Don't Look Back - 2022/2023 Bombers Off Season

[Bigblue204]

I didnt keep up with him un the NFL, but what are the chances of an Alford return?

[CodyT]

If the stats im reading are correct the Bombers defence placed as follows :

1st - points allowed (370)

2nd- rush yards (1607)

2nd - passing yard 4330

sure we can spin this in several ways, this or that, but the reality is we are near the top of the league in 3 major categories. I would like to see our takeaways and sacks but couldn't find that immediately 

2 minutes ago, Bigblue204 said:

I didnt keep up with him un the NFL, but what are the chances of an Alford return?

Not coming back. He's going to have a good career up there

[Bigblue204]

I'm not sure I understand being concerned with Lawrence cause another team dropped him. Not only is that incredibly common in the CFL but the same team took an all star Sam, and put him on the pr...then traded him only for him to start again.

I'm a bit more concerned with the interior of the D. Both DL and LB. We really need things to come together for it to work out well.

[Jpan85]

27 minutes ago, Bigblue204 said:

I didnt keep up with him un the NFL, but what are the chances of an Alford return?

0 was on game day roster all year

[Mike]

5 hours ago, 17to85 said:

Justify it all you like it's still a bad take.

It’s a bad take provided the Bombers find at least one new impact starter on D. There are a couple things in there I don’t really agree with (I’m pretty comfortable with the secondary as it sits) but for us to be going into 2023 with a worse DL than 2022 is scary. 
 

We can talk about being two years removed from an all-time historic D all we want, that’s irrelevant to 2023. Our studs on the DL are older and need complementary pieces that can rotate to keep them fresh. We saw that last year and another year of aging isn’t going to help. Our interior DL as it sits today is probably the worst in the entire CFL. Nobody is scared of Jake Thomas and Ricky Walker. The all-time historic D that we had in 2021 was propped up by incredible pressure from the DL and right now, we’re missing the pieces that allow us to do that. We’re not one piece away on the DL unless that piece is all-star calibre from week 1. We’re two pieces, maybe even three, from being able to have anything resembling a “great” DL in 2023. 
 

Is our front office good enough to find those pieces? Probably. Do we need them to? I’d say almost definitely. 

[Noeller]

5 hours ago, Bubba Zanetti said:

We are definitely an older defense so injuries are a concern, but we did have some bad injury luck last year and still led the league in points against. We managed that with important guys suffering season ending injuries and/or playing hurt for much of the year.

Our linebacking corps was generally a mess for most of the year with the season ending injury to Wilson, the so-so play of Clements(and then he got hurt for a good chunk of the year), and Bighill playing hurt and dropping back more to make up for loss of Alexander. With Wilson + Bighill healthy and Darby back i expect much better play from our ‘backers.

The d-line for sure suffered from the Stove effect. That guy is a beast and diference maker making everyone around him better. Sayles had his moments but was overpaid in free agency for what he brings IMO. He did leave a hole however. I like Ricky Walker so we’ll see what he can do in the competition with other DT’s Walters will surely bring to camp. He did find Stove so we’ll see what he can find. The d-line will for sure be a question mark going into training camp. The two Jeffs are still elite ends but are into their 30’s so keeping them fresh and healthy should be a priority. Walters didnt add anyone during free agency so itll be interesting to see what unfolds. Maybe Kongbo comes back??

The secondary i have high hopes for, especially with Alexander healthy to start the season. Nichols is elite and Houston was excellent before his injury. I liked what i saw from Lawrence in his brief time here, and Parker looked good for a rookie. Rose needs to find his game and have a better year. If he can get back to even 75% of his 2019 self we’ll be looking good.

My glass is generally half empty and obviously injuries can derail any season, but with some better luck i think our D will be just fine. And even if they take a step back who cares!?!? Were gonna be putting up 50 a game with our insane Tecmo Bowl like offense!!

 

 

 

 

This is a nearly 100% perfect take. Spot on. 

[SpeedFlex27]

34 minutes ago, Noeller said:

This is a nearly 100% perfect take. Spot on. 

I've been saying this since pre season last year & yet we can't seem to rectify the situation like other teams can. We let Sayles go to free agency & didn't seem to go after any free agents as well which is a real concern. 

[Wideleft]

11 hours ago, CodyT said:

If the stats im reading are correct the Bombers defence placed as follows :

1st - points allowed (370)

2nd- rush yards (1607)

2nd - passing yard 4330

sure we can spin this in several ways, this or that, but the reality is we are near the top of the league in 3 major categories. I would like to see our takeaways and sacks but couldn't find that immediately 

Not coming back. He's going to have a good career up there

CFL only seems to have stats up post Week 20 when only Edmonton played 18 games.

