TrueBlue4ever

My search had Listed Thornton as a cornerback, but he played a bunch of positions, so I will move him to safety. Thanks for the clarification.

As we settle in for the long off-season, and add another year to the futility chart for no Grey Cup championship, I thought a little winter project may keep things interesting. So I propose to create "the definitive" list of the all-time greatest Blue Bombers by position, as voted on by MBB members, covering all 89 years of this team's existence. Each week from now through April, we will focus on one position and decide who are the best all-time Bombers at that spot, completing the whole team as we enter training camp for 2019. The team will be position-specific, so rather than, for example, picking 3 middle linebackers in the "linebacker" spot, I will focus one week on middle/inside linebackers and one week on outside linebackers. Same will go for slotback/wide receiver rather than just "receiver", safety/halfback/cornerback vs. "defensive back", and fullback and tailback vs. "running back". Also, where a player may have excelled in 2 areas, you are only to judge their merit for the position that they are nominated for that week (ex. Charlie Roberts could show up both as a running back or special teams returner, but when voting for him as a returner, do NOT consider his contributions as a running back in your overall estimation of him, and vice versa. Same would go for Rod Hill - ignore his special teams ability to block punts when considering his abilities as a defensive back, and if a kicker did both punting and placekicking, analyze each facet separately rather than their overall impact). Because of changing offensive and defensive philosophies, I am going to expand the team in a couple of ways. On defence, rather than deciding between a 3-4 or a 4-3 defence, I will pick 2 inside/middle linebackers and two outside linebackers, and also two rush end/linemen and two interior linemen/nose tackles. To balance this on offence, there will be a tailback, fullback, slotback and wide receiver position, but also a #5 receiver position to account for the newer 5-1 offensive set. The defence will be chosen first, then special teams, then offence, and finally coach and GM. I will try to dig into the archives so as not to omit any candidates, but I may miss a few, so send in a nomination either as a response to this message or as a PM to me, and I will include that person on the list and try to highlight their accomplishments for your consideration .Then everybody votes and the top vote getter (or two in some cases) will be on the team. We will start with the cornerback position. You can nominate any cornerback from any era from today up until this Friday, and I will compile the list. On this Friday (December 7) I will post the nominees for people to vote on, and the following Friday (December 14th) the voting will close, with the top 2 vote getters being selected. Also this Friday (the 7th) I will open the nominations for defensive halfback, and that list of candidates will be open for voting on the 14th, and so on. The order will be: Cornerbacks (2), Defensive Halfbacks (2), Safety (1), Outside Linebackers (2), Middle/Inside Linebackers (2), Defensive Ends (2), Defensive Tackles (2) Place kicker (1), Punter (1), Returner (both punt and kick) (1), Special Teamer (includes long snapper, special teams tackler, or punt block specialist) (1) Centre (1), Offensive Guards (2), Offensive Tackles (2), Wide Receivers (2), Slotbacks (2), 5th receiver (#3 vote getter in Wide Receiver vs. #3 vote getter at Slotback in a special head-to-head runoff vote), Fullback (1), Tailback/Running Back (1), Quarterback (1) Coach (1), GM (1) Hopefully this piques people's interest, and gets us through the snowy season. So off the top of my head for Cornerback nominees, I would suggest, in alpahabetical order: Roy Bennett, Juran Bolden, Less Browne, Rod Hill, Jovon Johnson, Reggie Pierson, David Shaw (believe he played corner), **** Thornton. Not on this list because I THINK they played halfback were Ken Hailey, James Jefferson and Ken Ploen, but I stand to be corrected. I cannot think of anyone else who jumps out at me, but I am certain that I have forgotten someone (and please be mindful of the distinction of cornerback vs. halfback - if I have made an error let me know!). Keep sending in suggestions for nominations and I will create the voting list on Friday. I promise future postings on this thread will be shorter.

