2023 CFL Draft Discussion

[WinnipegGordo]

 

[Mike]

I’m wondering if the Bombers look to use the global draft this year as a way to bring in any level of competition at DT. There are a couple of reasonably successful NCAA DT attending the “global” portion of the combine. 
 

 

[rebusrankin]

Who sticks out as global dt prospects @Mike?

[GCn20]

On 3/7/2023 at 9:25 AM, Mike said:

I’m wondering if the Bombers look to use the global draft this year as a way to bring in any level of competition at DT. There are a couple of reasonably successful NCAA DT attending the “global” portion of the combine. 
 

 

I would imagine that when it comes to the global draft we will just go BPA because it is usually a pretty thin crop. If one of these guys are available when we pick tho...

[JuranBoldenRules]

4 hours ago, GCn20 said:

I would imagine that when it comes to the global draft we will just go BPA because it is usually a pretty thin crop. If one of these guys are available when we pick tho...

I think it’s a lot more strategic than the Canadian draft.  They’ll have a sense of where they want guys…basically D and OL.  If you have guys that can replace a DI it’s pretty huge for letting you use those slots elsewhere…like potentially on a kicker if that’s the best option, extra receiver or back.

Hansen and Maruo are already solid role players on D.  The other French dude we picked was fine as a fill-in on special teams.

[Noeller]

Walters has also said in recent interviews that they might look at the global draft for some kicking help, for what that's worth....

[bearpants]

I know this as probably been discussed a million times but I can't remember... how do global players fit into the ratio? ... if we had a global punter or kicker and allowed Legs to focus on only one duty... does that have any effect on our ratio or DIs?

Edited March 9, 2023 by bearpants

[bigg jay]

https://3downnation.com/2023/03/09/john-hodges-2023-cfl-mock-draft-1-0/

[M.Silverback]

I watch a lot of RSEQ football and Alexandre Marcoux, OL, McGill is definitely a Bombers type. Advanced from the invitational combine to the national combine. Athletic, nasty, versatile. 

[bigg jay]

On 2023-03-05 at 2:50 PM, rebusrankin said:

Not 2023 draft but interesting article in the sun about local product Dallas Simms a wr who has offers from Minnesota, Pitt, Purdue among others. One to watch.

Another local kid to keep an eye on over the next few years. 

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/featured/2023/03/17/manitoba-nose-tackle-turning-ncaa-heads

[Noeller]

National Combine this weekend in Edmonton.....

 

[rebusrankin]

7 hours ago, bigg jay said:

Another local kid to keep an eye on over the next few years. 

https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/featured/2023/03/17/manitoba-nose-tackle-turning-ncaa-heads

Kid sounds like an NFL prospects, those are some big time  d1 schools.

[SpeedFlex27]

On 2023-03-05 at 9:26 PM, WinnipegGordo said:

 

Why do we need a ratio then? As time goes on more C anadians will play in the NFL. We don't need a ratio anymore in the CFL. Best players should play. 

[Jesse]

9 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Why do we need a ratio then? As time goes on more C anadians will play in the NFL. We don't need a ratio anymore in the CFL. Best players should play. 

Because the best players sometimes end up being Canadian - but they need the opportunity to get a shot and develop.

[WBBFanWest]

11 hours ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Why do we need a ratio then? As time goes on more C anadians will play in the NFL. We don't need a ratio anymore in the CFL. Best players should play. 

The reason is in the title.  It's the CANADIAN Football League, not the Silver Metal for US Players League.  Canadian kids should be able to have a real chance to play pro football in their own country and not have to fight over the scraps left to them by Americans who for whatever reason, didn't make it to the NFL.  Ya, the number of Canadian kids playing in US colleges is growing but it is still a very small percentage.  The CFL is special because of the ratio and our rules and I hope it stays that way.

[Noeller]

I know Al is just being an ******* about this, but I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'd rather watch an All Canadian CFL than an All American CFL. 