This ain't right!  Bottom table shows what the teams gave up - not forced.

 

 

Edited March 1, 2023 by Wideleft

[Booch]

but....we dont know who they plan to  bring in to camp...maybe they have a guy...or 2 who "verbally" committed if nothing pans out by TC for them...You do recall that Stove was added...what the week before camp....I'm almost thinking days before actually as thats what he was doing...unheralded and hardly mentioned...but it panned out well....so hard to judge until we see complete camp roster

And hey....after we see how all we have developed after another camp...maybe we swing a trade...crazier things have happened...some team may sustain an injury and need a body...and we may have one worth dealing

Don't underestimate Hansen's presence back this yr either, he is a more than adequate rotation piece to give our guys in game rest, and has lined up inside and out

I not worried about the secondary in the least, its a good mix of young guys, and vets, none of whom is overly old, and not worried about Rose either. Lawrence was a right steal last year and after a full camp will be one of the top corners in the league this yr.

I wanna see tho a new stud heat seeking missile DI Linebacker, and back to the main issue...we need at the very least, and stud DT who moves bodies and takes up a lot of attention...we have that...we be top 1...2 defense in league again, as based on the offence..they are gonna get a lot of time to rest on sidelines and not get bagged out

Edited March 1, 2023 by Booch

[Brandon]

Once again... is Walters not bringing any bodies at all to camp?  Doesn't his track record give him way more then then the benefit of doubt that he can find real talent?

I don't understand why we need to be chicken littles and also pretend that this team hasn't found numerous high quality gems over the last many recent years? 

So instead of saying this team is going to suck and Walters sucks for not over paying on free agents... maybe we can talk about how Walters has the ability to find amazing talent year in and year out?    It's like people forgot that Dalton Schoen was a complete unknown last year and look how that turned out?

 

[Booch]

Just now, Brandon said:

Once again... is Walters not bringing any bodies at all to camp?  Doesn't his track record give him way more then then the benefit of doubt that he can find real talent?

I don't understand why we need to be chicken littles and also pretend that this team hasn't found numerous high quality gems over the last many recent years? 

So instead of saying this team is going to suck and Walters sucks for not over paying on free agents... maybe we can talk about how Walters has the ability to find amazing talent year in and year out?    It's like people forgot that Dalton Schoen was a complete unknown last year and look how that turned out?

 

yup...I sure he will bring in bodies...we had a weak and depleted secondary ..for yrs...constant turnover...yrs where we had 10 diff guys starting....since that circus time we have found Alford..Nichols, BA, Houston, Mike Jones, now Parker and have also seen value and how to best use guys like Taylor, Darby, Maston and now Lawrence...where other teams seen no use/value in them and mis-used their skills....i'm not to concerned on March 1ST....Nope

[17to85]

8 hours ago, Mike said:

It’s a bad take provided the Bombers find at least one new impact starter on D. There are a couple things in there I don’t really agree with (I’m pretty comfortable with the secondary as it sits) but for us to be going into 2023 with a worse DL than 2022 is scary. 

I mean there are questions in D sure. DL needs some depth and some other places could use some depth.... but this team also has a history of finding impact rookies so I choose to believe they will find some for the positions they need. 

 

D was absolutely hammered by injuries last year and still performed pretty well, especially when those bodies came back. Kyle Walters js too pragmatic to not address issues.

[Bigblue204]

32 minutes ago, Brandon said:

Once again... is Walters not bringing any bodies at all to camp?  Doesn't his track record give him way more then then the benefit of doubt that he can find real talent?

I don't understand why we need to be chicken littles and also pretend that this team hasn't found numerous high quality gems over the last many recent years? 

So instead of saying this team is going to suck and Walters sucks for not over paying on free agents... maybe we can talk about how Walters has the ability to find amazing talent year in and year out?    It's like people forgot that Dalton Schoen was a complete unknown last year and look how that turned out?

 

Not a single person has said anything remotely close to this. Go have a coffee

[Brandon]

23 minutes ago, Bigblue204 said:

Not a single person has said anything remotely close to this. Go have a coffee

Lol not a single mention of Casey Sayles going away in free agency and zero  mentions of how we have not addressed our d-line and how poor it is?     Not a single negative post about how this team is aging and how we haven't replaced our all stars with other teams all stars?    I don't believe you read this site.  

[Bigblue204]

37 minutes ago, Brandon said:

Lol not a single mention of Casey Sayles going away in free agency and zero  mentions of how we have not addressed our d-line and how poor it is?     Not a single negative post about how this team is aging and how we haven't replaced our all stars with other teams all stars?    I don't believe you read this site.  

Feel free to quote any post that says "...this team is going to suck and Walters sucks for not over paying FA..."

I'll wait.