Mueller will be filing materials in court related to Michael Flynn's convictions today, and materials related to Paul Manafort's backing out of the plea agreement on Friday. If the news is half as juicy as CNN wants it to be, there should be some real heat on Trump. Open question - Which scenario (should any of these come to pass) would be toughest for Trump's ego to take, (a) proof that he is fully involved in the Russian collusion in rigging the 2016 election (thereby outing him as a definitive liar on the one drum he has kept pounding throughout this whole mess), (b) that he has done so as part of a Russian blackmail scheme because of compromising info the Russians have on him (a.k.a. "pee pee tape") (which would display how the self-proclaimed "deal maker" has been played, outsmarted, and controlled by others - in the words of Hillary Clinton, "a puppet", not to mention the embarrassment of the tape, if he is capable of embarrassment) ,(c) no collusion but full exposure of his business dealings and use of the Presidency to line his own pockets via corrupt dealings that undermined the security and stability of the country while shining a bright light on his shady business practices, or (d) that all of this happened around him without his knowledge at all, exonerating him legally but exposing him as a clueless patsy who is the dumbest guy in the room being manipulated by the very "swamp" he promised to run out of Washington?

Manafort lied to Congress to protect Trump. And Trump values loyalty above all else. Remember that nauseating "staff meeting" where Trump had everyone go around the table in full view of the press showering him with all sorts of compliments rather than doing any work? Trump craves adulation and will praise those that stand by him. I read an opinion piece on CNN (take that for what it is worth) that although Manafort lying appears on first blush to hurt Mueller and protect Trump, the fact that Mueller knows he lied and will read in the scope of those lies at his sentencing tells us that Mueller already has the dirt on Trump, and doesn't actually need Manafort to make the case, but basically caught Manafort in a lie based on the solid evidence he already has. I am waiting to see if the Democrat-led House subpoenas Trump's tax returns now that they have the power to do so. Forget Russian collusion, I think that this is the way to expose Trump's dirty business, showing how he has profited personally off of the Presidency/. But why do I feel like the Dems once again will not go to the places the GOP goes to in politics because of some outdated notion of "compromise" and "fairness" and moral superiority, when winning is all that matters in Washington.

Doug Soeteart had the flu (as did half the team), was still recovering, and was supposed to have the night off. Ed Stanowski caught the same flu bug and started throwing up violently about 2 hours or so before the game, and couldn’t even dress. If I recall correctly, they could not get the back-up from the minors to Minneapolis from Springfield in time, and this era pre-dated the emergency one day signing of a back-up goalie practice, so they had no back-up for the game. Soetaert will still super ill and pushing a 100 plus degree fever, but gutted out the first period only down 2-1. The roof caved in during the second period, as the Jets gave up 8 goals and were down 10-2. But they had no options and Soetaert had to go back in for 5 more in the 3rd. I almost wonder if the Jets would have had to forfeit if he’d have been hurt (I think the trainer would have gone in - no goalie coaches in those days either). But the score had everything to do with the team all being so sick.

So, to review: Masoli is chosen over Bo Levi Mitchell, who I'm guessing is going to win MOP tonight over Masoli. (I'll edit after the awards given out if I'm wrong) Neither Andrew Harris (CFL rushing leader) or Brad Sinopoli (most catches by any receiver, and an all-time Canadian record, to boot) both up for outstanding Canadian player, are on this list Neither Stanley Bryant or Brandon Revenberg, both up for most outstanding o-lineman, are on the team Neither Adam Bighill or Larry Dean, both up for defensive MOP, are on the team Ty Long, his team's MOP as a kicker/punter and the west nominee for special teamer, is not on the list in either the kicking or punting spot Lewis Ward is on the list as "special teams" (usually reserved for a returner) but is beaten out by Brett Lauther for the "kicker" spot (remind me what Ward does again?) Saskatchewan and Hamilton, #4 and #5 in points given up, have 7 of the 12 defensive starters, #1 Calgary has 2, #2 Winnipeg has 1, and #3 Ottawa has zero. BC, #7 in points scored, and Toronto, #8, had 2 players each on offence, one more in total than #1 Winnipeg and #2 Calgary had 3 between them (and all 3 of their offensive players were on the o-line) Hamilton has 5 players on the team (more than any other team except Saskatchewan) and yet finished 8-10. So did the coaching hold the talent back? Nope, June Jones was named best coach (ahead of award nominees Chris Jones and Rick Campbell, along with Dave Dickenson and his league-best record). This was the #7 team in the league this year based on their record.

