mentor and help develop him..he can be involved in the game day game plan and also be a nice insurance policy in a game when the starter goes down, or the offence is struggling and may need a boost.

which made things even worse due to the fact that he had no contacts or pipeline whatsoever down south to help in recruitment, and the fact that he had zero football experience playing/coaching/developing so when on his scouting excursions how was he supposed to properly assess talent and know what to look for that the common eye doesn't or won't see. Sure a video/highlight reel of a guy looks all fine and dandy but they are generally put together showcasing the positive plays...not the whole story of the guy and thats what he went off of I am certain most of the time. He needed to have contracts and ways and means to access teams 22 man film and go more with that and talks with contacts. Look for what they call "20 footers"...a term referring to all you need to see is 20 feet of game film to know that you have a star/gem

He didn't need to backload Milt...He had to, mainly because he was already caught in that vicious circle. There always some backload going on in SMS systems but not to that extent, and even so...if everyone else is running off a cliff are you going to as well?..I know for a fact from players how he operated and how many guys walked for less money because we couldn't pay them in the actual year they played..a small up front bonus and paltry salary with the carrot of a nice bonus the winter after the season ended didn't sit well...especially with the notion you could get dumped before the bonus came into effect Canadian talent is always there, just more escapes down south now, but regardless you still had to dress X amount of Canadians and compacting era's there was probably more Canadian talent in the CFL then as opposed to now (see more go to NFL now comment above) just we had none because 1) Taman traded away most of our high round picks...continually and 2) we only were able to land aging/marginal Canadians for the most part via free-agency as we were in cap hell (see back loaded contracts) and 3) bulk of our Canadians came as cuts from other teams. Mike Kelly's demise was his arrogance of turfing Glenn and having no real replacement..If he had Glenn year one I bet we were a .500 or above team. And sorry..Taman's weakness was he had no contacts and no real way to bird dog talent...most of the Talent that actually made a difference was referrals from players...and in a few instances their dad's or guys actually calling the Bombers...another fact that I can claim as a fact.

Dealt with Cal Murphy in 1993. Tho like I mentioned I think previously in a different thread that at that time I wasn't able to pass a physical anymore and wasn't insurable, so basically had no hope anymore

nope..

What are you referring to?

you can function only so long sacrificing Canadian talent and tossing away draft picks for over priced and downward spiraling vets only so long...then it comes back to haunt you in a big way and we suffered for it for a loooong time..He also had no network of any kind in the U.S at all. If it wasn't for players (current and past) giving him leads or having guys contact him it would have been real ugly. Also he didn't have an understanding of how to manage a SMS system and to navigate it to allow yourself to maintain a core...extend certain guys when you can and think 2 years in advance. He back loaded so many deals to fit things into a 1 or 2 year window he basically left the team screwed and have no chance to sustain anything...and put the Riders in the same situation we were in , tho not as bad as he was only there for a fraction of the time..

He originally didn't want to even bring him to camp, and when he did said he wouldn't stick around cause his size and specifically that he figured his hands were too small and would just be fumbling all the time. That wasn't posted in the media I'm pretty sure but I can tell you for a fact that it was said and that was his assessment. Also he said that Gavin Walls was pretty much just TCF and would not have any place on the team....what a judge of talent he was. I guess that's what you get when your G.M and for a time main scout/recruiter had no football playing experience, coaching back ground ans was basically a water boy who somehow moved up the chain

and TAMAN initially didn't want to even give him a shot...

There were a lot better optoins at guard than Labatte too...he's past his best before if you ask me

I'm glad we "missed" out on Thorpe actually

No he has made some nice shots...when he had the actually players to make that play via speed/seperation or jump ball ability. For the most part the last year and a bit we used JFG and Coates as that guy...not the ideal type of player for this. Also...just the threat of the guy doing that and being out there a defense has to respect it...if the cheat and break off too soon like they were they will be burned bad regardless of who is throwing the ball

A change in philosophy in coverage, and how we employ the MLB along with the right guy to play it is pretty much the hurdle we need to make to become legit grey cup favorites. All DB'S at the professional level can play man (some better than others) and mixing in more man, with our already aggressive D-line play (which will be better next year I would bet with the returnees one year wiser) and a legit linebacker I can see this defense leading in a lot of categories next year. That tho being with Randle and Heath re-signing but that I think is pretty much just a formality now. Alexander and Walker are going to be good...Heck Walker is what..21??...But they won't make the rookie errors again. If we could find one legit halback via free agency a backfiled of Randle, Heath, Loffler, Mr X and Alexander/Walker as the other and extra DB looks to be very solid. A lot of our over the top problems with the big plays was due to the fact the Safety a lot of the time was vacated and wasn't helping over the top (or being the threatening presence he was year before) due to the scheme of making the plays the MLB should have been making, or was compensating more for the deep middle and flats...poor scheme especially in CFL with most times 5 receivers and a lot time a RB looking to take a pass. Look back at a lot of the big plays...jump balls and what seemed like busted coverage's..there was rarely a safety to be seen anywhere close...that was scheme. Go more traditional...have Loffler in a safety position flowing to the play and coming down over top and you eliminate a lot of the issues..that and the fact in will be in the receivers heads again that number 16 might be flying in to knock them the eff out...you'd be surprised how that will affect an offense

Actually Demski would be a good pick-up by us and I bet Lapo could utilize his skill set very nicely in our system. My hope would be to use him inside and out of backfield ala Drurie and Flanders and line him up all over. Replace that wideside Canadian receiver with an import who can burn and stretch defenses...I would think that White we had on the PR at years end, or Givens could really do well there. Regardless we need that aspect to our offence...just the fact that we don't employ that hampers our offensive game somedays when defenses clamp down on our short/inside stuff...make a team not be able to cheat down, opens up a whole lotta room

I seem to recall to that being said...to look for guys who were good coverage guys...then went with a very passive keep it in front of you zone...