[TrueBlue4ever]

No Canadian ratio, and no way Nic Demski would have ever seen the CFL field IMO. No current Canadian o-lineman would make the cut either. And maybe Andrew Harris does not survive his first year and gets replaced before he becomes dominant, or gets cut more quickly after his dip in play in year 4 and never becomes the long standing talent he has become. Fact is there are too many Americans playing that can fill the role of a Canadian that no Canuck would get the chance to grow as a player without the ratio protection (the Baltimore Stallion experiment showed how dominant a team of all-Americans could be and how Canadians would not get a look with a stacked American roster). And if no Canadian kid playing pre wee football can dream of making it as a CFL pro, they lose interest in watching the game on TV or in the stands, and the CFL goes bye-bye. A Canadian success story breeds interest which breeds eyeballs watching the game and kids invested in playing the sport. 

[Mike]

4 hours ago, Noeller said:

I know Al is just being an ******* about this, but I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'd rather watch an All Canadian CFL than an All American CFL. 

I would certainly not 

[Noeller]

11 minutes ago, Mike said:

I would certainly not 

You and Booch both.... least surprising thing. 

[Noeller]

https://www.cfl.ca/2023/03/21/oleary-combine-format-opens-evaluation-window/?tf_u[mailId]=aff37ae8e7&tf_u[team]=CFL

 

When National and Global prospects make their way to Edmonton this week for the CFL Combine presented by New Era, they’ll head into a unique evaluation environment.

Wednesday and Thursday will still consist of traditional combine elements like measurements, testing, the bench press and the 40-yard dash. Teams will still have time during the week to interview prospects to help inform their draft decisions.

The Combine will take on a new look from Friday through Sunday, where the prospects will take part in practice sessions that involve individual drills, one-on-ones and new elements like the pass skeleton and inside run sessions. CFL coaches will lead positional groups and install offences and defences.

The change takes the Combine in a new direction, one that Ryan Janzen, the CFL’s associate vice president of football operations, said stemmed from discussions with teams after last year’s Combine.

“Where we ended up was let’s do live practices. Let’s end up having three days of practices where guys can go above and beyond their normal one-on-ones and individual period during Combine,” he said.

“The thing was we were bringing (prospects) from Japan, from Europe, NCAA players in the States, from all over Canada. To give them the opportunity to truly showcase what they can do, we felt it was too quick to go in and out, do the drills and then they’re gone. Let’s keep these guys a little longer, put them through some more drills, see how they do and give the scouts more time to evaluate.”

This follows a Kicking Showcase that the league held in San Diego in January — something that the teams had requested through those feedback sessions — and it was well received; something that got the new format rolling earlier in the year.

The new format should also let the prospects show a more complete version of their football selves to the teams that are evaluating them. In every draft there are players that don’t run the fastest 40, or don’t put up a huge amount of reps on the bench press. Those that may have been lost in straight testing will have an extra three days to show how the practice, what their comprehension is on new schemes and how quickly they can adapt to working with new teammates and coaches.

“It can really give the scouts a better opportunity to scout these guys. (The prospects are) already here, let’s have them stay a couple more days. Let’s bring in some CFL coaches to coach them up a bit,” Janzen said.

“I think we’re all excited to see how it goes. I think based on feedback from the clubs, I think this will be really good. But again, we’ll get their feedback after after this and see what they thought of it and how they may may want to evolve it even more.”

The new format has piqued the interest of a pair of CFL prospects. Southern Utah University defensive lineman Francis Bemiy and Western University running back Keon Edwards both said on a media call last week that they’re looking forward to seeing what the Combine offers them.

“I’m really excited for the practice portion of it,” said Edwards, the top rusher in U SPORTS last season.

“Be able to do inside run, actually showing scouts what I can do on the field. I know the Combine is also what they like to see from us, but from a football aspect I’m able to show the best of my ability there.”

“That’s a different aspect,” Bemiy said. “They’ll do the testing aspect on one side and then the game aspect, so they really get to see how you play (and) what are your skill sets on the football field, instead of just doing the tests. (It’s) pretty cool just to go out there and show what you can do.”

The new format should also be beneficial to the teams as they continue to evaluate the prospects ahead of the draft. Toronto Argonauts’ receivers coach and pass game coordinator Pete Costanza will be involved with the practice days of this year’s combine in Edmonton, working as the offensive coordinator and receivers’ coach.