Hope the refs are on top of illegal footwear tricks and we don’t have a repeat of the Edmonton debacle in ‘96

Have a hunch the fly sweep will be used a decent bit today by both teams. Adams, Demski and Dressler vs. Thigpen, maybe Roosevelt for them. Contain on those plays may well determine who wins the run battle.

Good on you for going to the game today. Fans in the stands are the lifeblood of this league over big corporate dollars, and the cold shouldn’t be a factor for a true fan. One thing both Bomber AND Rider fans can hold their heads high about- fan loyalty. Respect.

Brandon Bridge to start, Collaros won’t dress according to Dave Naylor at TSN.

Apparently Brandon Bridge was taking first team reps at Rider practice today. Jones still non-committal about who starts but says he just wants both QBs ready. Expect to see Collaros, but maybe he's unwell enough that they aren't sure he'll play the whole game? Although Collaros hasn't lit it up against Winnipeg, Bridge would be a huge downgrade (IF we can contain his legs and scrambling on stupid broken plays, which we should if we are disciplined). One other factor. O'Shea has lost 2 straight playoff games in no small part because of special teams gambles (61 yard FG instead of 3rd down gamble to get better range in BC, and fake punt that turned into a turnover on downs and subsequent Edmonton TD). Will he play it safe, outthink himself again, or gamble with better results this year? Thoughts?

Marcus Thigpen is also coming back after many weeks off for the 'Riders. He has in the past pulled off the big play against the Bombers as a triple threat (receiving, rushing, returning) so I hope they guard against a bust with him. Not sure if there are any other "big play" threats on that Sask. offence that we fear (now returns and defence are a whole other story).

Bomber offence is the only one in the CFL that scored at least 2 touchdowns in every game this year. So hopefully we can already bank 14 points in this contest.

Settle down there, keyboard warrior.

In the CFL, consecutive games with a catch streaks survive games that you miss due to injury or sitting out. So Dressler’s streak is not in jeopardy if he is sat.

Since Trump has re-jigged the Supreme Court with an addition who has come out and said the sitting President can't be charged with a crime, he could argue that he pretty much can decide what's legal and illegal now.

Factors to consider: Rust vs. rest - would rather face a team coming off either no bye or a 2 week bye rather than 1 week, so Calgary first, the Sask. One week off allows rest, two weeks off could lead to rust. Injuries - don't want to give players time to heal, so Calgary first UNLESS Collaros is questionable to play by the semi but healed enough to play the Final, if that's the case Sask. first. Other team looking ahead past the Bombers - Sask. (and their fans especially) see Calgary as their big rival (moreso than Winnipeg, since they want to take down the top dog) and believe they have Calgary's number in the playoffs at McMahon, so they may be thinking too far ahead to the west Final rather than the task at hand. But if they were in the West Final automatically, then they'd simply be focussed on a home win to get to the Cup. Likewise, Calgary has had 2 years of Grey Cup heartbreak and probably feel like they let both games get away that they should have won. Their mindset all year is Win the Cup or Bust, so possible they may forget that you have to get there first. If they have to slog through a semi-final match first, may be more focussed on the journey of 3 steps rather than the destination, whereas if they host the Final they too may be looking ahead past that play-in game, so this favours us playing Sask. first., if you but in to this theory Momentum - Bombers could argue that they could/should have beaten Sask. in all 3 games, so can be more confident playing them than a Calgary squad that handled us fairly well at McMahon this year and have had our number more often than not in the past few years. So if you believe in carrying momentum into a game (O'Shea does not, BTW), then playing Sask. first sets us up for that. Final analysis - Unless Collaros can't play in 2 weeks but could in 3, I'd take Calgary first as they are more wounded and a week off would only help them physically and moreso mentally (witness our reset after our second bye week).

