USABomberfan

A fair deal, but if Turner knocks Durant out again tomorrow, that thing that happened last year causing the Riders to be QB-less, they're in big trouble, and that's why Taman got Glenn in the first place. I think he'd try to hold onto him at all costs.

It's hard to say. He was the horse they rode 2nd half of last year and it worked. His numbers never have been great but he's always seemed to do enough to get the job done. What's been a bafflement to the Als is that since Calvillo retired, why is it that they've lacked continuity now from every QB including the ones that looked so promising? For example, in 2013 after Calvillo, Neiswander, and Marsh all got hurt, they found Troy Smith, he played pretty good, looked like he was the QB of the future, and then the next year fizzled out completely and has now left the CFL. Then of course it was Crompton last year who got dubbed the man and was workin for them, but now he's been put on the short rope. I think one of the problems has been the offensive coordinator carousel that's gone around now for the last few years, from the Hawkins situation in 2013 and that turnover and the eventual bringing back in of Doug Berry, to then going to Worman, firing him before the season started, then bringing in Schonert and Garcia. I guess maybe that brings me to the question of how much was last year's offensive turnaround the work of Garcia, and how much was Schonert. Because Schonert last night didn't look nearly as competent of an OC as he did last year and perhaps not having Garcia's brains to pick has hurt more than they thought. It's still early though, and although their defense didn't play good last night, Noel Thorpe has been one of the best in the league the last few years and I'd have a hard time believing that at some point the D won't get turned around again. I see this happen all the time though, teams look dead early but then turn it around midseason.

If I were Popp it would probably be Elliott, but I'm curious to see what this Cato guy has that their fans are talking about. Like I said though, this assumption that the Als stay in the basement this season is too premature. They were arguably worse at this time last year and still found a way to get it done. It's just too premature to count em out yet.

Pretty easy to bash Montreal, but think about this ... between our team and theirs, which team has had the better record after Labor Day the last few years? Both our teams have seen turmoil lately but look at which team seems to know how to get out of it? There were threads last year going around the other bomber site suggesting that the Als fire Jim Popp and do a complete tear down, yet he once again pulls a rabbit out of his hat and fixes that team, and would that have happened had he got axed? The Als have been a 2nd half of the season team and most of that is thanks to their leadeship skills and ability to stay focused, and let me tell you after last year, I certainly think people within our organization and fanbase could take note of that because for once I would like to see my bombers go out and have and strong 2nd half and go rolling into the playoffs and be the hot team for once. Just be aware of that friends.

I'll man up and say I was wrong about the Redblacks. Even though it was only one game and they still got 17 more games ahead of em, they couldn't have asked for a much better start. But I can't for the life of me figure out wby Jim Popp brought on Jonathan Hefney to that team, that guy is a friggin cancer everywhere he goes. Personally I did think the call there on him was a little overblown, but come on, finish that play up and then walk away and quit yapping. No excuse for giving the Redblacks a freebie. Also, Turk Schonert's playcalling sucks, he's worse than Crowton.

Nope but there are 4 suspended players among whom are Michael Sams and Chad Ochocinco.

One guy I'm going to be watching is Jonathan Hefney. He's been shipped around a bit since leaving here and I'm wondering if the Als got it right bringing him in. Obviously they wanted an upgrade over Tisdale, I'm not so sure he's it though.

I figure Montreal is in trouble for this, besides leading in very deserved pass interference penalties how many times have we heard "Chip Cox got away with one there..." Only when Duane Forde is talking.

6:30 I think. Yep, 6:30 Winnipeg time. USA might be in a different time zone... Yes NC is in the eastern time zone.

Problem is their offensive line still looks like garbage out there and against that Als defensive front, if they don't do something up there, Hank's gonna get batted around like a ragdoll. That's why I'm not a believer in them just yet.

Gamethread for all the non-bomber games. The bomber game'll have it's own thread, but I can't wait guys cuz the action is back and it all starts off again TONIGHT at 7:30. Go Big Blue.

Plus be subjected to merciless tormenting. Well at least I know those of more sane minds picked the Als in the week 1 pickem, via the poll results I've been seeing. Als lead it 79.5 % to 20.5 %.

After making my pick, this is where the poll results stand: Montreal dominating pick 78.9% over 21.1% for Ottawa Stampeder pickers 76.3% over 25.7% for Hamilton Eskimos in a landslide 92.1% over Toronto 7.9% but hey, congratulate a few brave souls. And Winnipeg in a tossup 52.6 over Saskatchewan's 47.4% We obviously know which game will win for ratings this week.

25 more hours till Als and Redblacks kick off this season. All I can say though is all those fools who picked the Redblacks to win this one are going to lose money on it big time.

