Around the League: 2019 Off Season

[Zontar]

Jeff Matthews couldn't find his arse if you drew him a map.

[johnzo]

15 hours ago, Noeller said:

Man, I rewatched that WSF recently and it was a little dicey. That game was WAYYYY closer than it should've been and there was a reviewed TD for us that was big time iffy. That game was not domination by us... 

you're right, but I will always treasure the Harris run in the 4Q where Paddy Neufeld came out his stance like a rocket and was eight yards downfield before Harris even crossed the line of scrimmage ... he snowplowed Cameron Judge to the sideline, pancaked him out of bounds for good measure, and then celebrated with some salty words. 

definitely in the top 10 reel for 2018.

[Mr Dee]

👁‍🗨 Preseason (and just for fun) power rankings 

3Down Power Rankings: There’s a new No. 1 (at least for now)

We do our power rankings by having seven 3Down contributors (Edwards, Dunk, Hodge, Filoso, Ballantine, Gasson, Smith) rank the teams from No. 1 to No. 9. The team with the fewest “points” gets the top ranking, the second fewest is No. 2 and so on.

1) Winnipeg Blue Bombers (formerly No. 2)

The Bombers have most of their key contributors back from last season (including their starting and back up quarterbacks), continuity in the front office and coaching staff and solid base of Canadian talent. With questions in Calgary, Winnipeg is the team to beat in the West (at least for now.)

2. Calgary Stampeders (1)

No Micah Johnson, no Alex Singleton, no Ciante Evans… no problem? The champs lost a bunch of guys on defence and depth at receiver but still have Bo Levi Mitchell at quarterback and John Hufnagel’s ability to find players. Both will be tested again this season. 

3. B.C. Lions (3) 

With Wally Buono gone, general manager Ed Hervey has remade the Lions with a new coach (DeVone Claybrooks) a new QB (Mike Reilly) and a massive roster turnover. Talented, yes. But how fast and how well they come together will dictate the Lions’ fortunes. 

4. Hamilton (4)

The top-ranked team in the East has a lot of talent, an established QB, a new coach and the advantage of competing against divisional rivals loaded with question marks. 

5. Saskatchewan (6)

The Riders are loaded on defence and they just signed a punter so that’s good news. But there are question marks at quarterback and it remains to be seen whether the departure of Chris Jones robs this team of its swashbuckling mentality.

6. Edmonton (5)

The Esks are trying to re-load on the fly after losing franchise star Mike Reilly to B.C. and this seems like a make-or-break year for general manager Brock Sunderland and head coach Jason Maas. Oh, and the West Division is going to be tough as hell.

7. Toronto (8)

Welcome to the bottom of the power rankings, otherwise known as most of the East Division. There’s some optimism around new head coach Corey Chamblin and a sense that maybe James Franklin could be good. Releasing starting Canadian offensive tackles (Chris Van Zeyl) on the eve of training camp not so good, however.

8. Ottawa (7)

With Trevor Harris in Edmonton, the QB battle in Ottawa features the largely untested Dom Davis and the perpetual underperformer Jon Jennings. GM Marcel Desjardins was right about the cap not going up by much but the talent exodus could still hurt.

9. Montreal (9)

The No. 9-ranked team begins the season where they ended it and will need some sustained success to get the stink of their perpetual basement dwelling off their fancy new uniforms.

 

👁‍🗨 Personally, I’d rank Hamilton over B.C. to start. But it is just the start..

https://3downnation.com/2019/05/21/3down-power-rankings-theres-a-new-no-1-at-least-for-now/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

 

Edited May 21, 2019 by Mr Dee

[JCon]

I would have it: 

1 CGY

2 WPG

3 HAM

4 BC

5 EDM

6 SSK

7 TOR

8 MTL

[bb1]

8 minutes ago, JCon said:

I would have it: 

1 CGY

2 WPG

3 HAM

4 BC

5 EDM

6 SSK

7 TOR

8 MTL

Missing Ott...😊

[JCon]

Just now, bb1 said:

Missing Ott...😊

They haven't folded? Okay...

1 CGY

2 WPG

3 HAM

4 BC

5 EDM

6 SSK

7 TOR

8 OTT

9 MTL

 

[Noeller]

I don't particularly think the Esks will be world beaters, but there is no way in hell the Riders are better than them this year. Riders will be with the stink in the East....