You just KNOW CNN is pouring over old Trump rally tapes looking for this guy in the background to splash on the news tonight. I actually can accept Trump's belief when he says CNN is out to get him, they are quite transparent at it (they have more opinion and analysis pieces than actual news headlines at any given time on their website), and I'm not going to say if he deserves it or not, but he certainly has made it easy for them to have ammunition to play with to go after him, and also to have an axe to grind with him (as he would with them).

Actually, I think the first salvo from Trump will be “again, media finds him guilty until proven innocent, just like Kavanaugh. Because he’s A supporter of mine, no trial, he’s guilty, all Trump’s fault. Such lies, we don’t even know he’s the real suspect. But you can bet CNNand the fake news will sell it that way. Corrupt”.

You know that this will actually be thrown out as a theory somewhere. Maybe not quite "Clintons are in cahoots with this guy" conspiracy, but "this guy is so over the top and that van so transparently phony that he is clearly a liberal wacko trying to deflect from the immigrant caravan crisis that is the real news in a frame job of Trump. No real person with an anti-Liberal agenda would be so overt in their hatred if they wanted to send bombs secretly. Obviously a set up to fool the fake media, who are all too willing to take the bait"

Card-carrying member of the NRA?

You know, I've sometimes thought, in the most Bizarro-world kind of way, that Trump actually is telling the truth when he makes his outrageous claims, just that the target is the exact opposite of who he says it is. He says "fake news" and points out the mainstream media as the culprits. Well, the biggest purveyor of fake news seems to be Donald himself (too exhaustive a list to recap, hope no one wants to challenge me with "cite an instance where he's lied"), so fake news does exist, but seemingly from his own mouth as much as anywhere. "Massive voter fraud" he claims as a ready defence if he loses, like the deep state is out to shut him down, yet the only instances of fraud I hear about are Russian collusion (in his favour), voting laws that consistently restrict minorities inordinately over white people, missing ballots or difficult voting practices in predominantly black neighbourhoods, and gerrymandering that all seems to end up favoring Republicans. "Drain the swamp" he says like the old order under Obama was terrible, and he'll clean it up, yet he has provided us with Conway, Miller, Bannon, the nepotism gang et al and exposed the swamp he surrounds himself with. Now I know the Dems have their bad seeds too, nobody is clean here, it's just funny that Trump, in trying to decry the flaws he sees in the system out to get him as some sort of persecution complex he has manifested, has in actuality shone a big bright shining light on those same issues that he himself he practices but has wholeheartedly railed against. John Oliver actually did a piece on gerrymandering (for anyone unfamiliar, it is the process of geographically re-aligning voting districts so that a politician can skew which voters can vote in which districts, and therefore manipulate the vote by loading the majority of the opposing candidate's voters into one area and spreading their own voters out into slim majorities in many districts, thereby winning the vote by winning the majority of the districts, even if they lose the overall vote count - that was my takeaway from it). What is astounding is that the process is totally legal, and the re-districting happens every election and is in total control of the ruling party, so the incumbent can legitimately shape the voting districts to his/her benefit and maximize the likelihood of winning the election, even with a minority of actual votes cast for them. Not sure how this compares to Canadian politics, but Doug Ford's unilateral ruling that the Toronto city counsel would be shrunk despite a court ruling saying he couldn't reminded me of this political gamesmanship.

I aim to please.........

CNN reporting that two "suspicious packages" (reported to be IED's - a.k.a. bombs) were found, one outside Bill and Hillary Clinton's home, and one that was addressed to Barack Obama. This comes two days after a pipe bomb was sent to George Soros' home. Also, police called to investigate a suspicious package sent to Time Warner offices (the parent company of CNN) that led to a building evacuation. At first glance, someone seems to be declaring war on Democrats in a very literal sense.