Yeah espn2 comes pretty much standard in most basic cable packages, espnews usually requires a little more

Yup another story down in the backup QB saga in the Peg. In Joey Elliot's case, I can understand his frustration there. He was straight up shipped out with no competition period in either mini camp, training camp or preseason and as he had already been a member of this roster, that situation was totally mishandled. The Max Hall case last year was handled correctly. Fans thought he got the short end of the stick cuz he was Crowton's guy, but that wasn't true. He went up against stiff competition and failed to deliver the dynamics that Willy, Brohm, and Marve brought to the house. Guy had heart but his talent was inferior. In Yantz's case, I can understand the novelty and sensational story that a Canadian QB who cracked the roster would be, but at the end of the day, this is the business of winning and knocking out our 2 backup QBs on what will probably be a 3 QB roster would've taken quite a big impressive showing. Tough to do against positions pretty tightly solidified.

I know much has been said of doing this, and I know most people go to using free flash streaming sites like VIPBOX, Firstrowsports, and others, but I don't recommend doing this because these a lot of them have malicious ads on them, and some even stop you from using adblocker software. Plus the quality of this method is a lot better and the games are seen in much clearer definition even with average DSL speeds. http://cflonwatchespn.blogspot.com/2015/06/how-to-watch-cfl-games-in-states.html This should clear up the confusion that CFL.ca and ESPN don't explain to their users.

Don't know, just saw it on this: http://cfl.ca/roster/index/team/4 Chaz Schillens too

1. The Redblacks are not playing at home, so that one is out the window. 2. I have seen NOTHING and I mean NOTHING from the Redblacks that suggests that a win is gonna come this Thursday. I don't see that O-line of theirs in any better shape than it was last year, John Bowman is gonna have a field day rushing the passer. 3. I don't see how anyone can think an old timer buffon that's 40 years old is gonna get that team anything. He's looked about 1000x times worse than even Anthony Calvillo looked in his last year playing and that team may improve some but they're showing no signs of being ready come opening day. I'd almost be willing to bet my lifesavings that by week 10, Thomas Demarco is running the show. Yup I said it, Demarco will be the QB by week 10. Now as to the Esks and Argos game, hey I understand where everyone's coming from there, I know on paper it seems like no Ricky Ray should tip the balances heavily in there favor, it's just watching Trevor Harris, I don't think he's as bad as everyone thinks. Here's what I think the Argo's success is contingent on. Down and distance. If I'm Millanovich, I try to make the game plan revolve mostly around the short passing game. Make first down solid gains long enough to make 2nd and shorts and manageable for the offense and work the way down the field methodically. Staying on schedule is what's most critical. If they can do that, the Argos have a chance. If they veer off schedule and get caught in a lot of sacks, penalties, and turnovers, it's gonna be a long day in Toronto.

Well folks, the week we've all been waiting for is finally here and in 4 more days, the real thing the CFL 2015 season starts. Lotta things to watch for this week and while certainly there will be things that can be seen in week 1 that may be misleading when it comes down to the late season, a lot of teams are needing to prove something in terms of where they sit today. Game 1: Thursday at 7:30 ET Redblacks at the Als - Neither team had a very good preseason, but for the Als, they want to start out the 2015 season strong and contend for the East. Their miraculous turnaround last year after starting out 1-7 on the year but finishing 9-9 and making it to the East final despite not winning it, is a momentum swing in and of itself and was done behind the arm of pornstache and Jon Bowman leading a vaunted defense. Both factors are in play again and they are here to prove that run was not a fluke. The Als have been in trouble early the last 2 years but have made the playoffs now for the last almost 20 years in a row, something that does not seem to be coming to a stop anytime soon. The Redblacks, it's their 2nd year now back in the league, and after debuting a 2-16 record, well the only place they can go is up. Their big challenges facing them is that Hank is probably done after this year and they don't even know how much he has left at this point, and I would not be surprised if sometime this year even, Thomas DeMarco took over the controls. Also did adding Mo Price, Greg Ellingson, Chris Williams and others address their receiving issues? I think they'll do better than 2 this year and some wins, even big upsets will be seen this year, but it will not start in Montreal. I will say Alouettes 26-14 Game 2: Friday Night at 9:00 ET Tiger Cats at Stampeders - Hamilton will be trying to get to their 3rd Grey Cup in a row under Kent Austin, something that would've been unimaginable even just 5 years ago. Calgary once again comes out under Bo Levi Mitchell and Jon Cornish who after getting sidelined for a while early last year expects to come back again strong and once again lead the way for the stamps. The Stamps have had a lot of change of receivers over the years from Kenyon Rambo, Jabari Arthur, Mo Price, Nik Lewis, Forzani, Sinopli, and a plethora of others that have all departed now, yet continue to get it done and old Huffnagel is still out to prove his team is in control of the West. The Grey Cup rematch is on and it'll be another nip and tuck close battle, but I think the Stampeders pull it out just barely by a score of 23-20. Game 3: Saturday at 5:00 ET Eskimos at Argos - This game is one of those huge IF games that you really don't know what to expect. For the Argos, they will not have Ricky Ray in this one so all eyes will be on Trevor Harris going up against what was a tough Eskimo defense last year. He will have help however from the much anticipated return of Chad Kackert and the new addition of Brandon Whitaker in the passing game and with a new defensive coordinator, the Argos have some things to look forward to. The Esks also though are not without loss, while Reilly has gotten the credit for much of their play, RB John White who was that one guy who bruised through defenses will not be there opening day, and ex-bomber Chad Simpson will try to get it done. Also no longer there is WR Fred Stamps, and Shamawd Chambers is also on the 6-game IR. Adarius Bowman had a big year last year, but will he do it again? Good solid first year of Chris Jones but those expectations are gonna be way up again so the pressure is on. Really don't know what to call here, but I'll take a surprise Argos by 4 Game 4: Last but not least at Saturday 8:00 ET Bombers at Riders: So we all wonder, will the new additions on our O-line show up and withold the pass rush of Tearrius George? Good news is John Chick is suspended so that will make the job easier. Cotton will be there this time and we want to see Drew Willy and our special teams improve on last year, and our defense stop Allen and Messam. I think it'll be another close tight one here but think we just end up a tad short with a 27-25 loss.