[Geebrr]

1 minute ago, Noeller said:

I don't particularly think the Esks will be world beaters, but there is no way in hell the Riders are better than them this year. Riders will be with the stink in the East....

You are forgetting that Collaros is looking great at camp....

[M.O.A.B.]

5 minutes ago, Geebrr said:

You are forgetting that Collaros is looking great at camp....

Sure. But is he in bubble wrap? 

[GCn20]

3 minutes ago, M.O.A.B. said:

Sure. But is he in bubble wrap? 

Almost certainly is and the pressure created by the soft pillowy air cushioning will give him a concussion before the end of camp.

[wbbfan]

1 Cgy. They have always found new ways to win and new talent to replace old. Won it all last year and they are the kings until proven otherwise.

2 wpg. Feels like the year cgy slips. But that could be every year. Outside of everyone else, this is as deep and strong a blue team as we've seen in years.

3 ham. Continuity on the field. The coaches off the field turned over, were the future guys anyway. Steady winners, don't see them being spectacular. Just really good. 

4 bc. Took the biggest swing for the fences. Will struggle with consistency early, but they have some impressive talent. 

5 edm. Big flash moves arent always the best. These 3 spots will be up for grabs.

6 ssk. Ol, and qb will hurt the riders. Plus the heavy management and coaching turn over. A lot better then usual rebuilding teams though.

7 mtl. Finally some traction? I think they end up just missing the play offs but are no longer the free spot on the bingo card. If one of the qbs step up, they could be a play off team. 

8 tor. I see continued turmoil at qb, poor OL and mediocrity. 

9 ott. I see a lot of shakey retreads, and some serious roster holes. Ott built a strong team fast, based around the offense. Now I see a lot of old vets and guys We wouldnt want for free. 

[Geebrr]

8 minutes ago, M.O.A.B. said:

Sure. But is he in bubble wrap? 

Not to worry. 

They have already identified their next saviour from this camp🙄🙄

[M.O.A.B.]

1 minute ago, Geebrr said:

Not to worry. 

They have already identified their next saviour from this camp🙄🙄

Dang. We need to copy how the Riders scout QBs. Kyle Walters is very much lacking at his job. 

[SpeedFlex27]

1 hour ago, wbbfan said:

1 Cgy. They have always found new ways to win and new talent to replace old. Won it all last year and they are the kings until proven otherwise.

2 wpg. Feels like the year cgy slips. But that could be every year. Outside of everyone else, this is as deep and strong a blue team as we've seen in years.

3 ham. Continuity on the field. The coaches off the field turned over, were the future guys anyway. Steady winners, don't see them being spectacular. Just really good. 

4 bc. Took the biggest swing for the fences. Will struggle with consistency early, but they have some impressive talent. 

5 edm. Big flash moves arent always the best. These 3 spots will be up for grabs.

6 ssk. Ol, and qb will hurt the riders. Plus the heavy management and coaching turn over. A lot better then usual rebuilding teams though.

7 mtl. Finally some traction? I think they end up just missing the play offs but are no longer the free spot on the bingo card. If one of the qbs step up, they could be a play off team. 

8 tor. I see continued turmoil at qb, poor OL and mediocrity. 

9 ott. I see a lot of shakey retreads, and some serious roster holes. Ott built a strong team fast, based around the offense. Now I see a lot of old vets and guys We wouldnt want for free. 

Damn, those poor RedBlacks with all those holes to fill especially at qb. I just remember how smug Desjardins was when they came into the league & how he went out of his way during the Expansion Draft to mock the Bomber organization. As long as he remains the RB GM I'll never forget that. It's easy to kick a team when it's down & we definitely were at that time. However, now the shoe is on the other foot. LOL. 

[Wanna-B-Fanboy]

7 minutes ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

he went out of his way during the Expansion Draft to mock the Bomber organization. 

I forget what was said... 

 

Also, I can't shake the feeling I get every time I think of BLM- I want to crane kick him...

Edited May 21, 2019 by wanna-b-fanboy

[Tracker]

1 hour ago, JCon said:

They haven't folded? Okay...