In addition to the film the Argos have on the prospects, he’ll get an up close look at the prospects on the offensive side of the ball through this coming week, which can only help as the team zeroes in on how to use its picks in the CFL Draft on May 2.

“It does give you more knowledge and information about the guy, just to see how they learn, how they respond in a practice setting. And then how do they take it to the next practice period and apply it or not apply it,” Costanza said. “It’ll definitely give more information, especially for all the coaches that are hands on day-to-day for the three days of practice.”

The changes made to this year’s Combine will be closely monitored and just like last year, the league will meet with teams in a couple of weeks’ time again to discuss what worked and what didn’t. As the league ventures into relatively unchartered waters in its pre-draft evaluation, it’s not opposed to letting the nature of the event evolve to the teams’ liking.

“We’re excited about this,” Janzen said. “We felt (the previous setup for the Combine) it was too quick to go in and out, do the Combine, put them through a couple of drills and they’re gone. Let’s keep these guys a little bit longer, put them soon through some more drills and then really see how they do and obviously give the scouts more time to evaluate.”

“You hear people in football say all the time, ‘Oh, that’s not what we do, we don’t do that.’ It doesn’t mean it’s not a good idea. I think we’re on to something,” Costanza said.

“We just need to work our way through it here and have some flexibility this first go-round. Then when we’re done, we can reconvene and iron out the edges that need to be ironed out and make it better.”

[Captain Blue]

If the ratio didn't exist there would be no Mike O'Shea story, and countless others just like that. Those stories are what make the CFL personal and connected to people, not just Yet Another Football League. 

[TBURGESS]

No ratio doesn't mean no Canadian stars. It means no older Canadian backups. 

The best Canadians play in the NFL, the second best start in the CFL, the third best play special teams, the rest are backups.

The CFL isn't the ratio. It's the rules. It's the home town team. It's the stars and it doesn't matter if they are American, Globals, or Canadians. 

[SpeedFlex27]

10 hours ago, Noeller said:

I know Al is just being an ******* about this, but I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'd rather watch an All Canadian CFL than an All American CFL. 

You may not want to hear this but the reality is most Canadians don't. An all Canadian CFL would be the end.

41 minutes ago, Captain Blue said:

If the ratio didn't exist there would be no Mike O'Shea story, and countless others just like that. Those stories are what make the CFL personal and connected to people, not just Yet Another Football League. 

Mike O'Shea played in the 90's & early 2000's. That CFL is gone. Look at attendance around the league. Empty stadiums in Toronto & Edmonton. BC made a comeback, thnakfully but attendance there is always year to year. Not thinking of change is irrational. 

[Captain Blue]

7 minutes ago, SpeedFlex27 said:

Mike O'Shea played in the 90's & early 2000's. That CFL is gone. Look at attendance around the league. Empty stadiums in Toronto & Edmonton. BC made a comeback, thnakfully but attendance there is always year to year. Not thinking of change is irrational. 

And now he's the head coach of my favourite football team. How cool is that? In ten years some other former Canadian CFL player could be coaching someone else's favourite football team and maybe that resonates with him or her.

[SpeedFlex27]

6 hours ago, Noeller said:

You and Booch both.... least surprising thing. 

I'm no Captain Canada here. either. My preference is to see the best players play regardless of where they come from. However, I happen to believe that Canadians would still play without the ratio. All I'm saying is some of the things the league does need to change. The Draft, Neg Lists & the ratio. It's either that or switch to 4 down football. Everything needs to be discussed but it's not at the league level. Times change & the CFL needs to as well. However, the CFL will stick with doing things the same way they did 50 years ago. As long as the BOG's don't think it's broken. 

2 minutes ago, Captain Blue said:

And now he's the head coach of my favourite football team. How cool is that? In ten years some other former Canadian CFL player could be coaching someone else's favourite football team and maybe that resonates with him or her.

So, you seem to think that somehow that'll change? If someone is a good coach then they'll advance. Competition is a good thing. Why are people so afraid of it?