 

[Wideleft]

More interesting stuff from Tait on Dalton Schoen (don't see that anyone has referred to this before).

"Schoen outlined how his various NFL workouts unfolded; he usually arrived in the city the day before and then was up early for physical testing and meetings with personnel and coaching staffs. He took three weeks off after the Blue Bombers loss in the Grey Cup to get his body right again for the process and then was all-in for a circuitous journey over the next month and a half from one NFL stop to another.

And here’s where it can get really frustrating: Schoen’s on-field evaluation would sometimes see him just run routes against air – no defenders – for about 10-15 minutes. Yet without the chance to run in a training camp environment against defensive backs, he had zero chance to showcase his skills, his ‘Street Dawg’ approach and maybe quash the suggestion his success in the CFL was predominantly because of the pre-snap motion – the ‘Waggle’ – that doesn’t exist in the NFL.

“You’re asking the same question my agent and plenty of people in my inner circle have been asking,” said Schoen. “It’s something we did struggle with – where do they put their weight in terms of the evaluation process? Is it what you were able to see me do on the field in a 10–15-minute workout after I flew to be there? Or do you look at the body of work I put together in the CFL over an 18-game regular season and two playoff games? Those are questions I’m not sure I got a great answer to in terms of how they evaluate people and what they were really looking for.”"

https://www.cfl.ca/2023/02/27/schoen-excited-build-off-successful-rookie-campaign-in-23/

[Mike]

1 hour ago, Brandon said:

Once again... is Walters not bringing any bodies at all to camp?  Doesn't his track record give him way more then then the benefit of doubt that he can find real talent?

I don't understand why we need to be chicken littles and also pretend that this team hasn't found numerous high quality gems over the last many recent years? 

So instead of saying this team is going to suck and Walters sucks for not over paying on free agents... maybe we can talk about how Walters has the ability to find amazing talent year in and year out?    It's like people forgot that Dalton Schoen was a complete unknown last year and look how that turned out?

 

I’m really curious lol why do you almost always reply to comments nobody has made? 

[Stickem]

With regard to Sayles......Walters definitely said he wasn't going to give Sayles his ask and let him walk...I was not impressed with Sayles and didn't believe he should get a raise of any kind so I can agree with Walters call on this one....To say we haven't got a replacement this early in the game is a little pessimistic ....how do we know what is coming down the road....I believe in this club finding talent....it's been proven time and time again.......have a little faith

Edited March 1, 2023 by Stickem

[Bigblue204]

Just now, Stickem said:

With regard to Sayles......Walters dfinitely said he wasn't going to give Sayles his ask and let him walk...I was not impressed with Sayles and didn't believe he should get a raise of any kind so I can agree with Walters call on this one....To say we haven't got a replacement this early in the game is a little pessimistic ....how do we know what is comong down the road....I believe in this club finding talent....it's been proven time and time again.......have a little faith

I wasn't the biggest Sayles fan either. He was solid, a decent DT and a decent DE. But wasn't great at either position. He filled a role here that shouldn't be too hard to replace.

[Mike]

2 minutes ago, Bigblue204 said:

I wasn't the biggest Sayles fan either. He was solid, a decent DT and a decent DE. But wasn't great at either position. He filled a role here that shouldn't be too hard to replace.

Agreed. Sayles was for sure a JAG, wasn’t sad to see him go.

[Arnold_Palmer]

14 minutes ago, Mike said:

Agreed. Sayles was for sure a JAG, wasn’t sad to see him go.

Probably the worst contract given out on FA. A lot of credit to his agent to get a rotational player paid like a star. 

[JCon]

@DTonOB You praised Sayles and the TiCats picking him up in FA. 

I would say that most at MBB were disappointed with his performance last year and don't feel as though we'll miss him. Why do you think the TiCats paid that much for him? And, what did you see that made you think he's a good pickup for the TiCats (or a loss for the Bombers)? 

[Bigblue204]

7 minutes ago, Arnold_Palmer said:

Probably the worst contract given out on FA. A lot of credit to his agent to get a rotational player paid like a star. 

I think that title will go to Wieneke. Haven't officially heard anything, but rumors are north of 190.

[Arnold_Palmer]

1 minute ago, Bigblue204 said:

I think that title will go to Wieneke. Haven't officially heard anything, but rumors are north of 190.

Well Harris is also making 1.2 mill over the next two years with the Riders, but picking a team that needs to desperately over spend just doesn’t feel right! 

[Bigblue204]

23 minutes ago, Arnold_Palmer said:

Well Harris is also making 1.2 mill over the next two years with the Riders, but picking a team that needs to desperately over spend just doesn’t feel right! 

Fair enough. 1.2 mil for Harris is.....something....thats for sure. Wow.