1 CGY

2 WPG

3 HAM

4 BC

5 EDM

6 SSK

7 TOR

8 OTT

9 MTL

 

I would put the Esks in #4 and the Argos in 6th. Also, Desjardins has proven himself to be  a smart GM, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him pull a rabbit QB out of nowhere and challenge the TiCats.

[Geebrr]

6 minutes ago, wanna-b-fanboy said:

I forget what was said... 

 

Also, I can't shake the feeling I get every time I think of BLM- I want to crane kick him...

Basically that he would have passed on taking a guy from us if that was an option.

Prick

[wbbfan]

21 minutes ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Damn, those poor RedBlacks with all those holes to fill especially at qb. I just remember how smug Desjardins was when they came into the league & how he went out of his way during the Expansion Draft to mock the Bomber organization. As long as he remains the RB GM I'll never forget that. It's easy to kick a team when it's down & we definitely were at that time. However, now the shoe is on the other foot. LOL. 

I feel the same way about him and in general the RB fans. This will be the real test for the RB franchise, im sure itll be ok though. 

 

14 minutes ago, wanna-b-fanboy said:

I forget what was said... 

 

Also, I can't shake the feeling I get every time I think of BLM- I want to crane kick him...

Iirc it was some thing along the lines of we want to build things right and not do things like the bombers.

 

haha, same. The guy is talented, but a real ******. I wouldnt like him as a bomber. 

8 minutes ago, Geebrr said:

Basically that he would have passed on taking a guy from us if that was an option.

Prick

Thats it, thanks. 

[M.O.A.B.]

Delete

Edited May 21, 2019 by M.O.A.B.

[MC]

I think Edmonton will be better than anyone seems to be predicting and I think BC will struggle for at least part of the season.  They have some great pieces but I am not sure that there is enough depth.  My guess would be:  Bombers, Stamps, Hamilton, Edmonton, BC and then everybody else. 

Saskatchewan is the joker card though.  They could be very good if they can get some QB'ing.  Teams will pull out all the stops to hit Collaras in the first few games.  Their OC better be working on protection schemes. 

[GCn20]

5 minutes ago, MC said:

I think Edmonton will be better than anyone seems to be predicting and I think BC will struggle for at least part of the season.  They have some great pieces but I am not sure that there is enough depth.  My guess would be:  Bombers, Stamps, Hamilton, Edmonton, BC and then everybody else. 

Saskatchewan is the joker card though.  They could be very good if they can get some QB'ing.  Teams will pull out all the stops to hit Collaras in the first few games.  Their OC better be working on protection schemes. 

Don't worry he will have his dynamic 2 yard hitch pass offence running tighter than a drum by game 1.  Collaros will not even be touched. He will only throw for 47 ypg and have 4 TD passes on the season....but they will protect him.

Saskatchewan is no wild card so long as they have a Faberge egg QB and an OC that shuts down his play book because of that.

Edited May 21, 2019 by gcn11

[SpeedFlex27]

2 hours ago, wbbfan said:

I feel the same way about him and in general the RB fans. This will be the real test for the RB franchise, im sure itll be ok though. 

 

Iirc it was some thing along the lines of we want to build things right and not do things like the bombers.

 

haha, same. The guy is talented, but a real ******. I wouldnt like him as a bomber. 

Thats it, thanks. 

Desjardins said there wasn't anyone on the Bomber roster they'd like or could help them. We were struggling to field a team in 2014 & the league gifted them a berth in the Grey Cup with the expansion draft.  The RB GM was an entitled jerk who just laughed at our situation. Now, it's the other way around. The question now is, if the RedBlacks struggle will the fans disappear?

[Bigblue204]

7 minutes ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Desjardins said there wasn't anyone on the Bomber roster they'd like or could help them. We were struggling to field a team in 2014 & the league gifted them a berth in the Grey Cup with the expansion draft.  The RB GM was an entitled jerk who just laughed at our situation. Now, it's the other way around. The question now is, if the RedBlacks struggle will the fans disappear?

100% yes

[Goalie]

6 minutes ago, Bigblue204 said:

100% yes

No. The building only holds 22 k or something. They will be fine

[Geebrr]

7 minutes ago, Goalie said:

No. The building only holds 22 k or something. They will be fine

BMO is 25k for football, how is that going?

Declining attendance is a very legit concern there.