Yeah cap space and injuries had to be why they let Whit go, couldn't see the guy having any attitude problems. They obviously like what they have in Logan and housing him, Sutton and Whit just couldn't be done. Quite an addition for the Argos though that's gonna help out Harris and Ray when he gets back in the passing game.

Not sure what you mean by this. If you're essentially saying we're not going to be seeing hardly any blitzes or tactical pressure packages, I somehow don't think that's true. Course he may have a preference for wanting most pressure to come from the front four and if you're strong up front, that can really put you at an advantage like it did for us in 2011. If you don't have that, well yes you generally will get screwed without blitzing. I still think that's a bit better than some of etch's crazy packages that end up getting you burned in the running game and end up giving up too much yardage in the long run.

I don't necessarily disagree about this. You could make case that Willy may have the opposite problem at times when he appears to try and wait for a play to develop downfield as opposed to taking the shorter option and sometimes pays for it with a sack. We know this. However this throw short of the sticks on 2nd and long seemed to be a thing that all our QBs ffrom Jyles, Pierce, Brink, and Elliot all did and all while Lapo was coaching. Sometimes it may have been appropriate if the team was in bad field position and needed to get just enough room to get out of their own EZ 1st down or not, but it often ended up becoming too much of an ultraconservative mantra that this team embodied and never got fixed. Elliot later on would sometimes piss the coaches off for attempting to chuck more balls deep in the EZ when they didn't want that, but all in all, r2p was the motto here.

Kinda strikes me odd with Whitaker shipping out. Was he just too much of an injury liability lately that they just needed to stick their eggs in another basket? I just thought he was their x-factor guy in the passing game that I didn't think they'd let him out. Tisdale I understand, he didn't contribute much for them and he's not really a commodity right now so I can see that. My guess is they both end up in Saskatchewan.

Wrong on both counts. Whenever Durant was not behind center, Lapolice's play calling stunk to high heaven and was unwatchable. Unacceptable on all counts and if he was as good as people say he is, every single one of those 7 other teams would've been pounding on his door and blowing up his phone telling him he has a job as coach or OC after he got fired here. That didn't happen and for good reason. And trust me there were way more long balls thrown by our offense last year on 2nd and long than there had been in a while. It was sometimes good, sometimes not good, sometimes Willy did need to check it down instead of trying for a home run like he did in the Banjo Bowl, or against BC in that final game last year. But all in all, at least I can say this offense wasn't playing not to lose like that f***ing clown Lapo tried to instill here. I believe LaPo has turned down a few OC jobs as he only wants to be a HC. Completely disagree with this Lapo's conservativism and play not to lose mentality doesn't resonate well at all with anybody on other teams. Do you think Jim Barker and Scott Milanovich would put up with that in Toronto? Absolutely NOT Would Jim Popp and Tom Higgins put up with that in Montreal? Dinwiddie tried that last year and got demoted for it so NO. Would Huggnagel put up with that in Calgary? No f***in way. Would Chris Jones and Ed Hervey put up with that in Edmonton? If they did Steve McAdoo would not have a job there right now and would get dumped for Lapo immediately. Wally Buono had the option to go after him as head coach when he dumped Benevides yet refused to do so, I wonder why? The Ti-Cats? I don't know but I doubt Bob Young is looking for anything new on O there. You'd figure the Riders after dumping Cortez would be trying to take Lapo home after doing that, and why would Lapo turn down a chance to return as OC to the place he had the most success in? Very strange indeed. Only team I could see putting up with Lapo's tactics is Ottawa given that they rolled with a similar guy in Gibson last year. Bottom line, this silly belief that Lapo is a hot commodity has no water in it. PERIOD!!!